Bogleheads:Featured article/Mutual fund

Mutual funds are registered investment companies that pool investors' capital to invest in securities. Professional money managers manage mutual funds, and the corporate contributory retirement system in the U.S. uses them extensively. As of 2017, a total of 9,356 U.S. mutual funds held over 18 trillion dollars of assets, owned by forty-five percent of American households and an estimated 101.9 million individuals.

Mutual funds offer you diversification, professional management, liquidity, and convenience. These advantages are offset by factors such as costs, fund turnover, and the consequences of organizational structure. (more...)