Milford: Canstar’s 2023 KiwiSaver Provider of the Year

Congratulations to Milford, for once again earning Canstar’s highest KiwiSaver accolade: Provider of the Year Award.

Milford: Canstar’s KiwiSaver Provider of the Year 2023

It’s been a tough couple of years for KiwiSaver. After sustained losses throughout 2022, funds are only now showing the green shoots of recovery.

However, there’s nothing like a bear market to provide a true indication of a fund’s performance, and how the fund’s managers can mitigate investors’ losses and outshine the market.

And once again, Milford takes the crown as Provider of the Year, thanks to its outstanding performance across all the categories assessed for our award.

Compared to the other 17 KiwiSaver providers in our research, Milford delivered the greatest returns in their balanced and conservative fund profiles by a wide margin.

Our expert research team also noted that, overall, Milford delivers:

• Highly competitive products
• Great product features, for example its investor app
• High levels of support
• A range of investment options to suit all KiwiSaver investors
• Reasonable fee structure

How is Canstar’s KiwiSaver Provider of the Year evaluated?

Our prestigious KiwiSaver Provider of the Year Award uses a sophisticated and unique methodology that looks at more than just investment returns.

Our expert research team compares the costs, features and performance of KiwiSaver funds, as well as the value and customer satisfaction delivered by a KiwiSaver provider. And, importantly, they don’t just look at short-term results.

KiwiSaver is intended as a long-term investment. And our research reflects this, rewarding providers for their average returns over the past five years.

For this year’s ratings, in total, we researched:

• 18 Providers
• 20 Schemes
• 124 KiwiSaver Funds

To determine our Provider of the Year, eligible KiwiSaver funds are rated across four main categories:

Performance: Most importantly, this covers annual returns, but it also looks at consistency of performance. This means how returns fluctuate year to year – whether they are consistent or vary wildly.

Features: Features include: the range of investment options offered by a KiwiSaver provider, the financial advice, tools and support provided, and ease of member access.

Price: Annual cost to members, including fees and total fund charges.

Customer Satisfaction: How everyday KiwiSaver members rate their providers on delivering customer service and value for money.

In addition to its Provider of the Year award, this year Milford is also one of two KiwiSaver providers to earn an Outstanding Value KiwiSaver award.

Due to its incredible investment team, Milford received top scores across all three profiles considered in our award:

• Conservative
• Balanced
• Growth

These accolades, in addition to the fact that Milford also rates highly for customer satisfaction, is the reason why Milford is, once again, Canstar’s Provider of the Year | KiwiSaver.

Outstanding Value KiwiSaver Award Find Out More

Milford: Canstar’s Provider of the Year KiwiSaver 2023

Founded in 2003, Milford is a majority Kiwi-owned company. It employs over 180 staff across offices in Auckland, Cambridge, Tauranga, Wellington, Christchurch, Wanaka and Australia. Milford currently has over $15 billion of funds under management. All funds are actively managed and engage in sustainable investing.

It operates six actively managed KiwiSaver funds, each with a different investor profile:

Through its easy-to-use app and website, Milford provides regular detailed research and insights to inform and promote active participation in investment choices by its KiwiSaver members.

To read more about why Milford is our Provider of the Year for the fourth consecutive year, click on the button below.

Provider of the Year | KiwiSaver Find Out More

Compare KiwiSaver Providers with Canstar

If you’re comparing KiwiSaver funds, the comparison table below displays some of the products currently available on Canstar’s database for a KiwiSaver member with a balance of $20,000 in a Growth fund, sorted by Star Rating (highest to lowest), followed by company name (alphabetical) – some may have links to providers’ websites. Use Canstar’s KiwiSaver comparison selector to view a wider range of retirement funds. Canstar may earn a fee for referrals.

To read more about our Outstanding Value KiwiSaver awards click this link. Or to compare KiwiSaver providers, click on the button below.

Compare KiwiSaver providers for free with Canstar!

About the author of this page

This report was written by Canstar’s Editor, Bruce Pitchers. Bruce has three decades’ experience as a journalist and has worked for major media companies in the UK and Australasia, including ACP, Bauer Media Group, Fairfax, Pacific Magazines, News Corp and TVNZ. Prior to Canstar, he worked as a freelancer, including for The Australian Financial Review, the NZ Financial Markets Authority, and for real estate companies on both sides of the Tasman.