11
Best Vanguard Mutual Funds of 2026
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The Best Vanguard Mutual Funds of 2026
| Fund | Expense Ratio | Minimum Investment |
|---|---|---|
|
0.05%
|
$3,000
| |
|
0.08%
|
$1,000
| |
|
0.25%
|
$3,000
| |
|
0.04%
|
$3,000
| |
|
0.14%
|
$3,000
| |
|
0.27%
|
$3,000
| |
|
0.07%
|
$3,000
|
Vanguard Growth Index Fund (VIGAX)
Best Vanguard index fund for growth stocks
Vanguard Growth Index Fund (VIGAX)
Total Assets (As of March 5)
$352.4 billion
Expense Ratio
0.05%
Minimum Investment
$3,000
$352.4 billion
0.05%
$3,000
Want dividend income as well as growth of principal? If so, the Vanguard Growth Index Fund is built for you. This is a classic core holding for a retirement portfolio, and the fund offers excellent diversification, holding around 150 stocks.
More than half of VIGAX’s portfolio is invested in technology, with big names in AI like Amazon.com, Apple and Broadcom. The fund also has weighted exposure to communication services and consumer cyclical sectors, with over 99% of its holdings in equities. VIGAX also issues a modest dividend of around 25 cents per share each quarter.
Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund (VFIFX)
Best Vanguard target date fund
Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund (VFIFX)
Total Assets (As of March 5)
$135.10 billion
Expense Ratio
0.08%
Minimum Investment
$1,000
$135.10 billion
0.08%
$1,000
Increasingly, retirement investors are flocking to target date funds. Many appreciate that professional managers handle picking investments and shifting riskier stocks into more stable bonds and cash as the target date nears.
The Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund tames costs by investing only in Vanguard funds rather than individual securities. Nearly 90% of the fund is invested in equities, both U.S. and international, with the remainder invested in fixed income and cash. For the equity portion, the fund is invested in the Vanguard Total Stocks Market Index – Institutional Plus Shares (VSMPX) and the Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund Investor Shares (VGTSX). Both are large blend institutional investor mutual funds, which probably helps keep the expense ratio for VFIFX relatively low.
Vanguard Wellington Fund (VWELX)
Best Vanguard mutual fund for balanced allocation
Vanguard Wellington Fund (VWELX)
Total Assets (As of March 5)
$120.4 billion*
(Morningstar data)
Expense Ratio
0.25%
Minimum Investment
$3,000
$120.4 billion*
(Morningstar data)
0.25%
$3,000
Founded in 1929, the Vanguard Wellington Fund is not only the company’s oldest mutual fund but also the oldest fund of its kind in the U.S. About two-thirds of this balanced fund’s portfolio consists of stocks and the rest are bonds. Both asset classes are well diversified within the fund.
VWELX’s longer-run returns are among the best of the company’s balanced funds, also known as allocation funds for their mix of stocks and bonds. This fund sits in the moderate allocation category, putting around 66% of its money into stocks, a level deemed neither too conservative (sacrificing potential growth) nor too aggressive (risking too much volatility).
Vanguard 500 Index Admiral (VFIAX)
Best Vanguard mutual fund for passive index investing
Vanguard 500 Index Admiral (VFIAX)
Total Assets (As of March 5)
$1.5 trillion
Expense Ratio
0.04%
Minimum Investment
$3,000
$1.5 trillion
0.04%
$3,000
Vanguard 500 Index Admiral was the industry’s first index fund for retail investors. The fund offers instant diversification to some of the largest U.S. companies. According to the fund prospectus, “The fund offers exposure to 500 of the largest U.S. companies, which span many different industries and account for about three-fourths of the U.S. stock market’s value.”
The minimum investment for this fund is $3,000. So, here’s a hot tip: If you’re a Vanguard account holder with less money in your account, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) might be a better alternative. For the same stock portfolio, you can buy a share of VOO for as little as $1 because of Vanguard’s fractional share program.
Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund Investor Shares (VASGX)
Best Vanguard mutual fund for large-cap growth
Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund Investor Shares (VASGX)
Total Assets (As of March 5)
$25 billion
Expense Ratio
0.14%
Minimum Investment
$3,000
$25 billion
0.14%
$3,000
Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund Investor Shares is somewhat like the Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund (VFIFX), in that it has exposure to the same equity funds: Vanguard Total Stocks Market Index – Institutional Plus Shares (VSMPX) and Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund Investor Shares (VGTSX). The difference for VASGX is instead of 90% equity allocation; the equity allocation is around 80%. The rest of the portfolio allocation is in bonds and short-term reserves.
Since the fund does have exposure to fixed income, it pays a dividend. VASGX pays a modest yield of around 2.15%.
Vanguard Equity-Income Fund Investor Shares (VEIPX)
Best actively managed Vanguard mutual fund
Vanguard Equity-Income Fund Investor Shares (VEIPX)
Total Assets (As of March 5)
$62.4 billion
Expense Ratio
0.27%
Minimum Investment
$3,000
$62.4 billion
0.27%
$3,000
Vanguard Equity-Income Fund’s name implies a little of what it is supposed to do for an investor: provide income. The fund provides a modest, steady yield of around 2%, while attempting gains in appreciation from the underlying equities. Unlike most of the funds on this list, this fund is an actively managed fund. (That explains the slightly higher expense ratio.)
VEIPX seeks to invest in midsize and large-cap companies, with stocks that pay “above-average levels of dividend income, and are, in the opinion of the purchasing advisor, undervalued relative to similar stocks.”
Vanguard Balanced Index Fund Admiral Shares (VBIAX)
Best Vanguard mutual fund for a 60/40 portfolio
Vanguard Balanced Index Fund Admiral Shares (VBIAX)
Total Assets (As of March 5)
$61.5 billion
Expense Ratio
0.07%
Minimum Investment
$3,000
$61.5 billion
0.07%
$3,000
A 60/40 portfolio of stocks and bonds is a classic combo that historically performs well as an asset allocation. Equity returns ride high in bull markets, while the allocation to bonds offsets volatility and reduces drawdowns in bear markets.
According to a Morningstar stress test evaluation of the classic 60/40 portfolio, the balanced blend “experienced less pain than the stock market during nearly every market crash of the past 150 years.”
Overall, VBIAX can help medium-term investors with a moderate risk to keep a balanced portfolio, using a single fund strategy.
Methodology
Forbes Advisor’s selection of the best Vanguard mutual funds prioritizes both scale and cost efficiency. Each fund meets the following criteria:
AUM. At least $10 billion in assets under management. A higher AUM generally signals greater fund popularity.
Expense ratio. Almost all mutual funds come with an expense ratio. Higher cost funds are typically actively managed funds, and these fees can eat into your investment returns. To keep expense ratios from chipping away at your returns, we selected funds with a net expense ratio of 0.25% or lower.
Morningstar rating of “four stars” or higher. Morningstar awards a star rating to funds based on how well they rank against their peers in terms of performance. A five-star fund is a top performing mutual fund in the top 10% of funds in its respective category, and a four-star fund is in the next 22.5%.
Minimum initial investment. We discarded any whose minimum initial investment exceeds $3,000. For that reason, funds that are more aimed at investors with high net worth or institutional investing are excluded.
10-year performance. All the funds on this list held a positive 10-year annual return at the time of this writing. We applied this screen for identifying top performing mutual funds, although past performance isn’t always a guarantee of future performance, which is why other metrics for screening are important.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How many mutual funds does Vanguard have?
You can choose from more than 280 Vanguard funds that span from target-date funds and ETFs to mutual funds.
In fact, Vanguard offers over 160 no-transaction-fee mutual funds. But you’ll need to note that not all those funds are available to DIY retail investors. Some of those funds are institutional class funds, such as the Vanguard Russell 1000 Growth Index Fund – Institutional Shares (VRGWX). It’s a bit of a giveaway in the name, too, and the fund requires a minimum investment of $5 million.
Fear not, though, as most Vanguard funds are still targeted toward retail investors, with a minimum investment of $1,000 or $3,000.
Vanguard ETFs vs. Vanguard mutual funds: Which one is best for me?
The brokerage house of Vanguard offers both ETFs and mutual funds. ETFs tend to be more tax-efficient and carry lower expense ratios, while mutual funds are often easier for automatic investors (where you set up recurring purchases for a fixed amount without worrying about the share price).
In many cases, Vanguard offers ETF versions of its mutual funds where the fund holds the same underlying assets. For example, the Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares (VFIAX) is essentially a carbon copy of the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO), as both track the S&P 500 index.
What are the best Vanguard mutual funds for a young investor?
If you’re a young investor, you presumably have a longer time horizon and a higher risk tolerance. For that reason, you might be able to allocate in a more risk-on equity approach. An allocation to a portfolio that tilts more to equities like Vanguard LifeStrategy Growth Fund Investor Shares (VASGX) or Vanguard 500 Index Admiral (VFIAX) might make sense.
These funds hold more than 90% equities and generally have higher expected long-term returns. But keep in mind, these funds will also be subject to mass pullbacks in down years.