Investors today face constant pressure to focus on the short term.
Several trends have contributed to this shift, including the gamification of brokerage apps, the rise of prediction markets and a wave of increasingly complex products in the exchange-traded fund (ETF) industry.
Leveraged ETFs, often offering two or three times daily returns, have become especially common. Search for stocks like Nvidia Corp. (ticker: NVDA), Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR) or Tesla Inc. (TSLA) in a brokerage app, and you may see more ETFs tied to those names than the stocks themselves.
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Many of these products are marketed as tools to amplify returns or hedge positions. In practice, they are typically designed for short-term trading, not long-term investing.
ETF prospectuses make this clear, stating that leverage targets apply on a daily basis. Over longer holding periods, returns can diverge significantly due to compounding effects. Higher expense ratios add another layer of cost, which can weigh on performance over time.
One provider that has largely avoided this trend is Vanguard. The firm has not launched leveraged or inverse ETFs, and has stayed out of areas like cryptocurrency ETFs and thematic funds tied to popular trends such as artificial intelligence.
Instead, Vanguard has maintained a consistent approach built on broad diversification, passive index tracking and low fees. Its unique corporate structure, where the asset manager is owned by its funds, which are in turn owned by investors, helps keep costs among the lowest in the industry.
Investors who avoid short-term distractions may find that Vanguard’s lineup of 380 mutual funds and ETFs offers a straightforward way to build a durable portfolio. These funds are designed to be held for years, if not decades, and can support long-term goals such as retirement.
“Investors who stay diversified, keep costs low and remain invested through market cycles are far more likely to reach their goals than those trying to outguess short-term market moves,” says Kathy Kellert, head of index equity product at Vanguard. “A buy-and-hold approach helps remove the pressure to constantly react, and instead lets compounding do its work.”
Here are seven of the best Vanguard mutual funds to buy and hold in 2026:
| Fund | Expense ratio |
| Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Admiral Shares (VTSAX) | 0.04% |
| Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares (VFIAX) | 0.04% |
| Vanguard Value Index Fund Admiral Shares (VVIAX) | 0.05% |
| Vanguard Growth Index Fund Admiral Shares (VIGAX) | 0.05% |
| Vanguard Dividend Growth Fund (VDIGX) | 0.22% |
| Vanguard Wellington Fund Investor Shares (VWELX) | 0.24% |
| Vanguard Target Retirement 2065 Fund (VLXVX) | 0.08% |
Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Admiral Shares (VTSAX)
John Bogle, Vanguard’s late founder and chairman, famously said, “Don’t look for the needle in the haystack, just buy the haystack!” By “haystack,” Bogle meant the entire U.S. stock market, weighted by market capitalization. Investors can take that approach with this fund, which holds more than 3,500 stocks across large-, mid- and small-cap segments. The fund charges a 0.04% expense ratio.
“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,” says Henry Yoshida, senior vice president at Retired.com. “It represents the majority of my personal investment portfolio since it is so diversified, low-cost and tax efficient.”
Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares (VFIAX)
VTSAX offers broad exposure, but some investors prefer to focus specifically on large-cap, blue-chip companies. That means excluding the thousands of mid- and small-cap stocks included in VTSAX. To express that view, investors can use VFIAX, which tracks the S&P 500 index and also charges a 0.04% expense ratio. “The S&P 500 index should be a staple of every investor’s portfolio,” Yoshida says.
Compared with VTSAX, VFIAX’s portfolio is narrower by design. In practice, the top holdings across both funds are quite similar, as both are market cap-weighted. The largest companies tend to dominate each portfolio, though they make up a slightly higher proportion in VFIAX. Because of that overlap, VTSAX and VFIAX can also serve as tax-loss harvesting pairs, allowing investors to switch between the two.
Vanguard Value Index Fund Admiral Shares (VVIAX)
Not all Vanguard funds are designed to track the broad market. Some are style-specific, meaning they tilt toward stocks with certain fundamental characteristics. Investors who want to overweight value stocks may find VVIAX appealing. While it still tracks an index, VVIAX’s value methodology applies screens that narrow the portfolio to about 312 holdings, with a bias toward large-cap stocks.
Compared with VFIAX, VVIAX trades at a lower price-to-earnings ratio of 22 versus 27.6 and a lower price-to-book ratio of 3.1 versus 5.1. The sector mix also differs. VVIAX is less concentrated in technology and more balanced across financials, industrials and health care. The fund charges a 0.05% expense ratio and pays an above-average 1.9% 30-day SEC yield.
Vanguard Growth Index Fund Admiral Shares (VIGAX)
The counterpart to VIVAX is VIGAX, which focuses on growth stocks and holds a more concentrated portfolio of about 151 companies. This fund trades at higher valuation multiples, with a price-to-earnings ratio of 35 and a price-to-book ratio of 11.4. It charges the same 0.05% expense ratio as VVIAX. With a low 0.4% 30-day SEC yield, most of VIGAX’s return comes from share price appreciation.
That being said, VIGAX shows stronger profitability and growth metrics compared with VFIAX. For example, VIGAX has a return on equity of 40.7% versus 29% for VFIAX, along with an earnings growth rate of 32.6% versus 23.4%. However, VIGAX’s growth screens lead to greater concentration risk. About 64.7% of the portfolio is allocated to technology companies, compared with 32.4% for VFIAX.
[Read: 7 Best Tech ETFs to Buy in 2026]
Vanguard Dividend Growth Fund (VDIGX)
Not all Vanguard funds are passive index-tracking products. Some, like VDIGX, are actively managed and rely on a team of portfolio managers to select companies. The fund’s mandate focuses on high-quality businesses that are expected to grow their dividends over time. The portfolio is relatively concentrated, with about 48 holdings, and is advised by Wellington Management Co.
While dividend growth is the core objective, VDIGX is not a strict style fund. It has flexibility to invest across both growth and value stocks. Since its inception in May 1992, VDIGX has delivered an annualized total return of about 9%, compared with 8.8% for its benchmark. Despite its active approach, the fund remains reasonably priced, with a 0.22% expense ratio, and it currently offers a 1.3% 30-day SEC yield.
Vanguard Wellington Fund Investor Shares (VWELX)
VDIGX is not the only Vanguard fund advised by Wellington Management. The firm’s most well-known offering is VWELX, which dates back to July 1929. About two-thirds of the portfolio is allocated to stocks, primarily large-cap companies selected for above-average dividend yields and reasonable valuations. The remaining one-third is invested in investment-grade corporate bonds with intermediate maturities.
“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, head of multi-asset product management at Vanguard. VWELX charges a 0.24% expense ratio and requires a $3,000 minimum investment.
Vanguard Target Retirement 2065 Fund (VLXVX)
Target-date funds use a dynamic allocation that shifts over time. For example, VLXVX is expected to automatically adjust its mix of stocks and bonds, becoming more conservative as the retirement year approaches. This reflects the shift in investor priorities from growth to capital preservation as their time horizon shortens. VLXVX charges a 0.08% expense ratio and requires a $1,000 minimum.
“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 03/30/26: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
