The Best Short-Term Bond Mutual Funds

Documentation

The table below compares the performance and other essential indicators like dividend yield and expense ratio of Short-Term Bond mutual funds.

Number of Funds: 139
Avg. Expense Ratio: 0.56%
Avg. Yield: 4.33%
Avg. 1 Year Return: 4.20%
Median Risk/Return Score: 80 / 100

133 results

Symbol	Full Name	Category	Inception	Expense Ratio	YTD Return	10Y Return (Annualized)	Dividend Yield	Risk / Return Rank
ACSNX	American Century Short Duration Fund	Short-Term Bond	Nov 30, 2006	0.57%	1.00%	2.29%	4.35%	86
AIBAX	American Funds Intermediate Bond Fund of America	Short-Term Bond	Feb 19, 1988	0.63%	-0.10%	1.64%	3.87%	24
ALDAX	Columbia Limited Duration Credit Fund	Short-Term Bond	Jun 19, 2003	0.76%	0.39%	2.44%	3.88%	51
APIMX	Yorktown Short Term Bond Fund	Short-Term Bond	Jul 2, 1997	0.84%	0.59%	2.66%	3.79%	65
APSTX	Cavanal Hill Limited Duration Fund	Short-Term Bond	Oct 19, 1994	0.76%	0.71%	1.87%	3.30%	44
ASBAX	American Funds Short-Term Bond Fund of America	Short-Term Bond	Oct 2, 2006	0.66%	0.45%	1.61%	3.75%	58
ASDVX	American Century Short Duration Strategic Income F...	Short-Term Bond	Jul 28, 2014	0.53%	1.36%	2.98%	4.78%	90
ASHAX	Virtus Newfleet Short Duration High Income Fund Cl...	Short-Term Bond	Feb 1, 2017	0.86%	1.93%	4.53%	5.69%	81
BAIAX	Brown Advisory Intermediate Income Fund	Short-Term Bond	May 31, 1991	0.77%	0.08%	1.29%	3.64%	26
BATAX	BlackRock Allocation Target Shares Series A Portfo...	Short-Term Bond	Sep 21, 2015	0.00%	2.22%	3.56%	5.69%	98
BFMSX	BlackRock Low Duration Bond Portfolio	Short-Term Bond	Jul 17, 1992	0.41%	1.08%	2.28%	4.66%	81
BRAMX	BlackRock Allocation Target Shares Series M Portfo...	Short-Term Bond	Sep 30, 2004	0.00%	0.60%	1.21%	4.56%	37
BRASX	BlackRock Allocation Target Shares Series S Portfo...	Short-Term Bond	Sep 30, 2004	0.00%	0.94%	2.29%	4.58%	76
BSBAX	Northern Short Bond Fund	Short-Term Bond	Jan 11, 1993	0.40%	0.80%	1.94%	4.08%	81
BSBIX	Baird Short-Term Bond Fund Institutional Class	Short-Term Bond	Aug 31, 2004	0.30%	1.17%	2.48%	4.23%	94
BSBSX	Baird Short-Term Bond Fund Investor Class	Short-Term Bond	Sep 19, 2012	0.55%	0.94%	2.22%	3.98%	91
CDSRX	Calvert Short Duration Income Fund Class R6	Short-Term Bond	Feb 1, 2019	0.45%	0.95%	—	4.66%	77
CENAX	American Funds College Enrollment Fund	Short-Term Bond	Sep 14, 2012	0.67%	1.36%	2.47%	3.83%	62
CMFIX	CM Advisors Fixed Income Fund	Short-Term Bond	Mar 24, 2006	0.88%	1.80%	3.13%	4.31%	71
CPPAX	American Funds Preservation Portfolio	Short-Term Bond	May 18, 2012	0.61%	0.03%	1.64%	3.50%	31

Risk vs. Return Scatterplot

The Risk vs. Return Scatterplot allows you to quickly compare funds, stocks, and ETFs in one view. It displays the yearly return of an instrument on one axis and the risk (volatility) on the other.

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Time Period

Best Short-Term Bond Mutual funds by Risk/Return Score

The top Short-Term Bond Mutual funds by PortfoliosLab Risk/Return Score are DFCFX (100) and GPICX (99). The score measures risk-adjusted performance over the past year, accounting for volatility, drawdown, and return consistency.

Symbol	Name	Risk / Return Rank	AUM	Inception
DFCFX	DFA Two-Year Fixed Income Portfolio	100	—	Jun 1996
GPICX	GuidepathConservative Income Fund	99	—	Apr 2018
DHEIX	Diamond Hill Short Duration Securitized Bond Fund ...	99	—	Jul 2016
DHEAX	Diamond Hill Short Duration Securitized Bond Fund	99	—	Jul 2016
DLDFX	Destinations Low Duration Fixed Income Fund	98	—	Mar 2017

Best-Performing Short-Term Bond Mutual funds Over 5 Years

The top Short-Term Bond Mutual funds is LCCMX (5.81%). Across the lineup, Short-Term Bond Mutual funds show an average 1-year return of 4.20% and an average 5-year return of 2.53%, providing a clearer view of performance across different investment horizons.

Symbol	Name	Return 5Y	AUM	Inception
LCCMX	Leader Short Term High Yield Bond Fund	5.81%	—	Jul 2005
ASHAX	Virtus Newfleet Short Duration High Income Fund Cl...	4.64%	—	Feb 2017
TSDLX	T. Rowe Price Short Duration Income Fund	4.60%	—	Dec 2020
DHEIX	Diamond Hill Short Duration Securitized Bond Fund ...	4.57%	—	Jul 2016
RCTIX	River Canyon Total Return Bond Fund	4.56%	—	Dec 2014

Lowest-Cost Short-Term Bond Mutual funds

The top Short-Term Bond Mutual funds is VIITX (0.02%). With an average expense ratio of 0.56%, Short-Term Bond Mutual funds remain a low-cost option for investors seeking broad market exposure, sector allocations, and diversified portfolio building blocks.

Symbol	Name	Expense Ratio	AUM	Inception
VIITX	Vanguard Institutional Intermediate-Term Bond Fund	0.02%	—	Jun 2015
VISTX	Vanguard Institutional Short-Term Bond Fund	0.02%	—	Jun 2015
FUMBX	Fidelity Short-Term Treasury Bond Index Fund	0.03%	—	Dec 2005
SWSBX	Schwab Short-Term Bond Index Fund	0.06%	—	Feb 2017
TNSHX	TIAA-CREF Short-Term Bond Index Fund	0.09%	—	Aug 2015

Highest-Yield Short-Term Bond Mutual funds

The top Short-Term Bond Mutual funds is LCCMX (8.59%). Across the lineup, Short-Term Bond Mutual funds show an average dividend yield of 4.33%, offering investors a steady stream of income through regular dividend payments, making them attractive for income-seeking portfolios.

Symbol	Name	Dividend Yield	AUM	Inception
LCCMX	Leader Short Term High Yield Bond Fund	8.59%	—	Jul 2005
RCTIX	River Canyon Total Return Bond Fund	7.29%	—	Dec 2014
FCFAX	Frost Credit Fund	6.27%	—	Dec 2012
DHEIX	Diamond Hill Short Duration Securitized Bond Fund ...	6.01%	—	Jul 2016
DLDFX	Destinations Low Duration Fixed Income Fund	5.87%	—	Mar 2017

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