The Best Index Funds and How to Start Investing - NerdWallet
: Search for the fund by its ticker symbol in your brokerage app and enter the amount you wish to invest. Top Platforms for Index Investors buy index funds
: How closely the fund's returns match the actual index. The Best Index Funds and How to Start
: Determine which part of the market you want to track. Popular options include the S&P 500 (large-cap US companies), the Nasdaq-100 (tech-heavy), or Total Stock Market indexes (companies of all sizes). Popular options include the S&P 500 (large-cap US
: You need a brokerage account or a tax-advantaged retirement account like an IRA or 401(k) to hold your funds.
: Research individual funds that track your chosen index. Key factors to compare include:
Buying index funds is a passive investment strategy that allows you to own a "basket" of hundreds or thousands of securities, such as stocks or bonds, through a single purchase. They are designed to track the performance of a specific market benchmark like the rather than trying to beat the market. Steps to Buy Index Funds