That is 82% of the diversified equity funds with a five year record, measured by their direct plans. Measured by regular plans, which carry a sales commission, it is 113 of 179, or 63%.
What this measures
- The bar is an index fund you could have boughtNot the index itself. An index fund has its own small costs, so this is a fair comparison between two things an investor can hold.
- Each fund is held up against its own part of the marketLarge cap funds against a Nifty 50 fund, mid cap funds against a Nifty Midcap 150 fund, and so on.
- It flatters active funds a littleFunds that were closed or merged away are missing from today's list, and those were mostly the weak ones. The true share that beat the index is lower than shown.
By category
How many funds returned more than the index fund for their part of the market. Direct plans, growth option, to 09 Oct 2026.
| Category | Index fund tracks | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years | Regular plans, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dividend Yield | Nifty 500 | 6 of 10 | 8 of 9 | 6 of 6 | 6 of 6 |
| ELSS | Nifty 500 | 24 of 38 | 23 of 37 | 23 of 30 | 17 of 30 |
| Flexi Cap | Nifty 500 | 34 of 40 | 28 of 36 | 21 of 27 | 14 of 27 |
| Focused | Nifty 500 | 22 of 28 | 19 of 27 | 20 of 22 | 15 of 22 |
| Large & Mid Cap | Nifty LargeMidcap 250 | 25 of 33 | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Large Cap | Nifty 50 | 32 of 32 | 30 of 30 | 24 of 27 | 18 of 27 |
| Mid Cap | Nifty Midcap 150 | 24 of 30 | 21 of 28 | 12 of 21 | 8 of 21 |
| Multi Cap | Nifty 500 | 30 of 31 | 21 of 22 | 9 of 9 | 9 of 9 |
| Small Cap | Nifty Smallcap 250 | 24 of 30 | 15 of 23 | 16 of 21 | 12 of 21 |
| Value | Nifty 500 | 15 of 21 | 16 of 20 | 15 of 16 | 14 of 16 |
| All categories | 236 of 293 | 181 of 232 | 146 of 179 | 113 of 179 |
What to take from it
Some funds do beat the index, and by a wide margin. The difficulty is knowing in advance which ones, and staying with them through the years they lag. Cost is the one advantage you can be sure of, which is why the plan you hold matters as much as the fund.
See which side yours are on
Pick a fund you hold to see its rank in its category and how it has done against the index fund, over 1, 3 and 5 years.
Check your fundOr talk to an advisor about active and index funds in your plan.
Questions
Do active mutual funds beat index funds in India?
Some do. Over the five years to 09 Oct 2026, 146 of 179 diversified equity funds returned more than an index fund for the same part of the market, measured by direct plans. Measured by regular plans, 113 of 179 did. Funds that closed or merged are not counted, so the real share is lower.
Why compare with an index fund and not the index?
Because you cannot buy an index, only a fund that tracks it. An index fund has small costs of its own, so comparing fund with fund shows what an investor would actually have received either way.
Should I move everything to index funds?
That depends on your goals and what you hold. Index funds are low-cost and predictable against the market. Some active funds have done better for long periods, but picking them in advance is hard. Many portfolios use an index fund as the core and add to it. An advisor can help decide the mix.
This page is information, not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any fund. Returns are annualised, for the growth option, from NAVs published by AMFI. A ranking by past return says nothing certain about the future, and the right fund for you depends on your goals and the rest of your portfolio.
Invsify Technologies Private Limited is a SEBI Registered Investment Adviser, Registration No. INA000020572. Investments in the securities market are subject to market risks. Read all the related documents carefully before investing. Past performance is not indicative of future results.