ato logo
Search Suggestion:

Member profile

About the demographics and balances of SMSF members.

Last updated 24 February 2022

SMSF member demographics

At 30 June 2021:

  • there were 1.114 million SMSF members, of whom 53% were male and 47% femaleFootnote7
  • both the average and median age for all SMSF members was 61 years.

Our most recent lodgment data for 2019–20 shows that:

  • 40% of members were in retirement phase, compared to 38% in 2018–19 and 39% in 2015–16
  • 5% of SMSF members receiving retirement benefit payments reported they were also receiving the age pension
  • 33% of SMSF members also had entitlements in non-SMSF super funds, compared with 38% in 2018–19 and 39% in 2015–16
  • the average taxable income of all SMSF members was $116,000, while the median taxable income was $65,000Footnote8
  • the median age of SMSF members of newly established funds was 46 years.

See table 19 and table 20 of the Data tables (XLXS 611KB)This link will download a file.

SMSF member balances

The average member balance over the five years to 30 June 2020 increased by 23% to $644,000 for females and by 19% to $768,000 for males.

At 30 June 2020:

  • the average SMSF member balance was $696,000, up 1% from 2018–19, and 21% from 2015–16
  • the median SMSF member balance was $415,000, up 3% from 2018–19 and 23% from 2015–16
  • the average member balance for female members was $644,000, up 1% from 2018–19 and 23% from 2015–16. The median member balance for females was $307,000, up 6% from 2018–19
  • the average member balance for male members was $768,000, down less than 1% from 2018–19 and up 19% from 2015–16. The median member balance for males was $385,000, up 3% from 2018–19.
  • 43% of SMSF members had balances of $200,001 to $1 million
  • 1% of SMSF members had balances of over $5 million
  • 94% of SMSF members had a balance below $1.6 million, with 6% reporting balances over $1.6m
  • the average member balance for funds established in 2019–20 was $210,000, a decrease of 2% from 2018–19 and an increase of 9% from funds established in 2015–16
  • the median member balance for funds established in 2019–20 was $130,000, an increase of 1% from 2018–19 and 19% from 2015–16
  • over the five years to 30 June 2020, the proportion of SMSF members with balances of $1 to $200,000 fell from 40% to 33%.

See table 5, table 6, table 21 and table 22 of the Data tables (XLXS 611KB)This link will download a file.

Footnote 7

 

 

Return to footnote 7 referrer

Footnote 8

 

 

Return to footnote 8 referrer

QC67922