Our Best Index Funds
Looking for low-cost index funds to invest in? See our best-rated index funds or screen 8,000+ funds by performance, yield, cost, asset class, management style and more, with Morningstar Investor.
No credit card required.
See our best-rated index funds now
Australian Stock Index Funds
See our ratings and research on Australian stock index funds, inside Morningstar Investor.
U.S. Stock Index Funds
See our ratings and research on U.S. stock index funds, inside Morningstar Investor.
International Stock Index Funds
See our ratings and research on international stock index funds, inside Morningstar Investor.
Bond Index Funds
See our ratings and research on bond index unds, inside Morningstar Investor.
Low-Cost Index Funds
See our ratings and research on low-cost index funds, inside Morningstar Investor.
Screen over 8,000 Funds
Discover new investment ideas with Morningstar Investor. See our analysts' best fund picks or use our premium investment screener to identify funds meeting your criteria. Filter by performance, yield, cost, asset class, management style and more.
Then validate your investment ideas with the help of Morningstar’s in-depth fund research reports, available on over 3,000 funds. See Morningstar medalist ratings and commentary on a fund’s investment process, team, performance, priorities & price. Then view top fund holdings, sector exposure, asset allocation and more.
Research and compare popular funds from iShares, SPDR, Vanguard and more.
No credit card required.
Investing in index funds
What is an index fund?
Index funds are passive investments. They track an index with the goal of replicating the performance of that index, minus expenses. Active funds, meanwhile, are led by managers who choose particular securities in an effort to outperform an index.
However, some index funds are better than others. The best index funds do a good job of closely tracking their indexes, minimizing costs, and following sensible rules-based indexes.
Why are index funds such a popular investing option?
The first index fund, Vanguard 500, debuted in 1976 . Since then, index funds have exploded in popularity.
Many argue that buying and holding the broad market (whatever that market may be) generates better results than trying to beat that same market through actively selecting securities.
Any historical performance advantage aside, there are several benefits to investing in index funds.
- Index funds are usually lower in cost than similar actively managed funds.
- Index funds perform like the market they’re tracking; as such, there aren’t many surprises in performance.
- Index funds don’t face what’s called key-person risk, which means that manager changes aren’t a big deal, since there’s no active security selection involved.
- Index funds are often more tax-friendly than similar active funds.
How to find the best index funds for you?
A good place to start your search for top index exchange-traded funds and managed funds is with the Morningstar Medalist Rating. Funds that earn our highest rating—Gold—are those that we think are most likely to outperform over a full market cycle.
However, focusing on funds that earn a Gold rating may be too limiting for some investors. Those who’d like to consider funds beyond our top rating can review stock index funds and ETFs and bond index funds and ETFs that earn ratings of Bronze, Silver, and Gold.
Investors can also review all index managed funds or all index ETFs. These lists include funds that don’t currently earn Medalist Ratings.
Should You Invest in an Index Managed Fund or ETF?
Investors can access passive strategies through two different investment products: managed funds or exchange-traded funds.
One product isn’t better than the other; choosing the right wrapper depends on personal preferences. Investors who value trading flexibility or who may have few dollars to invest might prefer an ETF.
No credit card required.
About Us
We’re all in for investors.
Morningstar is a leading source of independent investment research for stocks, funds, ETF's, credit, and LIC's as well as financial data, news, investing tools.
It started with an idea—one great idea from a 27-year-old stock analyst. Joe Mansueto thought it was unfair that people didn’t have access to the same information as financial professionals. So he hired a few people and set up shop in his apartment—to deliver investment research to everyone. We didn’t know then what the company would look like today, but we knew the commitment to our mission—to empower investor success—wouldn’t change. Now, we operate through wholly- or majority-owned subsidiaries in 32 countries. We’ve empowered investors all over the world, and we’re continuing to look for new ways to help people achieve financial security.
Our research is independent, which means we do not charge or accept payment or commissions from fund managers, listed companies or other product issuers to produce research on their products. Our mission remains true today, 39 years after that one great idea – we believe in the democratization of investment information, research and data. Our mission is at the core of everything we do – to empower investor success.
Your FREE 4-week trial^ of Morningstar Investor Gives You Access To More Than Just Our Best Fund Picks
Discover investments
Find investment opportunities which fit your needs with our equities, ETFs, Funds and Hybrids coverage.
- Access qualitative analyst research on more than 1,600 stocks, forward-looking ratings on over 3,000 ETFs and managed funds, plus data on over 48,000 global securities
- Access our top equity picks, including sustainable dividend generating stocks, 5-star Australian and global stocks, 5-star Australian and global listed property stocks, sustainable investing stocks and more
- Easy-to-use, customisable filters to quickly identify investments which suit your goals
- Stock filter options include sector, market cap, dividend yield, franking percentage, payout ratio, Morningstar rating, economic moat, price/earnings ratio, return on equity, annualised return and more
- ETF and Fund filter options include yield, total cost ratio, annualised return, category, management style, Morningstar analyst rating, sustainability rating and more
- Keep an eye on price movements and Morningstar ratings as you wait for a more compelling opportunity with a customisable watchlist
No credit card needed.
Track & analyse investments
Morningstar Investor includes complimentary access to Sharesight’s Investor Plan, one of Australia’s leading portfolio trackers (valued up to $464.04 p.a.) Sharesight’s integration into Morningstar Investor’s portfolio manager allows you to:
- Track all of your investments in a single location
- Easy dividend tracking with corporate actions automatically incorporated in portfolio reports
- An integration with Morningstar’s data and research: garner insights on your holdings from our team of equity and fund analysts
- Know your portfolio's true performance with daily price & currency updates
- Save time during tax time with streamline portfolio and tax reporting
- Know your exposure: Take a deep dive into your portfolio with Morningstar’s Portfolio X-Ray – get region, sector and style breakdowns
- Stay on top of your investments with email alerts for new corporate events, sudden movements in price, plus a weekly portfolio performance summary
No credit card needed.
Already a Sharesight user? We’ll pick up your bill (up to the value of the Investor Plan)
Monitor markets
We contextualise day to day market movements with our view of the overall market valuation so you can focus on the long-term investment opportunity.
- Explore index, commodity and currency changes
- See the current price to fair value of each market we cover along with the valuation from a year ago
Stay informed
Our journalists in Australia, North America and Europe deliver insights from our wide breadth of equity, fund and ETF research, our in-house behavioural science researchers and our investment management team.
- A view on markets and investing focused on sound analysis rather than snap reactions to market events
- Access to our latest equity, fund and ETF research
- Commentary and insights on latest economic, political and business news
Learn to invest
Knowledge is the foundation of independence. As a Morningstar Investor member, you'll receive access to investing guides covering a wide range of topics. These are designed for both novice investors and experienced investors looking to review key foundational topics.
- Discover strategies to build wealth via stock, fund and ETF investing
- Learn fundamental frameworks for successful long-term investing
- How to build a portfolio aligned to your goals
No credit card required.
^The free 4-week trial offer is limited to new clients and cannot be used to extend an existing Investor Membership. One free trial per household. Morningstar is licensed to provide our subscription service to Australian residents only.
Financial investment involves the risk of loss.
© 2025 Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither Morningstar, its affiliates, nor the content providers guarantee the data or content contained herein to be accurate, complete or timely nor will they have any liability for its use or distribution. This report has been prepared for clients of Morningstar Australasia Pty Ltd (ABN: 95 090 665 544, AFSL: 240892) and/or New Zealand wholesale clients of Morningstar Research Ltd, subsidiaries of Morningstar, Inc. Any general advice has been provided without reference to your financial objectives, situation or needs. For more information refer to our Financial Services Guide at www.morningstar.com.au/s/fsg.pdf. You should consider the advice in light of these matters and if applicable, the relevant Product Disclosure Statement before making any decision to invest. Our publications, ratings and products should be viewed as an additional investment resource, not as your sole source of information. Morningstar’s full research reports are the source of any Morningstar Ratings and are available from Morningstar or your adviser. Past performance does not necessarily indicate a financial product’s future performance. To obtain advice tailored to your situation, contact a financial adviser. Some material is copyright and published under licence from ASX Operations Pty Ltd ACN 004 523 782.
Legal Notices Privacy Policy Regulatory Disclosures Global Contacts