🏆 Ranked by Smart Score · updated 27 Jul 2026

Best Index Funds — July 2026

Computed from live AMFI data, re-ranked at every refresh · research, not investment advice

The current leader in each index-fund category — large-cap trackers (Nifty 50 / Next 50), broad market, midcap, smallcap and factor/smart-beta — ranked by a Smart Score built for passive funds: tracking fidelity, cost and size against passive peers only. We show one champion per category because comparing a Nifty 50 tracker's score against a smallcap index fund's would be apples to oranges.

Choosing an index fund is refreshingly mechanical: pick the index that matches your risk (Nifty 50 calmest → smallcap indices wildest), then take the cheapest fund that tracks it tightly. No manager risk, no style drift — which is exactly the appeal.

The ranking — July 2026

Kotak Nifty Next 50 Index

Index — Large Cap · Kotak · 3Y 18.1% · 5Y 13.5% · TER 0.23%

Strong Buy 2

HDFC Nifty 500 MultiCap 50:25:25 Index

Index — Broad Market · HDFC · 3Y — · 5Y — · TER 0.33%

Buy 3

Motilal Oswal Nifty Midcap 150 Index Dir

Index — Mid Cap · Motilal Oswal · 3Y 18.6% · 5Y 17.4% · TER 0.26%

Strong Buy 4

Axis Nifty Small Cap 50 Index

Index — Small Cap · Axis · 3Y 21.5% · 5Y — · TER 0.31%

Strong Buy 5

Motilal Oswal BSE Enhanced Value Index

Index — Factor / Smart Beta · Motilal Oswal · 3Y 25.1% · 5Y — · TER 0.41%

Buy

Smart Score blends returns (45%), risk-adjusted quality — Sharpe, Sortino, alpha, volatility (38%) and cost & size (17%), each as a percentile vs category peers.

Keep going

Nifty 50 vs Next 50 vs Midcap 150 →Index funds vs ETFs →Index vs active, explained →

FundLens is a research tool, not a registered investment adviser; nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell. Rankings are computed from historical data and change as the data does — past returns don't guarantee future results.