Our index funds changed investing forever. Now we’re making them even better.

That’s why we’re making a change.

We’re lowering costs for more than 1 million current index fund investors and giving new investors one more reason to choose Vanguard. To do that, we’re dropping the minimum investment for Admiral™ Shares on 38 index funds.

Our Admiral Shares were previously available to investors with over $10,000 per fund. Now you’ll only need $3,000 to take advantage of the low expense ratios Admiral Shares offer. In turn, we’re eliminating higher-cost Investor Shares of those same index funds for individual investors.*

What this means for you

Whether you’re just starting out, adding to your portfolio, or catching up, this change can help you:

• Reach your goals faster. Lower expense ratios mean more of your returns stay in your account, so it can grow faster. For example, $50,000 invested in Investor Shares might cost an average of $90 per year versus $55 per year in Admiral Shares. A $35 difference might not sound like much. But when it’s compounded over 10 years, it can add over $600 to your bottom line.**
• Diversify your portfolio. When choosing how to allocate your money, you’ll have more flexibility to diversify. For example, if you have $10,000 to invest, you can still put it in a single index fund. Or you can split it up into 3 different index funds and get the same low-cost benefits.

If you currently own Investor Shares of any affected funds, you don’t have to do anything. We’ll convert them to Admiral Shares over the next year. Or you can immediately and easily convert your shares using our online process.

Already own Admiral Shares? The change doesn’t affect your current investments. But if you choose to purchase a new fund in the future, you don’t need $10,000 to get the same low expense ratio you’re used to. And you can be sure we’ll continue to look for the best ways to lower costs and help you meet your investment goals.

On a mission to give investors the best chance for success

Vanguard’s story begins with low costs but it doesn’t end there. Vanguard is built for investors. As a client-owned† firm, everything we do is because we care about our clients, want them to succeed, and have no competing loyalties.

This change is one more way we’re looking out for investors. It will allow us to deliver an estimated $71.2 million in savings to clients.††

“No other firm in the industry has demonstrated Vanguard’s track record of delivering cost savings and value to its clients,” said Vanguard CEO Tim Buckley. “Our unique, client-owned structure enables us to consistently pass along economies of scale and lower the cost of investing for our clients, so they keep more of their returns.”

See which index funds now offer $3,000 minimum investments for Admiral Shares

*Investor Shares will still be used in certain situations, such as in retirement plans and fund-of-funds investments.
**Vanguard Investor Shares average expense ratio: 0.18%. Vanguard Admiral Shares average expense ratio: 0.11%. All averages are asset-weighted. Source: Vanguard, as of December 31, 2017. This hypothetical example assumes a $50,000 investment held for 10 years, with an average return of 6%. It doesn’t represent any particular investment. Your actual savings could be higher or lower. The rate is not guaranteed.
†Vanguard is client-owned. As a client-owner, you own the funds that own Vanguard.
††Estimated savings for the identified funds is the difference between the Investor and Admiral expense ratios multiplied by eligible average assets under management (AUM). Eligible average AUM is based on the daily average assets over the past 12 months (November 2017 to October 2018).