Simplicity KiwiSaver Review

Simplicity KiwiSaver Review

Simplicity KiwiSaver runs 6 KiwiSaver funds open to new members, covering a moderate spread of risk levels. At 30 June 2026 they held $6.94 billion for 153,407 investors.

All six open funds charge the same 0.24 per cent a year, so the fund you choose does not change what you pay.

Over five years the Growth Fund returned 6.01 per cent a year while the Conservative Fund returned 1.80 per cent a year, which is the gap between the top and the bottom of what you can choose from.

We have kept this to the facts that decide the outcome: what the scheme contains, what it charges, and what it has returned. Everything below comes from the Government’s register rather than from marketing material.

How We Researched This Guide

Every number below is read from our own copy of the Government’s Disclose Register, which is the statutory source managers file against. It carries six open funds, all reported as at 30 June 2026.

We also checked the rules that underpin every KiwiSaver account — contribution rates, the government contribution, and default provider appointments — against Inland Revenue and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

This guide is not here to tell you to switch or to stay. What it does is put the verified numbers in one place so you can compare on facts rather than marketing.

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Simplicity is a nonprofit KiwiSaver and investment fund manager charging 0.25% p.a. across all six KiwiSaver funds. 100% owned by the Simplicity Foundation, a registered charity. Over 190,000 members. Seven rounds of fee cuts since launch in 2016. Fifteen percent of management fees donated to NZ charities. Founded by Sam Stubbs (ex-Tower Investments CEO, Goldman Sachs).

The Quick Summary (60-Second Version)

Here is the short version before the detail.

• Simplicity KiwiSaver offers six open funds across a single scheme.
• Every open fund charges the same 0.24 per cent a year.
• The cheapest option is the Balanced Fund at 0.24 per cent.
• The largest fund by value is the Growth Fund, with $3.11 billion invested.
• The strongest five-year record in the range belongs to the Growth Fund, at 6.01 per cent a year.
• The weakest five-year record is the Conservative Fund, at 1.80 per cent a year.
• The funds hold $6.94 billion between them for 153,407 investors.
• Six of the open funds have no five-year figure yet because they have not been running that long.

What You Pay, and What You Get For It

Simplicity KiwiSaver charges an annual fund charge, and there are no separate membership, contribution, establishment, switching or termination fees recorded for its KiwiSaver scheme. The charge comes out of the fund’s returns rather than being billed to you, which is why most members never see it leave the account.

It helps to see the charge in dollars. On a $50,000 balance, 0.24 per cent is about $120 a year; on $100,000 it is about $240.

What the Charge Costs at Different Balances

Because the charge is a percentage, its cost rises with your balance. Below is what the cheapest, dearest and middling funds take on three balances. This much is guaranteed: the fee is charged in a good year and a bad one alike.

Over a working life, the compounding of that difference is greater than most people expect because the fee is taken each year from a balance that would otherwise be growing.

The Kinds of Fund in This Range

The register groups every fund by type, and the type tells you more about the risk than the name does. Simplicity KiwiSaver spans 5 of those groups, which determines how much choice you actually have.

The risk indicator runs from 1 to 7. It measures how much the fund’s value has moved in the past, not how good it is. A 6 or 7 is not a warning; it is a statement that the fund is expected to fall further in a bad year, and it belongs in a portfolio you will not need to touch for a long time.

Simplicity KiwiSaver Scheme — the funds

Every open fund in the Simplicity KiwiSaver Scheme charges the same 0.24 per cent a year. The strongest five-year figure is the Growth Fund at 6.01 per cent a year, and the weakest is the Conservative Fund at 1.80 per cent a year.

What the Funds Actually Hold

The register also discloses each fund’s split between growth assets, such as shares and property, and income assets, such as bonds and cash. More than the fund’s name, that ratio tells you how it will behave when markets move.

The spread runs from 3% growth assets in the Defensive Fund to 96% in the High Growth Fund. The conservative end will scarcely move in a poor year; the aggressive end will fall sharply with share markets and rebound just as sharply. Which suits you depends on when you need the money, not on which has performed better lately.

Reading the Returns

The figures are net of fees and after tax. Every return shown is net of the fund charge and after tax. The strongest five-year average here is the Growth Fund at 6.01 per cent a year, against a range of 1.80 to 6.01 per cent across the open funds.

Compare the columns side by side. One-year figures across these funds span 2.31 to 19.57 per cent, and five-year averages 1.80 to 6.01 per cent. The gap between the two is a reminder that twelve favourable months are not evidence of skill, whereas a five-year record is far harder to produce by accident.

That difference between one strong year and a five-year average is the most useful thing to understand before you pick a fund. It is also why a fund with a short history is harder to judge: there is simply less to judge it on.

The table that follows gives each open fund’s full published record. Where a fund is new, the longer columns are blank, and that absence is itself information.

Three of the open funds here have no five-year figure because they have not been running that long. We show a dash rather than a number that would not be comparable, so weigh those funds on their fee and strategy instead.

Where Simplicity KiwiSaver Sits Against the Alternatives

On entry cost, Simplicity KiwiSaver is the 5th cheapest of the 29 managers in our KiwiSaver table, with its cheapest fund charging 0.24 per cent. The cheapest manager charges 0.03 per cent and the dearest starts at 4.26 per cent.

A fee comparison is only half the picture. What matters is whether the manager earns back what it charges, and the five-year returns are where that shows. Past returns are not a forecast, and a period that favoured one type of asset will flatter whoever held most of it.

What You Put In, and What You Get Back

What you contribute is a matter of law and your own choice, not of who your provider is. The provider’s influence begins once the money is in, which is why the fund charge grows in importance as the balance does.

The default employee and employer rate is 3.5 per cent from 1 April 2026, and it rises to 4 per cent on 1 April 2028. On a $70,000 salary, 3.5 per cent is $2,450 a year from you, matched by your employer, so about $4,900 a year goes into the account before any return.

The Government adds 25 cents for every dollar you contribute, up to a maximum of $260.72 a year. To receive the full amount, you must contribute at least $1,042.86 of your own money between 1 July and 30 June, and employer contributions do not count towards that threshold. If your taxable income is above $180,000 a year, you do not qualify.

The charge applies to the entire balance, not to each deposit. On a $50,000 balance, 0.24 per cent is about $120 a year; on $100,000 it is about $240. Weigh that against the returns, since it is deducted regardless of the fund's performance.

Questions You Might Have

Which fund am I in?

Your KiwiSaver statement, or the online account you use to manage your savings, will show which fund your money is invested in and how it is split if you hold more than one. Check it before anything else, because the fund decides both the return and the charge.

How much will I pay?

All six open funds charge the same 0.24 per cent a year, so the fund you choose does not change what you pay. It comes out of the fund’s returns, not your bank account, so you will not see a separate bill.

Is Simplicity KiwiSaver a default provider?

No. The appointed default providers are BNZ, Booster, Westpac (through BT Funds Management), Fisher Funds, Simplicity and Smartshares, with appointments running to December 2028. Simplicity KiwiSaver is a scheme you choose deliberately.

Can I change funds without changing provider?

Usually yes. Most schemes let you move between their own funds, or set a different split, through your online account at no cost, and the change takes effect without affecting your membership or your employer contributions. You only need to switch provider if the scheme itself is the problem.

What happens to a closed fund?

If you already hold a fund that has closed to new members, you keep it and continue to pay the charge shown. Closing a fund stops new money coming in; it does not force existing members out, and it does not change your balance.

How much do I need to contribute to get the full government contribution?

You need to put in at least $1,042.86 of your own money between 1 July and 30 June to receive the maximum of $260.72. The government adds 25 cents for every dollar you contribute, and employer contributions do not count towards your $1,042.86. If your taxable income is above $180,000 a year, you do not qualify.

How much will I pay at the default contribution rate?

The default employee and employer rate rose from 3 per cent to 3.5 per cent on 1 April 2026, and it rises again to 4 per cent on 1 April 2028. On a $70,000 salary, 3.5 per cent is $2,450 a year from you, matched by your employer. You can choose 4, 6, 8 or 10 per cent instead.

Does switching to or from Simplicity KiwiSaver cost anything?

No. Simplicity KiwiSaver records no membership, contribution, establishment, switching or termination fees, and switching between KiwiSaver providers does not attract a fee in practice. You apply to the new provider, who arranges the transfer.

Why do some funds have no five-year figure?

Because they have not been running for five years. A fund launched in the last few years cannot have a five-year return, so the register leaves it blank rather than showing a figure that would not be comparable. We show the same dash.

What Matters Most

Simplicity KiwiSaver is a manager with a moderate range of funds. The fee table above gives the current charge on every fund. The funds are few and easy to hold in your head.

• The Balanced Fund is the cheapest way in at 0.24 per cent.
• The strongest five-year record is the Growth Fund at 6.01 per cent a year, and it carries the risk that produced it.
• Three funds are too new to have a five-year record, so judge them on strategy and fee rather than past performance.
• Check which fund you are in before anything else, because it decides both the return and the charge.