What are the top etfs

Screening Filters

1. Monthly average dollar volume ≥ $1,000,000

   • Purpose: Ensure the ETFs are liquid and easy to trade.
   • Rationale:
     • “Top ETFs” usually implies funds that investors can enter and exit without large bid–ask spreads or price impact.
     • A minimum of $1M in average monthly dollar volume filters out obscure, thinly traded ETFs and keeps those with active trading interest and tighter spreads.

2. 1-year price change ≥ 0%

   • Purpose: Exclude ETFs with clearly negative recent performance.
   • Rationale:
     • While “top” doesn’t strictly mean “went up in the last year,” investors typically associate top ETFs with at least acceptable recent results.
     • Requiring a non‑negative 1‑year return avoids funds that have significantly lagged or are in obvious downtrends, which are less likely to be viewed as leaders in their category.

3. Themes: Large Cap Blend / Growth / Value, Total Bond Market, Global Equities, Emerging Markets, Real Estate, Diversified Portfolio

   • Purpose: Focus on core, broad-market or widely used building-block ETFs.
   • Rationale:
     • When someone asks for “top ETFs,” they usually mean mainstream, diversified funds used as core holdings (e.g., S&P 500, total market, broad bond, diversified global exposure), not narrow niche or thematic products.
     • These themes cover major asset classes and styles that form the backbone of most portfolios:
       • Large Cap Blend/Growth/Value: Core US equity exposure.
       • Total Bond Market: Core fixed income exposure.
       • Global & Emerging Markets Equities: International diversification.
       • Real Estate: Common satellite/sector holding.
       • Diversified Portfolio: Multi-asset or allocation ETFs used as all‑in‑one solutions.
     • This avoids ultra-niche, leveraged, inverse, or speculative thematic ETFs that might be popular temporarily but aren’t typically considered “top” core funds.

4. Expense ratio ≤ 0.25%

   • Purpose: Restrict results to low-cost ETFs.
   • Rationale:
     • Cost is one of the most reliable predictors of better long-term net performance; leading ETF providers compete heavily on fees.
     • Top ETFs in broad categories are usually very low cost (often well below 0.25%), so this filter weeds out expensive products that are unlikely to be considered best‑in‑class from an investor’s standpoint.
     • Ensuring low expenses aligns with common definitions of “top” as efficient, investor-friendly funds.

5. Inception date ≤ 2015-01-01 (at least ~10 years of history)

   • Purpose: Include only established ETFs with a proven track record.
   • Rationale:
     • A “top ETF” is rarely a brand‑new fund; investors and analysts look for longevity, asset growth, and performance across market cycles.
     • Requiring an inception date on or before 2015 ensures the ETF has operated through multiple environments (bull/bear markets, rate cycles), providing meaningful history on performance, liquidity, and tracking quality.
     • This excludes newer, unproven products that haven’t yet demonstrated durability or investor adoption.

Why Results Match:

• The liquidity and age filters (dollar volume, inception date) focus on established, widely used ETFs, which are the ones most commonly recognized as “top” funds.
• The theme filters target core building-block asset classes instead of niche or speculative strategies, aligning with what investors typically seek when asking for top ETFs.
• The expense ratio cap ensures cost-efficient choices, a key hallmark of leading ETFs.
• The performance screen (non‑negative 1‑year return) removes obvious underperformers, helping highlight ETFs that are currently more in line with or ahead of the market, rather than struggling laggards.