Introduction

When talking about great ETFs to invest in, the discussion should always begin with a reliable S&P 500 index fund. This type of fund was where the ETF revolution started, and even after many years, it remains one of the best choices for building long-term wealth. The S&P 500 is made up of 500 of the biggest companies in America, including industry giants like Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, and Amazon.com. In a time of uncertainty in 2024, it is wise to stick with these top companies.

The S&P 500 index is commonly used as a benchmark for mutual funds, ETFs, and other financial products for a good reason - it is extremely difficult to outperform it in the long run. A report in 2023 by S&P Global revealed that 92% of active large-cap fund managers performed worse than the S&P 500 over the past 15 years.

Almost every major ETF provider offers an S&P 500 index ETF, and all of them essentially do the same thing - they track the same index. Because of this, the main difference between them is the expense ratio. The Vanguard 500 Index ETF stands out with an incredibly low expense ratio of just 0.03%, meaning that it is almost free to own. Investing in this ETF would mean paying only $3 in annual expenses for every $10,000 you invest.

Another option is the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF, which provides the same exposure at the same expense ratio of 0.03%. The older SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust charges a slightly higher expense ratio of 0.095%. Regardless of which one you choose, having an S&P 500 index ETF in your portfolio in 2024 and beyond is a wise decision.