Best Charles Schwab Mutual Funds
Among its many financial services, Charles Schwab creates and manages its own lineup of mutual funds. These securities can be traded at Schwab itself and many other brokerage firms in the United States and around the world. Here are 4 funds in particular that we really like:
Schwab Fundamental US Large Company Index Fund (SFLNX)
First up is SFLNX. This is Schwab’s Fundamental US Large Company Index Fund. What we really like about this fund are the high ratings from Morningstar. These grades are posted on Schwab’s website, and they easily can be found elsewhere. The fund has a very high rating overall. The fund has a grade of high for return and average for risk, which shows a positive return-risk metric.
As the title of the fund suggests, it invests mostly in large-cap companies headquartered in the United States. Some are mid-cap, while others are mega-cap, so the large-cap name is really just an average. Examples of holdings include Apple, Microsoft, and Exxon Mobil. The portfolio covers a wide swath of economic territory. Energy, financials, and consumer staples are just a few of the sectors in the fund.
SFLNX has no load and no transaction fee when traded at Schwab. The management fee of the fund is just 0.25%, which is quite low due to the fund’s passive strategy. It follows the RAFI Fundamental High Liquidity US Large Index. Because the expense ratio is so low, it goes without saying that there is no 12b-1 fee.
The mutual fund has outperformed its Morningstar large-value category over several long-term periods, although its returns have generally trailed its benchmark indexes by small amounts over comparable periods.
Schwab Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Index Fund (SWRSX)
Next up is a bond fund. SWRSX is the Schwab Treasury Inflation Protected Securities Index Fund. It invests in inflation-protected debt instruments issued by the U.S. Treasury Department. The weighted average maturity for the fund is 7.19 years, and the effective duration is 6.4 years. Nearly all of the portfolio is rated AA under the rating methodology shown by Schwab.
Morningstar doesn’t have quite the same rating. It gives a very high rating overall and 10-year ratings. The historic return of the fund is above average, while the risk is viewed as average.
The Morningstar style box appears on Schwab’s profile for SWRSX. We see a moderate interest-rate sensitivity and high credit quality.
Although we don’t get quite the same level of Morningstar ratings on SWRSX as we saw on our first fund, the bond fund is actually quite a bit cheaper to own than SFLNX. The Treasury fund only costs 5 basis points per year to own, which is super cheap. Schwab is able to do this by adopting a passive investment strategy. It follows the Bloomberg US Treasury Inflation-Linked Bond Index (Series-L).
Like the equity fund analyzed above, this Treasury fund from Schwab has no loads of any kind. There is
also no transaction fee on either the buy or sell side when traded at Schwab.
SWRSX has outperformed its Morningstar category on several long-term timeframes, but it has generally trailed its benchmark index by small amounts over 1-year, 3-year, 5-year, and 10-year periods.
Free Charles Schwab Mutual Funds
Schwab S&P 500 Index Fund (SWPPX)
Another fund we really like from Schwab is its S&P 500 fund. SWPPX tracks America’s famous stock index, and it does so at very low cost. The expense ratio is just 0.02% per annum. As with the other funds, there are no other costs with owning or trading the fund.
Compared to other funds that track the S&P 500 Index, Schwab’s fund must be doing pretty well because Morningstar gives it a very high rating across all of the analyzed timeframes. The fund’s low expense ratio no doubt helps it to achieve such high ratings. The fund’s category (large blend) has an average expense ratio of 0.5%–0.75%. SWPPX has tracked the S&P 500 very closely, generally trailing it by only a few basis points over long-term periods.
SWPPX is on Schwab’s Mutual Fund OneSource Select List, which is represented with a blue ‘Select List’ icon at the top of the security’s profile on Schwab’s mobile app or website. Funds on the Select List have met various criteria for expense, income, risk, and performance. Basically, it has been screened by Schwab’s investment pros for potential outperformance.
SWPPX has no minimum initial investment, so very small accounts can get in on the action here. And the fund is eligible for recurring purchases, so small purchases can be set up on autopilot if desired.
It’s really easy to trade SWPPX or any other mutual fund on Schwab’s trading platforms. The website now has two interfaces, classic and Beta, and either one has the same trade buttons at the top of a fund’s profile. Clicking on the buy or sell button brings up the same order ticket. A purchase will have reinvestment choices. They are:
- Reinvest capital gains only
- Reinvest dividends and capital gains
- None
Schwab’s mobile app has the same reinvestment selections. It will show the estimated number of shares of a fund based on the dollar amount entered. The website doesn’t do this.
Schwab Health Care Fund (SWHFX)
Last, but certainly not least, in our list is SWHFX. This is Schwab’s health care fund. Unlike the other three funds analyzed here, this one is actively managed. In other words, it doesn’t attempt to track any index. Instead, it tries to beat the market by smartly buying and selling securities in the health care industry.
Like the S&P fund, the health care fund is on the Select List, which means Schwab’s investment advisors have approved of it. So has Morningstar. The analyst gives the fund a very high rating overall with a risk rating of low and a return rating of average. As with the other funds we have analyzed here, SWHFX has no fees or loads other than the usual expense ratio, which is 0.80%. This is very reasonable for an active fund and is actually lower than its category average, which is 1.02%.
On Schwab’s profile for SWHFX, we found a report card for the fund. This is published by Schwab and is downloadable in pdf format. It contains most of the information already on the site’s fund profile. Here are some holdings published on the report card:
- Eli Lilly
- Johnson & Johnson
- AbbVie
- Merck & Co
- UnitedHealth Group
Finding SWHFX or any other mutual fund on Schwab’s website is quite easy, thanks to the broker’s fund screener (it doesn’t appear on the mobile app). Just click on the Research tab at the top of the site and select the link for mutual funds on the following page.
Best Charles Schwab Funds Summary
Like many other fund families, the top performers for Schwab (read review) in the past 10 years have been primarily index funds. Schwab's index funds are
competitive and are committed to keeping expense ratios low. The Core Equity Fund is worth considering for investors who want to achieve greater
returns than the general market and are willing to take on the management risk of an actively-managed portfolio.
Best Charles Schwab Mutual Funds
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Updated on 10/2/2026.
Chad Morris has been analyzing investment firms for Brokerage-Review.com since 2015. Backed by FINRA Series 65, 66, and SIE credentials, his work reflects a deep knowledge of the retail brokerage industry and digital trading tools.
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