BFFAX Alternatives & Similar Mutual Funds

American Funds The Bond Fund of America Class F-3 (BFFAX) belongs to the Intermediate Core Bond category. Below you'll find alternative mutual funds from the same category, ranked by key criteria, plus funds that investors commonly compare with BFFAX. Use the tables to find lower-cost options, better risk-adjusted returns, or a closer substitute for your current allocation.

Cheapest Alternatives to BFFAX

BFFAX charges 0.20% annually. There are 17 mutual funds in the Intermediate Core Bond category with lower expense ratios, going as low as 0.02%.

Symbol	Name	Expense Ratio	AUM	Inception
FMBPX	Federated Hermes Mortgage Strategy Portfolio	0.02%	—	Dec 2007	BFFAX vs FMBPX
SSAFX	State Street Aggregate Bond Index Portfolio	0.02%	—	Sep 2014	BFFAX vs SSAFX
QDIBX	Fisher Investments Institutional Group Fixed Incom...	0.03%	—	Dec 2019	BFFAX vs QDIBX
QDVBX	Fisher Investments Institutional Group ESG Fixed I...	0.04%	—	Dec 2019	BFFAX vs QDVBX
WFBIX	iShares U.S. Aggregate Bond Index Fund	0.05%	—	Jul 1993	BFFAX vs WFBIX

Best Risk-Adjusted Alternatives to BFFAX

BFFAX has a PortfoliosLab risk / return rank of 17. There are 77 mutual funds in the Intermediate Core Bond category with higher risk-adjusted ranks, going as high as 57.

Symbol	Name	Risk / Return Rank	AUM	Inception
LSSAX	Loomis Sayles Securitized Asset Fund	57	—	Mar 2006	BFFAX vs LSSAX
STWTX	Hartford Schroders Tax-Aware Bond Fund	54	—	Oct 2011	BFFAX vs STWTX
PCGTX	PACE Mortgage-Backed Securities Fixed Income Inves...	47	—	Aug 1995	BFFAX vs PCGTX
MCDWX	Manning & Napier Credit Series	40	—	Apr 2020	BFFAX vs MCDWX
FSMOX	Fidelity SAI Investment Grade Securitized Fund	35	—	May 2023	BFFAX vs FSMOX

Top Performing BFFAX Alternatives (YTD)

BFFAX is at -0.02% YTD. There are 72 mutual funds in the Intermediate Core Bond category with higher YTD returns, going as high as 2.63%.

Symbol	Name	YTD Return	AUM	Inception
PCGTX	PACE Mortgage-Backed Securities Fixed Income Inves...	2.63%	—	Aug 1995	BFFAX vs PCGTX
LSSAX	Loomis Sayles Securitized Asset Fund	1.36%	—	Mar 2006	BFFAX vs LSSAX
STWTX	Hartford Schroders Tax-Aware Bond Fund	1.18%	—	Oct 2011	BFFAX vs STWTX
DUTMX	Dupree Taxable Municipal Bond Fund	1.01%	—	Nov 2010	BFFAX vs DUTMX
MCBDX	MassMutual Core Bond Fund	0.74%	—	Sep 1994	BFFAX vs MCBDX

Lowest Volatility Alternatives to BFFAX

BFFAX has 3.93% 1-year volatility. There are 56 mutual funds in the Intermediate Core Bond category with lower 1-year volatility, going as low as 2.49%.

Symbol	Name	Volatility 1Y	AUM	Inception
BIMIX	Baird Intermediate Bond Fund Class Institutional	2.49%	—	Sep 2000	BFFAX vs BIMIX
FEDUX	Fidelity Education Income Fund	2.50%	—	Mar 2021	BFFAX vs FEDUX
BIMSX	Baird Intermediate Bond Fund	2.50%	—	Sep 2000	BFFAX vs BIMSX
DFXIX	DFA Diversified Fixed Income Portfolio	2.60%	—	Aug 2016	BFFAX vs DFXIX
JIBEX	Johnson Institutional Intermediate Bond Fund	2.75%	—	Aug 2000	BFFAX vs JIBEX

Lowest Drawdown Alternatives to BFFAX

BFFAX has a 1-year max drawdown of -3.08%. There are 74 mutual funds in the Intermediate Core Bond category with shallower 1-year drawdowns, going as shallow as -1.69%.

Symbol	Name	Max Drawdown 1Y	AUM	Inception
DFXIX	DFA Diversified Fixed Income Portfolio	-1.69%	—	Aug 2016	BFFAX vs DFXIX
FEDUX	Fidelity Education Income Fund	-1.72%	—	Mar 2021	BFFAX vs FEDUX
BIMSX	Baird Intermediate Bond Fund	-1.87%	—	Sep 2000	BFFAX vs BIMSX
BIMIX	Baird Intermediate Bond Fund Class Institutional	-2.07%	—	Sep 2000	BFFAX vs BIMIX
FTHRX	Fidelity Intermediate Bond Fund	-2.11%	—	May 1975	BFFAX vs FTHRX

Other Mutual Funds from American Funds

The 10 most viewed American Funds mutual funds shown here include ABALX, AIVSX, AWSHX and span 7 categories.

Symbol	Name	Category	Risk / Return Rank	YTD Return	AUM	Inception
ABALX	American Funds American Balanced Fund Class A	Diversified Portfolio	74	8.29%	—	Jul 1975	BFFAX vs ABALX
AIVSX	American Funds Investment Company of America Class...	Large Cap Blend Equities	38	7.66%	—	Jan 1934	BFFAX vs AIVSX
AWSHX	American Funds Washington Mutual Investors Fund Cl...	Large Cap Blend Equities	34	5.17%	—	Jul 1952	BFFAX vs AWSHX
RGAGX	American Funds The Growth Fund of America Class R-...	Large Cap Growth Equities	23	6.52%	—	Dec 1973	BFFAX vs RGAGX
RERGX	American Funds EUPAC Fund Class R-6	Foreign Large Cap Equities, Large Cap Growth Equities, Actively Managed	38	10.30%	—	May 2009	BFFAX vs RERGX
ANCFX	American Funds Fundamental Investors Class A	Large Cap Blend Equities, Actively Managed	56	12.28%	—	Aug 1978	BFFAX vs ANCFX
ANWPX	American Funds New Perspective Fund Class A	Global Equities, Large Cap Growth Equities, Actively Managed	21	4.43%	—	Mar 1973	BFFAX vs ANWPX
GFFFX	American Funds The Growth Fund of America Class F-...	Large Cap Growth Equities	23	6.45%	—	Dec 1973	BFFAX vs GFFFX
AMECX	American Funds The Income Fund of America Class A	Diversified Portfolio, Dividend	47	5.75%	—	Dec 1973	BFFAX vs AMECX
AMCPX	American Funds AMCAP Fund Class A	Large Cap Growth Equities	17	2.91%	—	Jan 1967	BFFAX vs AMCPX

Often Compared With BFFAX

Investors most often compare BFFAX with GSLC, AGG, TAUSX. These 20 comparison targets span 11 categories, based on PortfoliosLab usage data.

Symbol	Name	Category	Risk / Return Rank	YTD Return	AUM	Inception
GSLC	Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF	Large Cap Growth Equities	46	5.69%	15.22B	Sep 2015	BFFAX vs GSLC
AGG	iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF	Total Bond Market	34	0.96%	138.10B	Sep 2003	BFFAX vs AGG
TAUSX	John Hancock Investment Grade Bond Fund	Intermediate Core Bond	18	-0.02%	—	Dec 1991	BFFAX vs TAUSX
PIMIX	PIMCO Income Fund Institutional Class	Multisector Bonds	40	0.81%	—	Mar 2007	BFFAX vs PIMIX
FTBFX	Fidelity Total Bond Fund	Intermediate Core-Plus Bond	22	0.36%	—	Oct 2002	BFFAX vs FTBFX
LQD	iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ET...	Corporate Bonds	29	1.19%	31.90B	Jul 2002	BFFAX vs LQD
^GSPC	S&P 500 Index		60	7.49%	—	—	BFFAX vs ^GSPC
JCPB	JPMorgan Core Plus Bond ETF	Intermediate Core-Plus Bond	44	1.31%	13.11B	Jan 2019	BFFAX vs JCPB
TIP	iShares TIPS Bond ETF	Inflation-Protected Bonds	34	1.13%	14.88B	Dec 2003	BFFAX vs TIP
PCMNX	PACE Municipal Fixed Income Investments	Municipal Bonds	71	1.12%	—	Aug 1995	BFFAX vs PCMNX
SCHD	Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF	Dividend	77	16.62%	99.95B	Oct 2011	BFFAX vs SCHD
BCOIX	Baird Core Plus Bond Fund	Intermediate Core-Plus Bond	25	0.54%	—	Sep 2000	BFFAX vs BCOIX
PNIIX	Principal Bond Market Index Fund	Intermediate Core Bond	22	0.47%	—	Dec 2009	BFFAX vs PNIIX
PRCIX	T. Rowe Price New Income Fund	Intermediate Core Bond	30	-0.13%	—	Aug 1973	BFFAX vs PRCIX
MWTIX	Metropolitan West Total Return Bond Fund Class I	Total Bond Market	16	0.02%	—	—	BFFAX vs MWTIX
VOO	Vanguard S&P 500 ETF	S&P 500	60	8.08%	1.70T	Sep 2010	BFFAX vs VOO
DODIX	Dodge & Cox Income Fund	Intermediate Core-Plus Bond	24	0.51%	—	—	BFFAX vs DODIX
PCBIX	Principal MidCap Fund Institutional Class	Mid Cap Growth Equities	1	-7.10%	—	Dec 2000	BFFAX vs PCBIX
CRAIX	CCM Community Impact Bond Fund	Intermediate Core Bond	26	0.25%	—	Aug 1999	BFFAX vs CRAIX
NMKBX	North Square McKee Bond Fund	Intermediate Core Bond	25	0.49%	—	Dec 2020	BFFAX vs NMKBX

Compare BFFAX with Any Fund or Stock

Compare BFFAX with any ETF, mutual fund, or stock using PortfoliosLab's comparison tool.

Symbol name

Diversifiers

Pair BFFAX with funds that move differently

American Funds The Bond Fund of America Class F-3 alternatives help with substitution. Diversifiers are the next step when you want funds with lower historical correlation to BFFAX.

Explore BFFAX Diversifiers

American Funds The Bond Fund of America Class F-3 (BFFAX) Alternatives