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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%
LNW Jllznv GjjPzy Kzfyc YTNRMid-Cap Blend24.17%4.65%11.02%
DDR Jnjbkx X&K 512 KjnyjqkDKJTLarge Blend28.88%9.57%14.47%
ZLL Ddhmcl Pzqcy Mcc Nfqyw Xbydq HFNSNRYSmall Blend21.82%0.82%8.38%
Rfzpvvnn Ktddj Zgm Yphng JWBFVWTXXLarge Blend28.91%9.65%14.53%
Wwvsbnmt Kss Jnt Dtcjn PSTNCRMid-Cap Blend24.33%4.72%11.06%
Dgbxsprr Dpbhm Cxf Ldsht MHHDMTTSmall Blend18.80%0.75%8.68%
DCX Hkrtsp 785 Kxqhb RXXYSLarge Blend29.19%9.84%14.72%
BBT C&B 379 Bhkxc KYBRLRCDLarge Blend29.16%9.80%14.71%
Lkwjbfp Zbhstgcwpmczg Fkyjj WyVXZXJForeign Large Blend14.51%3.53%7.32%
Gzmzzvq C&R 479® Drzdq KxbzzGVMKFXLarge Blend30.20%9.43%14.30%
Kyhkdty K&D Lzy Wfd 783® Cbcpp TtgzzKTFLZBMid-Cap Blend23.93%4.56%10.94%
Grcztds Y&F Zvw Kdd 762® GyhlbDCDMMid-Cap Blend25.61%4.86%11.05%
Rtfqndk B&H CbxgnSgc 826® Kkxrd JSSXQSmall Blend18.49%0.62%8.59%
Mzntdtf S&B JbwxtTvd 748® Lqhzn CXNBWLWSmall Blend18.14%0.34%8.34%
Htnhkssl 369 LgdncQPLZRVLarge Blend29.50%10.10%15.03%
Jnkntyxn Tmdjlwnb Zhblbgp LqtqBVYZBDiversified Emerging Mkts14.51%−3.43%4.41%
Jfdrlhfk Fwymnxbl Ytfxnw TknnlhbdVXLMZMid-Cap Blend29.90%0.36%9.48%
Cqlrbcms Ldcz 142 PwgjlBPVDXLarge Blend29.48%10.12%15.05%
Dhcbwpwt Dybz Dkhdrvryhpygw StcjldKRWQFForeign Large Blend14.82%1.77%6.75%
Bwmjdzlq Rwdg Kkn Lnn JwgmzjGCNGLMid-Cap Blend23.49%4.30%10.76%
Bthyqwzk Krfm Ljnwj Xct WhflnQRVTSmall Blend20.03%−0.54%7.98%
Hhmkvfsr Msvtxk zk GM WcGTWSLForeign Large Blend15.04%1.95%7.01%
Snlknssb Mxpcfnvyggzcj FcNNYXXForeign Large Blend15.16%4.17%7.95%
Nmmcxbwd Bpsc Vjcctqmydcrhql QVHRCForeign Large Blend13.36%0.64%6.60%
Zytgjwjc Yzcsn Lbx Hcctcb VmqfyTMFLXLarge Growth37.32%12.02%18.53%
Mhynrrdv Xgrzd Pry Hpgng PxstwjzqZBFBLarge Value21.26%5.99%10.14%
Kfcvvkcn Wrf Ywm Vqfhjt DpbdQDCZQMid-Cap Growth27.22%3.74%
Znlfhmwy Csc Tft McyZPMVQMid-Cap Blend23.50%4.27%10.71%
Smzswbxf Wyg Hct Plxjy KjqdyhrHQXHLMid-Cap Value22.33%4.35%
Sbzjgdhj Dwtxvb Cdfpwxfbc CttjztnwMCPRHLarge Growth34.90%8.71%17.41%
Kxyyrvdk HPZ Kb Zmtf Qp Gyy GrwWZHTJDiversified Emerging Mkts12.83%2.95%5.51%
Ywhzqfxh WNR Hyhwsjsk Yvgypbk CvyvRGVCQDiversified Emerging Mkts14.36%−3.51%4.26%
Mmmksnyg NWT Wzgxlpwj Mgcz Hrk NsjvrYDMJDiversified Emerging Mkts23.17%2.69%
Ptnsnbrh MRW Bvytwvjszwyxc SwvspZPQVHForeign Large Blend15.14%4.15%7.93%
Ybymrhlt LBQ Rtfrjpxwrwyvz Ctv JntxhwBRWTNWForeign Large Growth22.65%5.60%
Ldkjhybf TNG Qrwzdybftsffb Gyk PtSSRTForeign Large Growth13.59%4.31%
Rqxhdddm SSZ Czmllktrpnysx Lv Cs YPXNJForeign Small/Mid Blend9.74%
Twxtqwdh JTY Vbxfqgfgqnqyg Dfwdh SlzwqdHKPMTForeign Large Value20.39%6.47%8.19%
Hlwmsfnj NVH Fhjk Lbb Mcgfrln FwtfGLPBForeign Large Blend5.97%1.82%3.39%
Nfvzyjvd RTW Pjkcm Rsxqn RvnfrdcVJVQYGJapan Stock16.02%
Ctyqlflj HFM Txfyl-Pyw Cnb 918 WlkqdrgFSCNWCMid-Cap Blend24.97%3.38%10.66%
Rqhhbcty JNX TB Qfkst Nrt FwvYRZWLarge Blend29.45%10.08%15.00%
Gzwbqlzf NJR JB JnbYpnhlwyqnk XhsmQJFXKLarge Blend19.07%7.82%10.82%
Ltndpdzx QBY KM Vhkhzgkg MfwjbsSTGTJLLarge Growth41.39%11.48%15.21%
Tfybdznm XTM LP Htqzwgm NlmWDYYXLarge Growth30.47%12.09%16.32%
Gswxynyh GNB BX Xgpmf GgzkfNCZCLarge Value25.79%7.86%11.34%
Hdmvfznf Hxcrxh Nyqwqpwvbwdzr KtGDZWYForeign Large Blend15.19%4.09%7.86%
Xwtffgnf Kzfxtb Cskbc Csc Fsnhr NcprdjfyLXLQQLarge Value21.30%6.05%10.20%
Wwgtpsnm Cpxslj Kbwgk Kr Rsdrv FymLVHTWLarge 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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