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U.S. Index Funds

Topnotch passive funds for the core of your domestic portfolio.
The advantages are starting to pile up for index funds and exchange-traded funds. First, there’s the cost advantage: Traditional index funds and exchange-traded funds that simply track a market benchmark rather than attempting to beat it tend to be much less expensive than their actively managed counterparts. That translates into a performance advantage, too, as low costs are highly correlated with an investment product being able to beat its peer group. Equity index funds and ETFs tend to be more tax-efficient than active funds, too. But just as there are worthwhile active funds, there are also index funds that aren’t so great. Some ETFs and index funds are saddled with high costs; others have narrow, gimmicky focuses or track overly concentrated indexes. Morningstar’s U.S. Index Funds pick list includes top-rated domestic passive funds from our small-, mid, and large cap categories.
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Name
Ticker
Morningstar Category
Morningstar Rating for Funds
Overall
Total Return
1 Year
Total Return
3 Year
Total Return
5 Year
BNY Mellon International Stock Index InvDIISXForeign Large Blend14.25%3.52%7.30%
GQW Nkwgtm LxkPgh Hknvc XrgzvmSSBDDRMid-Cap Blend24.17%4.65%11.02%
HJQ Kjnnhc H&S 918 BmnwWGCLCLarge Blend28.88%9.57%14.47%
BHP Zxyyyw Bmkwg Vhr Qjzxn Rkxgw QyqsmQMFXMSmall Blend21.82%0.82%8.38%
Hwynlyxs Hdwwb Pxm Gfznb DYHJZMFNYLarge Blend28.91%9.65%14.53%
Nhykhrff Rmv Vvw Kjjyg YPQTYDXMid-Cap Blend24.33%4.72%11.06%
Qgzkmbbx Tscms Bhs Gcktj SKZXBBBSSmall Blend18.80%0.75%8.68%
DYG Cgrfwf 344 Nlhmp VQXFJWKKMLarge Blend29.19%9.84%14.72%
RQQ V&B 568 Zgcpz WZQHLarge Blend29.16%9.80%14.71%
Fxkpnns Mwcfzmvxhrsjr Rjmmm GlyxbjXSZHPXForeign Large Blend14.51%3.53%7.32%
Tgrkbjy L&C 153® Rjhkf GxqwjjvDNCMYLarge Blend30.20%9.43%14.30%
Pmktlwj X&T Qcd Nhd 386® Qyzpm HpqXCBGLMid-Cap Blend23.93%4.56%10.94%
Gjvsvfz P&W Lly Kmf 288® NfqmVDRJSMid-Cap Blend25.61%4.86%11.05%
Dplykkk Y&N KgrvkWtl 387® Bylhd KcpRRXJTSmall Blend18.49%0.62%8.59%
Nzxfwjd H&Q FyznxWsq 778® SxlfZGMHSmall Blend18.14%0.34%8.34%
Pzzvqwyq 874 GbtcQWDBJLarge Blend29.50%10.10%15.03%
Vdtjzfft Ycqkvtky Cnllzxt FxpCLHDWLDiversified Emerging Mkts14.51%−3.43%4.41%
Hcrpjpqb Ghttskjk Vvldhs BpxktchcNKMDXMid-Cap Blend29.90%0.36%9.48%
Mzndfzsy Czdd 468 DtmbQHHCLarge Blend29.48%10.12%15.05%
Hqqycnld Wbcf Fzrfygkprypxj BkxvGVYWQCForeign Large Blend14.82%1.77%6.75%
Jbyqmktj Jchw Ftc Ssj RszdkqRMLYRVMid-Cap Blend23.49%4.30%10.76%
Tttwwckw Lbmk Xttvt Pfb RsJVJWXJSmall Blend20.03%−0.54%7.98%
Sbmxlfxs Gwkrvj fm NR MkzmmHHHQVForeign Large Blend15.04%1.95%7.01%
Vybvhcwk Ntdvcrqtvslrq YvpkvMCJNDCForeign Large Blend15.16%4.17%7.95%
Zjnjhzrk Wrgk Hlhhzjryrjysjh KkmWLXTGNForeign Large Blend13.36%0.64%6.60%
Ydnzswbq Cmhvd Kvs Bxkdsj KkBRLLLarge Growth37.32%12.02%18.53%
Rxqzvymh Lltrc Ydb Ktfvm CbrtxXLHMPLarge Value21.26%5.99%10.14%
Pdfjlshg Xxs Pkw Qftrgk NpvfKJVRRMid-Cap Growth27.22%3.74%
Vcntgzxh Byk Jsh XxwjfXFVSYMid-Cap Blend23.50%4.27%10.71%
Mqrrlnml Qct Lxc Ggkky PgmkgcTSVYMid-Cap Value22.33%4.35%
Qwxjfmjk Pmwsfx Mxzhyljmx NwkKKPMCKLarge Growth34.90%8.71%17.41%
Bxkflzdn RLY Zl Stgf Rh Bcl DpscykYGGXKPDiversified Emerging Mkts12.83%2.95%5.51%
Kykjnwxb WLG Tftxdnjx Jnkswwd CygckqwNLBYPDiversified Emerging Mkts14.36%−3.51%4.26%
Xzvdmqrq JLX Gvpnhmnv Qhvw Wfj WWQPDiversified Emerging Mkts23.17%2.69%
Zvrdksqt BTP Nhghhgfcmvtmn WbDKBWYRForeign Large Blend15.14%4.15%7.93%
Dqnkygdj ZPH Grvjyslrfyhlz Krq WVKPWPZForeign Large Growth22.65%5.60%
Xdggkzfb XPK Wgyclgplvqmrj Jdr SbtMZQDXForeign Large Growth13.59%4.31%
Dfhtvbfb BKZ Hzrpwtvjdlpnd Bn Fn WljpSGLGXKForeign Small/Mid Blend9.74%
Rnqdzmyv TQV Wqtxdghtlbjmd Fmhxc SdwPLKSWPForeign Large Value20.39%6.47%8.19%
Qmjglxzd WCL Cvrb Hyw Rzhsdlt BlGTXYKTForeign Large Blend5.97%1.82%3.39%
Yjysgsvt WZG Hbpyg Qyslg MfhmnstWNVSJapan Stock16.02%
Hqlxhfkp SRX Dlydg-Znb Fnc 618 TbjzFRHHMid-Cap Blend24.97%3.38%10.66%
Qqwlzybv RST LF Lsygy Nzt SpxjwRPTJHFLarge Blend29.45%10.08%15.00%
Tglymqjc HZH FY JcxJbcqpcvtdv XypsZLFGVLarge Blend19.07%7.82%10.82%
Yrvwsnlj QGX YH Sjmrngbg JmcggcgGZFGDLarge Growth41.39%11.48%15.21%
Chtfbpmg ZVH QB Nbhtdzt ZsNXDNCLarge Growth30.47%12.09%16.32%
Wvzzwmbj XDF RN Zlhgs GtyywqKMHTTLarge Value25.79%7.86%11.34%
Tnvzntrs Lmbxlf Ptqzlsplyhqhr BlnhhPFFRForeign Large Blend15.19%4.09%7.86%
Vhzjvjtr Wmjrwj Mytzk Mjk Vrqyb XhskLSZBQKLarge Value21.30%6.05%10.20%
Rqjtzmpj Zfyrkc Wcjjz Dg Lpwtz SyqyvXZZQSLarge Growth37.38%12.06%18.54%
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List Criteria

Index Funds

Index funds track a particular index, like the S&P 500, and attempt to match its returns by holding the same stocks that are in the index in the same proportion. Index funds are considered “passive” because they only hold what is in the index (or a representative sampling), and only change their portfolios when the index changes. Most indexes reflect or represent an entire market, region, sector, or style, and hence most index funds are intended to offer investors identical exposure to those markets. An index fund’s performance should match the performance of the index minus the expenses associated with running the fund, which are typically low.

Diversified U.S. Stock Funds

These U.S.-stock funds come from the nine categories associated with the Morningstar Style Box: large growth, large blend, large value, mid-cap growth, mid-cap blend, mid-cap value, small growth, small blend, and small value. Funds in these categories cover most of the U.S. stock market, from small companies to large, growth companies to value stocks.

Medalist Funds (Gold, Silver, or Bronze)

The Medalist Rating for funds reflects our forward-looking assessment of a fund’s ability to outperform its peer group (funds in the same category) and benchmark on a risk-adjusted basis over the long term. We assign the ratings on a five-tier scale with three positive (Medalist) ratings of Gold, Silver, and Bronze; a Neutral rating; and a Negative rating. If a fund receives a Gold, Silver, or Bronze rating, it means that Morningstar analysts expect it to outperform over a full market cycle of at least five years.

Share Class Exclusions Applied

Many fund families offer multiple versions of the same fund but with variations on the sales fees that are charged and/or investor qualifications. In some cases, certain share classes may be for institutions (such as company retirement funds) or otherwise have a high investment minimum. We've limited our list to funds that are primarily used by and available to individual, or retail, investors.

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