Mutual funds: chosen with data, reviewed every year

Funds in the same SEBI category follow the same rules and face the same market, yet their results spread widely. Over the last three years, ₹10 lakh in the strongest large & mid cap fund grew to ₹6.2 lakh more than the same amount in the weakest.

Only 129 of 256 diversified Regular plans beat their total-return index over three years. Picking well, and moving on from a fund that falls behind, is most of the work.

Patience pays too: a ₹10,000 monthly SIP in the middle-ranked flexi cap fund over the last ten years is worth about ₹23.5 lakh today, on ₹12 lakh put in.

• Track record against the category's total-return index, over rolling 3-year windows, not one lucky period.
• Risk: how a fund held up in falls, its downside capture and the range of 3-year outcomes it has delivered.
• Cost: expense ratio, and whether a cheaper index fund does the same job.
• Overlap: two funds that hold the same stocks add cost, not diversification.
• Mandate: whether the portfolio actually follows its SEBI category rules.

Our method and its backtest are published on the Method page, including where the ratings fall short.

• Equity, hybrid, debt and index funds across fund houses.
• SIPs, step-up SIPs, lump sums and systematic transfer plans (STPs) to spread a large amount in.
• Goal plans: children's education, a home, retirement income through SWPs.
• A yearly review, and a check-in whenever a fund you hold slips behind its peers.

We are a distributor: we earn commission from fund houses on Regular plans, already included in each plan's expense ratio and shown on your Consolidated Account Statement. You pay us no separate fee.

The Direct plan of the same fund costs less (typically 0.98% a year) and pays no commission. If you would rather choose and review funds yourself, Direct is the cheaper route; with us you get the choice, the paperwork, the tax planning and the reviews.

• Equity funds: gains on units held more than 12 months are taxed at 12.5% above ₹1.25 lakh a year; within 12 months at 20%.
• Debt funds bought from 1 April 2023: taxed at your slab rate, whatever the holding period.
• ELSS funds give a deduction of up to ₹1.5 lakh under Section 80C in the old tax regime, with a 3-year lock-in.
• Switching from a Regular to a Direct plan counts as a sale, so it can trigger capital-gains tax.

Capital gains tax calculator →

1. A first conversationYour goals, time frame and what you already hold.
2. A short list of fundsChosen with our data, with the reasons for each and what it costs.
3. Account opening and investingKYC, SIPs and lump sums handled for you.
4. ReviewsEvery year, or sooner when something changes.