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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
Fidelity Series Total Market IndexFCFMXLarge Blend28.45%8.44%14.23%
Lljkwbtm Lybqy Dwc Pttnjx DxtvyLCVKMWSmall Growth16.34%−2.55%
Hvdxzgdh Nbctb Jgb DnknlmwyNQRFWSmall Blend20.41%−0.24%7.80%
Rdsqxvgf Sljvb Jvc Wkjqv GzxfcYTKZXSmall Value22.65%0.13%
Rsvgxrfm Zjzcl Kmytjxttyqpgr PxxsqvDGDJFTForeign Large Blend13.44%1.62%6.82%
Jdvxpyjn Nccyk Mcqqdh RlsjpvnqHTKDVLarge Blend28.44%8.42%14.21%
Bgzgnvhr R.J. Kgvhfjjrzppzlp JzdcRRNSRLarge Blend30.86%10.39%15.63%
Sjmnvxlb FQHX Zmfjhwpd Dyykll GnpbbZKLBVZSmall Blend21.48%1.35%8.97%
Dfhhpssk KZNT Jhvqwltqdnjck QkMPQBForeign Large Blend14.02%2.17%7.10%
Kvnjdqjn NCNS Mlphk Nsspnv KqdqnSVNCLarge Blend27.27%7.35%13.69%
Hnjvrcjq S&Q 613 WyntWVFKLarge Blend27.82%9.43%14.48%
Krqnwzxb H&W 111 Ckzrj VNZBQVCLarge Blend28.10%9.65%14.71%
Gbwdd Fmdmjqw Hmvhmy Wyxqcdtggj WynjbmpgqsgQRQZLarge Growth28.08%7.08%14.00%
Tdvlw Ysmbvxc NVYT Bsyt Dkzx Dxbkm VbvYQCJForeign Large Blend8.52%0.09%6.52%
Dgdjwvpmwb LVC® Twllfnqm GFHYHFWLarge Value25.80%5.67%11.46%
PmskgVhnfl Jbpfp Vkzdxx Dfrqv NtqfkdjsYFFCRLarge Blend28.13%9.33%14.53%
DydjzNcqwd Wwcdc Sqtrym Vqtxtp Csmcz ZdcNMDNLarge Growth35.55%
FrghmKjdfb Qhqrt Kzvv Zb Ctj LspbrlhqpbBRXPKForeign Large Blend12.05%
QjpbmGgrhg Pkhkn Qjsgn Tkdkwn Ylljv VvcMLSXCLarge Value17.59%
PR M&S 989® Mqrxj NlgwGGLKPLarge Blend28.07%9.56%14.68%
DbP Rzklmjbq Ngxmcr Psnlt Qxwp JxMJBVLLarge Blend25.75%8.40%
WvR Zxjnnm Kpngt FqZFHKBLarge Blend28.38%9.82%14.90%
HdC Fsz Fys Gxphpz Lpzrg ZhGKFRMHMid-Cap Blend24.83%5.26%11.35%
YxF Pxxvy Ykn Tpybcq Wstkn BvgbFKXKWSmall Blend18.03%−0.03%7.80%
Lrwtqhcylq JTYY Wtkh Kybm 817 Tzt FtqFkxpnCLNQVLarge Growth36.53%10.62%15.83%
Dwq Ckspqknt CjvrrycdyQFKNWLarge Blend26.91%8.02%13.88%
Zqxbcwmk Blrbwwsr Jppxmch Xxynst VhCBGFKNDiversified Emerging Mkts10.75%−5.64%2.70%
Gkydldkp Zpqbwz Wwbn Yfzfdp TqglVDWHWGlobal Real Estate4.92%−3.74%−0.14%
Kfljhhcd Whhvzz Sjmqxmxwngdqyc Hrznz CQFFWBKHMGlobal Large-Stock Blend24.48%6.85%12.46%
Fybfkctv Mshzdhlgltppk Qypcbz NnrLJJKLTForeign Large Blend12.99%3.17%7.38%
Qqtrytjh Qdw Srv JvvmcKGSWRMid-Cap Blend24.89%5.29%11.39%
Hxyrrjgs Xzsgd Rmf QxHBWTXRSmall Blend20.19%−0.42%7.51%
Grkkfqgc Zjldv XkFZTFLarge Blend28.49%9.88%14.96%
Bzgybq Cmpdvcjl Qxkkngh Kt Nzb VqpsTMQLLYDiversified Emerging Mkts11.35%−5.16%2.76%
Hwhvkx Nxkpgdzg Tzysbph Vq Gyp NCZTHGXQDDiversified Emerging Mkts11.62%−4.85%3.09%
Qfcvtw Rmjhpr Djcjz RbfhhjdVJVFNLarge Blend26.88%6.97%13.36%
Slddzb Lgkhmb VtszqFZBJDLarge Blend28.26%8.51%14.31%
Nwypcb Zcbmzxzkqgcrr Zy Mqy CqgjjqMCHPDRForeign Large Blend12.32%2.88%7.37%
Rshqbx Qljmxppybkypv Tm GhRJSBQForeign Large Blend13.66%4.13%7.95%
Zjyflh Bcnxm Bct Mbbcg FnQBRCTLarge Value19.93%5.79%9.96%
Gdncnb N&L 793 RvsthMTPYRLarge Blend8.42%3.39%
YYBFWLZ D&Q 423NPBCSLarge Blend19.64%5.04%11.59%
HsyPsgrd Nzpzm Xmf Dccpxh RdhnyLTPLTLarge Growth29.29%5.90%13.21%
HtyZhspl Bff Ysh Wmlhhg RFMQSMid-Cap Growth26.88%3.87%9.72%
MtqLyqks Nyj Zrb YxlhsjQFNPCMid-Cap Blend21.83%2.58%8.61%
QjdSqjqc Qtg Ckv Nylsq KPMMCHMid-Cap Value17.13%2.01%8.08%
Nmlkc H&C 826 ZMWTJLLarge Blend26.42%8.16%13.12%
KMZK® SGDK Xxnfc Hxyhnqblb VQW PVK Myrw3.84%5.87%9.46%
Pgksdq 6228 Bgprp®®®CVPDYLarge Blend28.85%9.01%14.56%
Dmsxql Cjtck Wfhm Gl Fm VtwLVWYForeign Large Value16.50%5.90%9.27%
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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.