Epic Retirement Tick 2026-27: Which Pension Funds Pass The Test?

In just one example, only a handful of funds have developed and actively promote a lifetime income product designed to provide retirees with income for life and the security that comes with knowing their money won’t run out.

So it was welcome news in 2025 when the research and ratings group Chant West teamed up with retirement educator Bec Wilson to give funds a nudge and consumers a clear signal about which funds are retirement-ready. The second annual assessment, released on 1 October 2026, shows the nudge is starting to work.

Retirement tick of approval

Chant West and Bec Wilson’s Epic Retirement Institute run a consumer-focused assessment of the range of services and support super funds offer to pre-retirees and retirees. For 2026/27 the bar has been lifted. Funds are now assessed against 20 key criteria, up from 18, and must satisfy at least 14 (previously 12) to earn an ‘Epic Retirement Tick – powered by Chant West’. Funds must also have no enforceable undertakings or additional licence conditions in place.

In the inaugural assessment, only six of around 65 funds in Australia earned a tick of approval. This year eight funds made the grade, despite the tougher standard. Five funds kept their tick and three new funds joined them, two of them retail funds.

Source: Epic Retirement Tick 2026-27 and 2025-26 results.

TelstraSuper, which earned a tick in the first year, no longer appears because it merged into Aware Super in May 2026.

Chant West general manager Ian Fryer says new themes dominated this year’s assessment, reflecting the changing and complex operating environment for super funds. “There were new criteria introduced this year assessing cyber-safety, as well as a complaints-handling metric and more detailed requirements around access to financial advice and education. We saw a marked improvement in the way super funds were managing these important aspects of their operations,” he says.

Fryer says retail funds have done a lot of development work on advice provision, engagement and retirement income tools and calculators, which is why two of the three new funds are retail funds. “Several more funds introduced a retirement bonus this year, but there was less innovation in terms of lifetime products. We’re hoping to see more work in this space by next year.”

The 20 measures of a fund’s retirement readiness include investment options tailored to the retirement phase, lifetime income products, drawdown guidance, advice pathways, calculators and modelling tools, education and engagement strategies, service delivery measures such as pension payment timeliness and call centre performance, and new this year, complaints handling and cyber security.

As this list shows, fees and performance are only part of the picture. Unfortunately, these tend to be the focus, especially when you are growing your retirement savings during your working life.

You can see a list of the 20 criteria and which ones were met by each of the eight funds awarded a tick at the end of this article.

Navigating the transition to retirement

In many ways, it’s understandable that super funds have been slow to build their retirement offerings. It’s not easy.

Fryer says most people in accumulation phase are put in their fund’s default option and they will probably do fine. “But in retirement phase, people’s situations are all very different and funds need to provide more than just a default.”

In most cases, a fund’s default option is an account-based pension with a Growth, Balanced or Conservative option, almost identical to the same options in accumulation phase.

For example, Fryer says retirees have an opportunity to take advantage of their tax-free position, but they may also need help to feel confident about withdrawing more than the minimum annual amount from their pension account. And even if their fund offers good products, including a lifetime income product, people may need advice to help put the pieces of the retirement income puzzle together and make the most of their personal financial situation.

It’s not until retirement that the choices people make about their super also need to factor in things like whether they own their home or rent, whether they have income-producing assets outside of super or will be eligible for a full or part-Age Pension.

Fryer says people may need help and guidance setting up a pension account so they don’t blindly select an investment option that might not be right for them.

Dual-purpose ticks

Chant West already rates super and pension funds and holds annual awards, including an award for the Pension Fund of the Year. It also works closely with super funds to drive engagement and action on the retirement front.

Aware Super won Chant West’s Pension Fund of the Year award for 2026, its third in a row, while SuperRatings gave UniSuper its Retirement Offering of the Year award for the second year running – both funds received an Epic Retirement Tick.

Fryer says the Epic Retirement Tick is designed to engage consumers more broadly, with a simple, transparent benchmark to help them understand what a ‘good’ fund looks like as they move towards retirement.

The initiative has two purposes:

• It shows you at a glance which funds are doing well and, for those who want to delve deeper, what they are doing well and what still needs improvement
• It sends a message to the funds themselves and hopefully an incentive to prioritise the retirement process.

Fryer says both regulators in this space, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), have been talking to funds to get them to move faster.

Wilson says the first year of the Tick put a visible benchmark in front of funds and consumers. “Funds that didn’t meet the standard wanted to understand where they fell short and what they needed to do differently. Some have brought forward retirement initiatives, improved existing services or put greater focus on areas that weren’t measuring up. Impressively, some of the funds that received the Tick have continued to build on what they offer.”

“That is exactly what we hoped would happen. The Tick was never designed simply to identify the funds meeting the standard. It was designed to help lift the standard across the industry,” she says.

What to do next

The Tick is not a rating, ranking or recommendation of a super fund. There is no first or second place and no ‘best fund’. A fund either meets the standard or it doesn’t, and Wilson is careful to say the Tick is not there to tell you whether to stay with your fund or switch.

Instead, she suggests using it to become a more informed member.

• If your fund has a tick, take a closer look at what it actually offers. Explore its retirement tools, calculators, education, advice services and investment and income options. Some may already be available to you as part of your membership without you knowing.
• If your fund doesn’t have a tick, that doesn’t automatically make it the wrong fund for you. Use the criteria to understand what your fund offers, what it doesn’t, and what may still be under development. Asking your fund about its retirement plans also shows it you’re watching.
• If you are thinking of changing funds, particularly within a year of retiring, check what you could give up first. Some funds pay a retirement bonus when you start a pension, and insurance, tax and other features can be affected if you leave. Then look just as carefully at what you would be moving to.

“Once you understand what good retirement support can look like, you can ask much better questions and make better use of the support your fund offers,” Wilson says.

The 20 criteria, fund by fund

Source: Epic Retirement Tick 2026/27 results, Chant West and Epic Retirement Institute. A fund shown without a tick may provide the feature or service but not to the level that meets the standard.