What is an index fund?
An index fund is a mutual fund or ETF that tracks a market index (like the S&P 500 or Total Stock Market). Instead of trying to beat the market, it matches it at very low cost (typically 0.03-0.10% expense ratio). Index funds consistently outperform 80%+ of actively managed funds over 10+ year periods.
More context
An index fund is a mutual fund or ETF that tracks a market index (like the S&P 500 or Total Stock Market). Instead of trying to beat the market, it matches it at very low cost (typically 0.03-0.10% expense ratio). Index funds consistently outperform 80%+ of actively managed funds over 10+ year periods. The exact answer depends on your specific situation — the numbers above are a strong starting point, but the right next step is to plug in your actual figures.
For a deeper analysis, use one of the related tools below — they take your specific income, debt, location, and goals as inputs and produce a tailored answer.