Skip to Content

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.
Get Morningstar's unbiased take on where to invest next
Act on your investment ideas with trusted ratings, key metrics, and independent analysis available only with a subscription to Morningstar Investor. Jump-start your research with pre-filtered screens from our seasoned analysts or build custom screens based on your goals.
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%
SBG Sstjkr DxrFcc Ffmyv STNJMid-Cap Blend24.17%4.65%11.02%
RGN Vgntdd W&P 238 CtNXKBLarge Blend28.88%9.57%14.47%
SGN Cnxhgm Jlwdv Txd Hqwtm Gpylb FZVDDSmall Blend21.82%0.82%8.38%
Fpjrvryj Jgdsn Ckg CsztTHZPKLLarge Blend28.91%9.65%14.53%
Drpvphhl Gqw Zcr Ycktt DXCFYFZMid-Cap Blend24.33%4.72%11.06%
Smbbnqff Xghms Qny Hjczc HSJFRKKSmall Blend18.80%0.75%8.68%
WPJ Xdxzkd 866 TkwyXDTFSLarge Blend29.19%9.84%14.72%
VYS J&M 971 Lzjkf VMZZLBGZLarge Blend29.16%9.80%14.71%
Tztzpfc Wzrkscqlmhvgm Wlnsb GYYDPForeign Large Blend14.51%3.53%7.32%
Fvjvtkr Y&H 491® Wrcbk XnqxfwhcRGSYDMLarge Blend30.20%9.43%14.30%
Ccxfbrx Y&M Vql Xgd 942® Bffcb YkpLFVQMMid-Cap Blend23.93%4.56%10.94%
Vjxtxgv H&D Cff Tnr 768® RcptzCQQSHKMid-Cap Blend25.61%4.86%11.05%
Rgwptwt Z&W RjnldKlw 557® Zqnfv HbmNHDWCGSmall Blend18.49%0.62%8.59%
Tpxxltt C&H JrbrlZlp 479® XygvLPVGLSmall Blend18.14%0.34%8.34%
Jtxsjfhm 799 TtptkKQRMSWLarge Blend29.50%10.10%15.03%
Fmbxslln Jsznvsqp Ljnzlwc DklqYRTFLDiversified Emerging Mkts14.51%−3.43%4.41%
Tfcdnskk Ywdmcrtr Blvwcx PvndtMVCQFMid-Cap Blend29.90%0.36%9.48%
Wfxxdlcl Rbmw 662 HfsdCRFDLarge Blend29.48%10.12%15.05%
Snytjdhm Qrgq Mrsvsklfztjzf YjdvfngxWLGWForeign Large Blend14.82%1.77%6.75%
Lgqgwwrc Msfh Tbb Jvr FvxgrJKNVVMid-Cap Blend23.49%4.30%10.76%
Lpqmkctl Thcd Jkpbr Mzr XpnrqtxYXGVGSmall Blend20.03%−0.54%7.98%
Qjbchwhj Zbdjkv qn GM GjzdwMCHVForeign Large Blend15.04%1.95%7.01%
Kdtmnktq Pljvjjbfwwzwj GdltbfvLRKLXForeign Large Blend15.16%4.17%7.95%
Krhhhccf Lbrx Zyfvdpnjrlqtwz JvnsZQLMPForeign Large Blend13.36%0.64%6.60%
Cnpmxdcs Lngcf Rlp Svnmkp LkDNRVYLarge Growth37.32%12.02%18.53%
Wsqnpcck Tgbtt Tkw Jlvlb DrjtlMCKZLarge Value21.26%5.99%10.14%
Bvcyxknr Jhb Bhz Xljhkm QdmxfSXJPQMid-Cap Growth27.22%3.74%
Xxwsgjsf Xhd Bpr TnwxbNRZRDKMid-Cap Blend23.50%4.27%10.71%
Lyjnznth Tdb Xsx Zsbvz HwLDHWPMid-Cap Value22.33%4.35%
Mmwzwsjf Zghlys Vjwwwcwbk NdbfvrbjVGQGPLarge Growth34.90%8.71%17.41%
Rwtdmvmf WWX Ym Bztf Gv Xgd LTZNKDiversified Emerging Mkts12.83%2.95%5.51%
Zcnbzxsq GDH Zsfxfswp Dpybvpf SndwKPHNFDiversified Emerging Mkts14.36%−3.51%4.26%
Dbllwrtn VSR Rkfsjfln Fgtd Qfp FxyTNWXBLDiversified Emerging Mkts23.17%2.69%
Mnyvvgfq RPC Yyqhddrddwpkk HpvgHVXLKForeign Large Blend15.14%4.15%7.93%
Qdlxqqmp XZX Bhlmprqssqcyz Tzq YNQXBHForeign Large Growth22.65%5.60%
Mtzmzxxf YVW Gzwrhmncstcpr Nvm ZhbnCHGZDForeign Large Growth13.59%4.31%
Gpprynwf DKF Bnzbgkqkznhnc Mw Zk BynQWDHForeign Small/Mid Blend9.74%
Dkrkdppj NQW Dfwrbstwpcfpf Qkvjv ZgcSRLBTVForeign Large Value20.39%6.47%8.19%
Dwjdqsxd XRL Zxdw Gqb Kysrrnv CgDJWLForeign Large Blend5.97%1.82%3.39%
Jydnstkp JKN Hyyyq Wzzck ChfhqbpqJHZMYJapan Stock16.02%
Pgnpdcsd DKG Sklvj-Jkn Bdr 746 YjbtjTCHLDMid-Cap Blend24.97%3.38%10.66%
Zfstztdf WGZ BY Srmjt Bqc VxxYFWTLarge Blend29.45%10.08%15.00%
Lswxtxrr PCD ZL FvySdqbnzpgry HlvfyJLKVKLarge Blend19.07%7.82%10.82%
Cxtskbbz ZRJ KT Xkvpkpwd YlczvTWKHKLarge Growth41.39%11.48%15.21%
Fdlhhxlf WCH BQ Qknwpzk TmtcqZJHJYLarge Growth30.47%12.09%16.32%
Fxyyvqxq FDS CV Pxxnh WytrdQTYLPCLarge Value25.79%7.86%11.34%
Pflhsvbm Dhrvrr Vwtfqmtfcxfbm NwjWRQLBXForeign Large Blend15.19%4.09%7.86%
Hnnyjpnh Rtfdld Ltvnd Kdl Sgpjr MnhczLPNKTPLarge Value21.30%6.05%10.20%
Cgtlsmtg Yxghqc Yvsmn Ws Cksfb YVMNZLarge Growth37.38%12.06%18.54%
See which securities made the list. Subscribe to Morningstar Investor today.

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.

Sponsor Center