The Best Growth Funds

So far this year to date, the Morningstar US Growth Index has earned a return of 8.75%, versus 5.70% for the Morningstar US Value Index. Given the volatility and current overvaluation in growth stocks, Morningstar’s chief US market strategist David Sekera argues that value stocks are a better opportunity than growth stocks.

“In our 2025 Outlook, we recommended to underweight the growth category as it was trading at a 20% premium to fair value and AI stocks in particular were overvalued,” says Sekera. “Growth stocks plunged more than the broad market selloff earlier this year, bottoming out in early April, reaching a 14% discount, close to in line with the broad market valuation. We revised our market recommendation to overweight on April 7. Following the tariff pause, growth stocks led the market higher and once again are trading well above our fair values.”

“We think now is a good time to lock in some profits, especially in the growth category, and reinvest those proceeds into value stocks, which remain at a discount to our valuations. While investors should maintain some exposure to growth stocks in their portfolio, undervalued opportunities are idiosyncratic to individual stocks as the broad category is overvalued,” he explains.

Should Investors Buy Growth Stock Mutual Funds and ETFs Today?

Investors who own core stock mutual funds or exchange-traded funds—especially those tracking a broad market index such as the S&P 500 or Wilshire 5000 Index—already have exposure to growth stocks. They’re diversified. They likely don’t need to add more growth stocks to their portfolios, as they already have plenty.

However, some investors may think growth stocks are the place to be, and they’d like to tilt their portfolios toward that style. For such investors, there are many fine growth stock mutual funds and ETFs to choose from. Here, we’re shining a spotlight on those that land in the US large-growth, mid-growth, or small-growth Morningstar Categories and have at least one share class that earns a top Morningstar Medalist Rating of Gold with 100% analyst coverage. We expect such highly rated funds to outperform over a full market cycle.

Best Growth Mutual Funds and ETFs

These ETFs and mutual funds focus on growth stocks and have at least one Gold-rated share class in July 2025.

1. Champlain Mid Cap CIPMX
2. Champlain Small Company CIPSX
3. Fidelity Series Large Cap Growth FHOFX
4. Loomis Sayles Growth LSGRX
5. Morgan Stanley Institutional Growth MGHRX
6. Primecap Odyssey Aggressive Growth POAGX
7. Principal Blue Chip Institutional PBCKX
8. Principal MidCap Institutional PCBIX
9. T. Rowe Price All-Cap Opportunities PNAIX
10. Vanguard Growth Index/ETF VIGAX
    VUG
11. Vanguard Russell 1000 Growth Index/ETF VRGWX VONG
12. Vanguard S&P 500 Growth Index/ETF VSPGX VOOG
13. Vanguard S&P Mid-Cap 400 Growth VMFGX
14. Vanguard Small Cap Growth Index/ETF VSGAX
    VBK

What Is Growth Stock Investing?

Growth stock investors favor companies that exhibit growth characteristics and typically care little about the price they pay for a company’s stock.

However, there are many different ways that an investor can measure a company’s growth. For instance:

• Many growth stock investors focus on earnings growth and own stocks with high valuations. These investors demand that a company’s earnings growth exceed that of the market.
• Some investors practice a momentum strategy, focusing on companies with accelerating earnings whose stock prices are already on the upswing, the idea being that stocks that have outperformed will continue to do so, at least in the short run.
• Other growth stock investors buy stocks in companies without any earnings; they’re focused instead on revenue growth, with the hope that earnings will eventually follow.
• Other growth stock investors focus on stocks with more moderate, but steady, earnings growth.

How Do Growth Stock Mutual Funds and ETFs Work?

Growth stock mutual funds and ETFs typically pursue one of the strategies outlined above.

But when it comes to growth stock mutual funds and ETFs, there are additional nuances to consider. For example, a few funds on the list, such as Loomis Sayles Growth, have compact portfolios consisting of 50 or so securities, while many of the index funds and ETFs on the list own hundreds of stocks. Some growth funds focus on stocks from large companies, while others focus on stocks of midsize or smaller firms.

(As an aside, mutual funds sometimes stop accepting new money so that they can continue to effectively invest within their wheelhouses; check the fund’s Status field on its Morningstar.com quote page to find out whether a fund you’re interested in is open to new investment.)

The bottom line: Do your research before you buy. Our investment categories and Morningstar Medalist Ratings are just a starting point. Be sure to consult our analyst reports to learn more about a particular fund’s strategy.

How to Find Growth Stock Funds for the Long Term

Given their high Morningstar Medalist Ratings, we expect the top-rated growth stock mutual funds and ETFs on our list to outperform over a full market cycle.

That being said, investors may want to expand their search for growth funds beyond this list, using parameters that matter to them. Here are two additional ways to find growth stock ETFs and mutual funds to investigate further.

• Some investors may prefer a list of top-rated funds that invest in growth stocks around the globe, not just in US names. Using the Morningstar Investor Screener, select Investment Type (either ETF or Mutual Fund), scroll down to Morningstar Category, and select Global Large-Cap Growth (if you want funds that invest in both international and US large-cap growth stocks) or Foreign Large-Cap Growth and Foreign Small/Mid Growth (if you want to exclude US growth stocks). Then choose Gold beneath Morningstar Medalist Rating.
• Want to find a complete list of growth stock ETFs or mutual funds available today, not just those with our highest Medalist Ratings? Using the Morningstar Investor Screener tool, select Investment Type (either ETF or Mutual Fund) and choose the Morningstar Category—Large Growth, Mid-Cap Growth, or Small Growth—that you prefer. Or choose all three.