Plenty of people shy away from investing because of fear.
In fact, a survey from Ally Invest found that 65% of adults say they find investing in the stock market to be scary and/or intimidating. Whether it's the concern you'll make a bad investment and lose money or a lack of access to quality investing advice, at the end of the day that fear is holding you back from really growing your net worth.
The good news is there are many easy ways to invest; you don't have to worry about picking individual stocks, and hiring an expensive advisor isn't always necessary. One of the easiest ways to get started investing is through index funds.
How index funds work
Index funds are investment funds that follow a benchmark index, such as the S&P 500 or the Nasdaq 100.
When you put money in an index fund, that cash is then used to invest in all the companies that make up the particular index, which gives you a more diverse portfolio than if you were buying individual stocks.
Let's use the S&P 500 as an example. The S&P 500 is one of the major indexes that tracks the performance of the 500 largest companies in the U.S. Investing in an S&P 500 fund (one of the most popular) means your investments are tied to the performance of a wide range of companies.
Because the goal of index funds is to mirror the same holdings of whatever index they track, they are naturally diversified and thus hold a lower risk than individual stock holdings. Market indexes tend to have a good track record, too. Though the S&P 500 certainly fluctuates, it has historically generated nearly a 10% average annual return over time for investors. (Just remember that future returns are not guaranteed.)
Index investing is a form of passive investing
Index investors don't need to actively manage the stocks and bonds investment as closely since the fund is just copying a particular index. This is why index funds are known as passive investing — and it's what sets them apart from mutual funds.
Mutual funds are actively managed by fund managers who choose your investments. The goal with mutual funds is to beat the market, while the goal with index funds is simply to match the market's performance. Since index funds don't require daily human management, they have lower management costs (called "expense ratios") than mutual funds. The money saved in fees by investing in an index fund over a mutual fund can save you lots of money in the long term and in turn help you make more money.
A common strategy for many investors who have a long investment timeline is to regularly invest money into an S&P 500 index fund (known as dollar-cost averaging) and watch their money grow over time.
Get started index investing with a brokerage account
Some of the top index funds are those that track the S&P 500 and have low costs. For example, Charles Schwab's S&P 500 Index Fund (SWPPX) is a straightforward option with no investment minimum. Its expense ratio is 0.02%, meaning every $10,000 invested costs $2 annually. Passive, or index funds, generally have a 0.2% expense ratio, so this is notably low.
For an option with no expense ratio, consider the Fidelity ZERO Large Cap Index (FNILX). Though the fund doesn't technically track the S&P 500, the Fidelity U.S. Large Cap Index tracks large capitalization stocks, which the website says, "are considered to be stocks of the largest 500 U.S. companies."
To invest in an index fund, you'll need to open a brokerage account, a traditional IRA or a Roth IRA (you can often choose to invest in index funds through your employer's 401(k) too). Once your account is open and funded, you can choose from a number of different index funds, like an S&P 500 fund, a fund that tracks government bonds or a fund that tracks international stocks.
Also, consider using a robo-advisor like Wealthfront and Betterment (which Select rated highly on our list of the best robo-advisors), which will invest in a handful of index funds and ETFs based on your risk tolerance and investment timeline. Robo-advisors will automatically rebalance your portfolio based on market conditions and have much lower fees than traditional financial advisors.
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Editorial Note: Opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Select editorial staff’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any third party.
FAQs
Beginner-friendly: Index funds omit the need to research individual stocks, so no prior investment knowledge is required. Low risk: A single index fund can hold thousands of stocks from different companies. The low performance of one company in your fund can be offset by the high performance of others.
Are index funds really the best way to invest? ›
The Bottom Line. Index funds are a popular choice for investors seeking low-cost, diversified, and passive investments that happen to outperform many higher-fee, actively traded funds.
What are index funds and how do they work? ›
Index funds are investment funds that follow a benchmark index, such as the S&P 500 or the Nasdaq 100. When you put money in an index fund, that cash is then used to invest in all the companies that make up the particular index, which gives you a more diverse portfolio than if you were buying individual stocks.
What is an index fund Quizlet? ›
An index fund is a type of mutual fund with a portfolio constructed to match or track the components of a market index, such as the S&P 500.
How to invest in index funds for beginners? ›
How can I directly invest in index funds? You can directly invest in index funds by opening and funding a brokerage account. All brokers allow you to directly buy shares of ETFs on the open market, and most allow you to directly invest in mutual funds if you prefer to use those.
Is it wise to only invest in index funds? ›
Investing legend Warren Buffett has said that the average investor need only invest in a broad stock market index to be properly diversified. However, you can easily customize your fund mix if you want additional exposure to specific markets in your portfolio.
Is it safe to invest in index funds? ›
Over the long term, index funds have generally outperformed other types of mutual funds. Other benefits of index funds include low fees, tax advantages (they generate less taxable income), and low risk (since they're highly diversified).
Is there a downside to index funds? ›
While indexes may be low cost and diversified, they prevent seizing opportunities elsewhere. Moreover, indexes do not provide protection from market corrections and crashes when an investor has a lot of exposure to stock index funds.
How do you actually make money from index funds? ›
As with other mutual funds, when you buy shares in an index fund you're pooling your money with other investors. The pool of money is used to purchase a portfolio of assets that duplicates the performance of the target index. Dividends, interest and capital gains are paid out to investors regularly.
How much money do you need to buy an index fund? ›
For beginners, the vast array of index funds options can be overwhelming. We recommend Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) (minimum investment: $1; expense Ratio: 0.03%); Invesco QQQ ETF (QQQ) (minimum investment: NA; expense Ratio: 0.2%); and SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA).
Diversification: Investors like index funds because they offer immediate diversification. With one purchase, investors can own a wide swath of companies. One share of an index fund based on the S&P 500 provides ownership in hundreds of companies, while a share of Nasdaq-100 fund offers exposure to about 100 companies.
How do you tell if a fund is an index fund? ›
The main difference is that index funds are passively managed, while most other mutual funds are actively managed, which changes the way they work and the amount of fees you'll pay.
What do index funds pay? ›
Most index funds pay dividends to their shareholders. Since the index fund tracks a specific index in the market (like the S&P 500), the index fund will also contain a proportionate amount of investments in stocks. For index funds that distribute dividends, many pay them out quarterly or annually.
Do billionaires invest in index funds? ›
In fact, a number of billionaire investors count S&P 500 index funds among their top holdings. Among those are Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, Dalio's Bridgewater, and Griffin's Citadel.
What is the cheapest S&P 500 index fund? ›
Our recommendation for the best overall S&P 500 index fund is the Fidelity 500 Index Fund. With a 0.015% expense ratio, it's the cheapest on our list. And it doesn't have a minimum initial investment requirement, sales loads or trading fees.
Do index funds pay dividends? ›
Are there dividend-paying index funds? Yes, there are several dividend-paying index funds for investors who prioritize steady income over high growth.
Is it better to invest in index funds or stocks? ›
The biggest difference between investing in index funds and investing in stocks is risk. Individual stocks tend to be far more volatile than fund-based products, including index funds. This can mean a bigger chance for upside … but it also means considerably greater chance of loss.
Is there anything better than index funds? ›
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and index funds are similar in many ways but ETFs are considered to be more convenient to enter or exit. They can be traded more easily than index funds and traditional mutual funds, similar to how common stocks are traded on a stock exchange.
Do index funds outperform the market? ›
Index funds seek market-average returns, while active mutual funds try to outperform the market. Active mutual funds typically have higher fees than index funds. Index fund performance is relatively predictable; active mutual fund performance tends to be less so.
