Vanguard is one of the largest asset managers in the world, offering investors and advisors a lineup of 366 mutual funds and exchange-traded funds, or ETFs.
But the firm’s value extends beyond its product shelf. Vanguard also invests heavily in research, regularly publishing insights on macroeconomics and asset allocation.
Unlike some investment managers whose commentary often tilts toward promoting products, Vanguard’s research is generally focused on helping investors achieve one of the simplest, yet most difficult goals in investing: staying the course.
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Staying the course means resisting the urge to sell investments during turbulent times, which is easier said than done. Market downturns, from the tech bubble of 2000 to the financial crisis in 2008 and the pandemic crash in 2020, all presented reasons for investors to panic and cut losses.
Vanguard knows this, and that’s why the firm’s research consistently shows that holding steady is one of the biggest determinants of long-term success. A March 2025 article, “Why to focus on long-term market results,” underscores this point with data-driven evidence.
That research examined rolling return data for stocks and bonds since 1976. While both asset classes occasionally posted short-term losses at the same time, investors never experienced a three-year period where both stocks and bonds were negative.
A balanced 60/40 portfolio was negative about one-third of the time over one-month stretches, but that fell to less than 1% over five years. The longer the horizon, the lower the odds of losses. The practical takeaway for investors is that time itself helps absorb market volatility.
This philosophy supports Vanguard’s reputation for offering some of the most suitable long-term funds in the industry. Most of the firm’s ETFs and mutual funds are known for low fees, broad diversification and high tax efficiency. Many of them carry Morningstar gold medalist designations or five-star ratings.
Here’s a look at seven of the best Vanguard funds to buy and hold:
| Fund | Expense ratio |
| Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares (ticker: VFIAX) | 0.04% |
| Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Admiral Shares (VTSAX) | 0.04% |
| Vanguard Dividend Growth Fund (VDIGX) | 0.22% |
| Vanguard Balanced Index Fund Admiral Shares (VBIAX) | 0.07% |
| Vanguard Wellington Fund Investor Shares (VWELX) | 0.25% |
| Vanguard Wellesley Income Fund Investor Shares (VWINX) | 0.23% |
| Vanguard Target Retirement 2060 Fund (VTTSX) | 0.08% |
Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares (VFIAX)
“The S&P 500 index should be a staple of every investor’s portfolio,” says Henry Yoshida, senior vice president of Retired.com. The June update to S&P Global’s SPIVA Scorecard underscores why: 88.3% of all large-cap mutual funds underperformed the S&P 500 over the past 15 years. For investors who want to track the index directly at low cost, Vanguard offers VFIAX with a 0.04% expense ratio.
One limitation for beginners is the $3,000 minimum initial investment required for VFIAX. If that’s a hurdle, the companion ETF version, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO), is a more accessible choice. VOO trades at roughly $625 per share, and many brokerages allow fractional share purchases for even smaller amounts. It’s also slightly cheaper than VFIAX, with a 0.03% expense ratio.
Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Admiral Shares (VTSAX)
“VTSAX gives you complete exposure to the entire U.S. stock market, from the ‘Magnificent Seven’ down to thousands of publicly traded small- and mid-cap stocks that could become the next Nvidia of the future,” Yoshida says. “Personally, it represents the majority of my personal investment portfolio since it is so diversified, low-cost and tax-efficient — you can buy this fund and hold it forever.”
Unlike VFIAX, which is limited to 500 large-cap stocks, VTSAX owns the full breadth of the U.S. market. As late Vanguard founder John Bogle put it, the idea behind VTSAX is to “buy the haystack.” The fund tracks the CRSP U.S. Total Market Index, covering more than 3,500 stocks across all capitalizations. The expense ratio for VTSAX is 0.04%. It is also available as the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI).
Vanguard Dividend Growth Fund (VDIGX)
VFIAX and VTSAX serve as core equity funds, capturing most of the U.S. stock market through a market cap-weighted approach that emphasizes the largest companies. Investors, however, can also look to Vanguard funds that target specific factors. One of the most popular is dividend growth, which focuses on companies that consistently raise their dividends. This creates a compounding “snowball” effect.
VDIGX is a strong option for this strategy. It is an actively managed fund that targets companies with the potential for sustainable dividend growth, while avoiding those trading at excessive valuations. The portfolio holds just 45 stocks, a sharp departure from broad market indexing. The fund has returned 11.5% annualized over the past 10 years and charges a 0.22% expense ratio.
Vanguard Balanced Index Fund Admiral Shares (VBIAX)
VFIAX and VTSAX are both all-equity funds. Aside from younger investors with high risk tolerance, many people may find the volatility of a 100% stock portfolio difficult to manage. To temper those swings, investors often pair equity funds like VFIAX or VTSAX with separate bond funds. Another option is to use a balanced fund such as VBIAX, which handles the asset allocation and rebalancing internally.
VBIAX follows the 60/40 model, with just over half of assets in U.S. equities and the remainder in a broad portfolio of U.S. investment-grade bonds. Over time, this blend has a decent 10-year annualized total return of 9.7%. The strategy is not immune to losses, though, as shown in 2022 when both stocks and bonds declined together. The fund charges a 0.07% expense ratio.
[READ: 5 Great Fixed-Income Funds to Buy for 2025]
Vanguard Wellington Fund Investor Shares (VWELX)
“Launched in 1929, VWELX has seen it all: the Great Depression, World War II, the intense bear market of the 1970s, the subsequent bull market of the ’80s and ’90s, the global financial crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic, just to name a few,” says Brian Miller, senior investment director on the multi-asset solutions team at Vanguard. Like VBIAX, VWELX is a balanced fund, but it uses active management.
For its roughly 65% allocation to equities, VWELX does not use a broad index. Instead, it invests in a more concentrated mix of large- and mid-cap stocks, often in out-of-favor sectors. The portfolio emphasizes value, quality and dividend yield. The remaining 35% of assets are allocated to bonds, with a focus on intermediate-term, investment-grade corporate debt. The fund carries a 0.25% expense ratio.
Vanguard Wellesley Income Fund Investor Shares (VWINX)
Balanced funds don’t always have to stick to a 60/40 stock-bond split. They exist on a spectrum, with more conservative, income-oriented options leaning more heavily toward bonds. The counterpart to VWELX is VWINX, which allocates roughly 40% to equities and 60% to fixed income. Its emphasis is on capital preservation and current income, reflected in a higher 3.6% 30-day SEC yield.
Like VWELX, VWINX is actively managed. On the equity side, the fund focuses on large-cap value stocks with above-average dividend yields and reasonable growth potential, concentrating its holdings in fewer than 100 names. The bond sleeve is broadly diversified across maturities and includes both government and corporate issuers. The expense ratio is 0.23%, which is highly competitive for active management.
Vanguard Target Retirement 2060 Fund (VTTSX)
While VBIAX offers simplicity, it also has two key limitations. First, it lacks international exposure, holding only U.S. stocks and bonds. Second, its 60/40 allocation is static, staying the same regardless of an investor’s age or changing risk tolerance. For a more dynamic approach, Vanguard offers its line of target retirement funds. These are globally diversified and adjust their asset allocation as time goes on.
“Vanguard’s suite of target retirement funds can be a complete portfolio solution for investors who want a simple, globally diversified portfolio that adjusts its risk profile over time,” Miller says. “Simply pick the target date closest to when you plan to retire, and the fund allocates your assets to a low-cost mix of stocks and bonds that gradually gets more conservative as you approach retirement.”
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7 Best Vanguard Funds to Buy and Hold originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 10/31/25: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
