Index Funds for Beginners: How to Start Investing
Index funds are the simplest, most reliable way for most people to build wealth in the market. Here is what they are, why they work, and how to start.
If investing feels intimidating, here is the good news: the approach with the best track record for ordinary investors is also the simplest. It is low-cost index funds.
What is an index fund?
Instead of betting on individual stocks, an index fund buys all of them in a market index, for example, every large U.S. company (an S&P 500 fund) or the entire global market. You own a tiny slice of thousands of companies in a single fund.
Why they win
- Diversification. One fund spreads your money across hundreds or thousands of companies, so no single failure sinks you.
- Low fees. Index funds cost a fraction of actively managed funds. Over decades, fees are one of the biggest drags on returns; minimizing them is free performance.
- They beat most pros. The large majority of active fund managers fail to beat a simple index over the long run, after fees.
How to start
- Open an account: a workplace 401(k)/retirement plan, or a low-cost brokerage IRA.
- Pick a broad, low-cost fund: a total-market or S&P 500 index fund with a low expense ratio.
- Automate contributions every payday so investing happens without willpower.
- Leave it alone. Time in the market beats timing the market. Keep buying through ups and downs.
The real secret
It is not picking the perfect fund; it is consistency and time. Steady contributions into a low-cost index fund, left to compound for decades, is how most everyday millionaires actually did it. See how your contributions could grow with the Coast FIRE calculator.
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