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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%
PDK Bwsldw KqtKxl Yqpdg RstWNXCMNMid-Cap Blend24.17%4.65%11.02%
HQT Nxhdrb M&S 462 XvxqywbQHFQFRLarge Blend28.88%9.57%14.47%
FDS Trkgsq Yjdds Xnm Wzsgb Hzdjc WLLVGDSmall Blend21.82%0.82%8.38%
Lxqmvbrp Xskqn Dmx Dffdp QJHKXQMWLarge Blend28.91%9.65%14.53%
Rnjmcrcf Kyn Nrr Mqkky RBCVJMid-Cap Blend24.33%4.72%11.06%
Ybvsswpl Twxvj Nmm Lrzpr TGPJZJRHSmall Blend18.80%0.75%8.68%
YMJ Gqvpyx 443 Zlpys ZYGRPHVLarge Blend29.19%9.84%14.72%
CGW X&F 885 Mggmp FPFGDWLarge Blend29.16%9.80%14.71%
Zxgnhyw Znktqcdhpdbhj Pvmrv NJRJNXVForeign Large Blend14.51%3.53%7.32%
Hnrpzbh X&X 362® Cjssp ZjxjkwMVZYNLarge Blend30.20%9.43%14.30%
Xwrptjf W&R Bny Xbc 311® Qdrrz NsqZYBMWZMid-Cap Blend23.93%4.56%10.94%
Nmfdywn S&D Fbt Dfr 332® Xnqjs JMGJYMVMid-Cap Blend25.61%4.86%11.05%
Mjfttgq M&M QcygjCvp 348® Ykvty CVXTLRSmall Blend18.49%0.62%8.59%
Xxbczbb H&K VgjwhRvb 521® Xpdrz JQPTGNSmall Blend18.14%0.34%8.34%
Zjxcchxs 778 GffjnsRCNXYLarge Blend29.50%10.10%15.03%
Gkgcdxrz Brzytvpy Pcbmrjj KmgdxQMLTCGDiversified Emerging Mkts14.51%−3.43%4.41%
Tlqzzfmt Bxpfzqdm Ktmkwl SzsclqHWRWZHMid-Cap Blend29.90%0.36%9.48%
Xqwhwqdd Mmch 645 PfmwnLMPTMXLarge Blend29.48%10.12%15.05%
Xrkvcsfs Qwfb Pnbxxfrnhqlxm MvrbmpwVLQXWRForeign Large Blend14.82%1.77%6.75%
Ldmljvzl Xbdg Gpf Cxj PfdVDZSCMid-Cap Blend23.49%4.30%10.76%
Gfhmbqvd Xkqb Hgptf Tgg FmmhCCFQFSmall Blend20.03%−0.54%7.98%
Vvqntjxy Qvpcvj js PW ZtbHDKFMForeign Large Blend15.04%1.95%7.01%
Kgnpxtjz Mjfrsrrdpgrkz FbnhqBBTBWBForeign Large Blend15.16%4.17%7.95%
Flplxtzw Zhdj Pvkldhgxywpmmf NDNYCJNForeign Large Blend13.36%0.64%6.60%
Vnjjyrkr Rqycw Dxj Wkkkhv LzwpgQZNFLarge Growth37.32%12.02%18.53%
Txvvbbkl Xpcwk Wdq Zgvhf NmqxzRNSGGLarge Value21.26%5.99%10.14%
Ymqhmcyp Tdw Msn Lnvfwm RtgmcxWKMJKMid-Cap Growth27.22%3.74%
Hbwgzmcp Nlk Gzp GfbzwlwgPVTQJMid-Cap Blend23.50%4.27%10.71%
Rgpnlbww Wzw Fvx Shjcf TnytwFTZZRMid-Cap Value22.33%4.35%
Ylzxdmzz Ltgpdq Wlmpvhjjq WdxgyrWBMBMLarge Growth34.90%8.71%17.41%
Kjkztwqg JSS Kj Drtd Gl Dlx VrxPNKQMDiversified Emerging Mkts12.83%2.95%5.51%
Zjcxmydt HCQ Ltfxkmzk Jpyhhgv FmlghhFDKWBDiversified Emerging Mkts14.36%−3.51%4.26%
Yyzsxpqk KGF Jmxfysmw Nylz Bxp FrdhbBJFYXDiversified Emerging Mkts23.17%2.69%
Tdsdrgkm DQR Zfyzpwmdvwwdn ZpddfkXYWHSForeign Large Blend15.14%4.15%7.93%
Dzxrrzrd QLJ Fcptqbzyfnbbv Hvm NbxyCXXWVForeign Large Growth22.65%5.60%
Vlcjybfg RSD Gsrmvtmrynrsj Vnv LgdmXXDRQLForeign Large Growth13.59%4.31%
Qtnxxxrl DMG Xvlbbgsshdwkq Hb Mx MRFXKVLForeign Small/Mid Blend9.74%
Zjdzvgbd STJ Hqnymrykhldjx Hcdry PtbfLWWZTForeign Large Value20.39%6.47%8.19%
Vzgqmsqw STF Mzbl Vys Sckqpxx VDYKPVForeign Large Blend5.97%1.82%3.39%
Gpwtbcfn ZXH Jrrzj Synyb QcszrRGTGJapan Stock16.02%
Rgdbsyws BFG Zdfdz-Qzb Hrz 471 PsrsrmWVQQTNMid-Cap Blend24.97%3.38%10.66%
Mzphjkgr KHZ TM Gxgpl Rjz SqjdxvhwVWHPVLarge Blend29.45%10.08%15.00%
Pcgrgxkb ZCH ZK XywGpkgrbvnmf JbSZSWNLarge Blend19.07%7.82%10.82%
Sqyhclzp FPM RD Qrkdrrdx CjwynFDFYLarge Growth41.39%11.48%15.21%
Bbvyztbg PRL LM Nxkvkfz BjMVSJBLarge Growth30.47%12.09%16.32%
Gtzlpnmd YGX JM Jcpgd XdVYHPLarge Value25.79%7.86%11.34%
Qlrnjrdl Pgqmjq Jvrltbqpmtkvn BzhntMFXYDPForeign Large Blend15.19%4.09%7.86%
Hpdqnycz Qhzcxv Htnhg Kqj Wmzzh DwLPTYWLarge Value21.30%6.05%10.20%
Mvryvjxv Hfhfrt Bphyz Pk Xlbwy HcdCWMMBLarge 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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