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Equip Super vs Expand

Compare what each fund offers, then choose investment options to put their published costs and returns side by side.

By SuperGuru Group · Research checked 11 September 2026 · Historical APRA figures to 30 June 2026

Equip Super

Industry fund

Equip Super combines a conventional super investment menu with retirement income products and a MyPension investment strategy.

Membership

Public joining is available, with separate terms for certain employer and defined benefit arrangements. A workplace plan may differ from the standard accumulation offer.

Expand

Retail platform

Expand is a super and pension platform with Essential and Extra product tiers. Its value depends on the investment menu and services a member actually uses.

Membership

Use the Essential or Extra PDS and target market determination. The platform is commonly used with advice, and an application requires an investment choice; Essential allows a cash holding while a member decides on a longer-term strategy.

Compare fees and investment returns

Choose the actual investment pathway for each account. For lifecycle products, select the named stage relevant to you. No stage is selected automatically.

Choose an investment option to see the figures

The costs and returns belong to the selected product, option or lifecycle stage.

Source: APRA Comprehensive Product Performance Package 2026, published 28 August 2026. Fees reflect the reporting year to 30 June 2026, are net of tax, use standard arrangements and exclude member-activity fees. Dollar figures are rounded. They are not a current quote. Check the latest PDS for changes, insurance premiums and any separately charged advice.

Returns are annualised historical results. Different return bases, risk levels and periods cannot be treated as interchangeable. MySuper net returns use a $50,000 representative balance even when you change the fee balance. A lifecycle stage return does not track a person moving between stages. Missing figures mean not reported, not zero. Past returns do not predict future returns. Read our method and APRA's definitions.

How the products differ

Equip Super and Expand: product features and conditions
What to compareEquip SuperExpand
Membership and access

Public joining is available, with separate terms for certain employer and defined benefit arrangements. A workplace plan may differ from the standard accumulation offer.

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Use the Essential or Extra PDS and target market determination. The platform is commonly used with advice, and an application requires an investment choice; Essential allows a cash holding while a member decides on a longer-term strategy.

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Accounts and products

Accumulation super, retirement income and transition-to-retirement accounts, alongside existing defined benefit arrangements.

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Expand Essential and Extra in IOOF Portfolio Service Superannuation Fund; not MLC MasterKey.

Expand Essential Super and Pension

Expand Extra Super and Pension

Retirement Boost

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Investment choices

The menu includes diversified and sector options, with MySuper as the default for accumulation members who do not choose. Check the current menu: the Future Focus option closed on 17 June 2026.

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Member-selected investments; not a single platform-wide MySuper default.

Essential combines a menu of managed funds and model portfolios with Essential+, which adds selected ETFs and term deposits. Extra offers a much broader selection of managed funds, model portfolios and listed investments. Investments across menus can carry different administration charges.

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Insurance

Use the insurance guide for the relevant membership or employer category. Standard and workplace arrangements should not be treated as interchangeable.

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Expand advertises group and retail insurance options. The policy, underwriting and cost depend on the cover arranged; the platform's investment features do not establish that a member is insured.

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Retirement income

MyPension is a strategy for managing retirement savings across investment options. It is not a guaranteed lifetime pension.

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Both tiers have pension products. Retirement Boost adds a separate lifetime-income proposition with its own eligibility and access rules. It should be compared with other lifetime products rather than treated as an ordinary account-based pension.

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Advice and support

Members can receive advice about their super at no extra cost. Ask about the scope and separate fees before proceeding with broader financial planning.

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An advised arrangement needs two assessments: whether the adviser service is useful and whether the platform is an appropriate way to implement it. Ask for the full ongoing cost and the consequences of ending the advice relationship.

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Fee details to check

Use the schedule effective for the current year and chosen product. Equip published investment fee and cost changes effective 1 July 2026.

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Add platform administration, account charges, underlying investment fees, transaction or brokerage costs, insurance and any adviser fee. Essential+ has a higher administration rate on the first part of the balance than the ordinary Essential menu. A low fee quoted for one menu is not a price for every portfolio.

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Comparing investment performance

Use current option names and the same account phase. The June 2026 option closure and earlier integration mean old menus and performance screenshots may mislead.

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There is no single meaningful Expand investment return. Measure the chosen portfolio after all applicable costs. The performance test covers only eligible trustee-directed investments, so a result for one option does not describe every investment on the platform.

State Essential versus Extra and the menu used.

Keep option-specific performance-test outcomes attached to the relevant option IDs.

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THE SUPERGURU VIEW

Our take on Equip Super

Editorial assessment

Worth comparing for someone who wants support moving from super to pension, or who already belongs to an Equip employer plan.

What deserves a closer look

  • Catholic Super and Equip are brands within the same legal fund, not fully independent fund providers.
  • An existing defined benefit member needs scheme-specific information before any transfer.

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Based on the cited product features. These are general reasons to investigate the fund, not a personal recommendation. Supporting sources.

THE SUPERGURU VIEW

Our take on Expand

Editorial assessment

Expand makes most sense to investigate when a person needs its investment or retirement features and can explain why. A broad platform can be useful with a carefully chosen portfolio, but it also creates several layers of fees to compare. The product tier and menu selection should be visible in any price comparison.

Who might put it on their shortlist

  • People using an adviser to implement a portfolio that needs a broad investment menu.
  • Members comparing direct listed investments, managed portfolios and retirement features within one platform.
  • Families checking whether available fee arrangements change the total cost.

What deserves a closer look

  • Expand's 28 August 2026 notice says MLC MultiActive High Growth (MLC0397AU) and MLC MultiActive Geared (MLC0449AU) failed the 2026 performance test within the covered Expand products. Both remained open to new members because this was their first failure.
  • That notice concerns specified investment options, not a failure of every Expand investment or the whole platform.
  • Portfolio complexity, cash holdings, brokerage and advice fees can materially change the cost.
  • Lifetime products have access and beneficiary terms that require separate assessment.
  • Members transferred from Grow Wrap, Voyage or PortfolioOne should use their Expand welcome documents and fee schedule. June 2026 figures for those former products describe the pre-transfer account.

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Based on the cited product features. These are general reasons to investigate the fund, not a personal recommendation. Supporting sources.

Before choosing between Equip Super and Expand

Use the membership rules to establish which accounts are available to you. Then compare the total price of the investment option and cover you need. A lower fee or higher historical return alone does not tell you which fund is suitable.

Ask both funds to confirm insurance acceptance, exclusions, waiting periods and whether cover would change when you leave your employer. Obtain advice before giving up a defined benefit or an insurance policy you may not be able to replace. ASIC Moneysmart explains the comparison checks.

Read the full Equip Super profile · Read the full Expand profile · Choose another comparison

Sources for Equip Super

Checked 2026-09-11. Documents and product terms can change after this date.

  1. Equip history
  2. FAQs
  3. 2026 changes
  4. Unit prices and option closure
  5. Investment guide

Sources for Expand

Checked 2026-09-11. Documents and product terms can change after this date.

  1. Expand products and legal fund details
  2. Expand Essential PDS
  3. Expand Extra PDS
  4. Essential+ menu and fee differences
  5. Expand pension products
  6. 2026 performance-test notice
  7. Completed transfers to Expand Extra, September 2026