Best Income Mutual Funds
This debt category invests in bonds and money-market instruments. Two risks drive returns: interest-rate risk (NAVs fall when yields rise, more so for longer maturities) and credit risk (the chance an issuer fails to pay).
We currently track 44 direct-plan Income schemes from 9 fund houses with a median 5-year CAGR of 6.4%. Every figure below is calculated from official daily NAV history and refreshed each day. Use the column headers to re-rank the table by any period — the best 1-year performer is often not the best over 5 or 10 years, which is exactly why we default to the longer horizon.
Showing 44 of 44 schemes · sorted by Y5 high to low · page 1 of 1
- IL&FS Infrastructure Debt Fund Series 2AIL&FS Mutual Fund (IDF) · Debt₹20,04,851.53#11Y+9.15%3Y+21.57%5Y+30.93%10Y—
- IL&FS Infrastructure Debt Fund Series 2BIL&FS Mutual Fund (IDF) · Debt₹25,40,201.95#21Y+6.97%3Y+21.69%5Y+20.67%10Y—
- IL&FS Infrastructure Debt Fund Series 2CIL&FS Mutual Fund (IDF) · Debt₹25,12,755.61#31Y+7.62%3Y+22.15%5Y+16.79%10Y—
- BANDHAN FIXED TERM PLAN SERIES - 179 (3652 DAYS) - Direct Plan - GrowthBandhan · Debt₹18.18#41Y+5.19%3Y+7.81%5Y+6.66%10Y—
- Nippon India Fixed Maturity Plan - XLI - Series 8 - Direct Plan - Growth OptionNippon India · Debt₹17.81#51Y+5.14%3Y+7.76%5Y+6.64%10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 1 (3668 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹17.77#61Y+4.89%3Y+7.74%5Y+6.64%10Y—
- ICICI Prudential Fixed Maturity Plan - Series 85 - 10 Years Plan IICICI Prudential · Debt₹18.12#71Y+5.15%3Y+7.73%5Y+6.61%10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 6 (3668 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹17.28#81Y+4.77%3Y+7.64%5Y+6.49%10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 34 (3682 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹14.84#91Y+4.24%3Y+7.39%5Y+6.47%10Y—
- ICICI Prudential Fixed Maturity Plan - Series 85 - 10 Years Plan IICICI Prudential · Debt₹17.86#101Y+4.97%3Y+7.64%5Y+6.45%10Y—
- Nippon India Interval Fund-Quarterly Interval Fund Serie-II - Direct Plan - Growth OptionNippon India · Debt₹39.34#111Y+5.88%3Y+6.56%5Y+6.28%10Y+6.18%
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 52 (1848 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.45#121Y+5.66%3Y+7.33%5Y+6.19%10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 53 (1839 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.47#131Y+5.72%3Y+7.41%5Y+6.18%10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 54 (1842 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.46#141Y+5.81%3Y+7.45%5Y+6.15%10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 264 - 60M - 17DDSP · Debt₹13.48#151Y+5.78%3Y+7.34%5Y+6.12%10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 264 - 60M - 17DDSP · Debt₹13.48#161Y+5.78%3Y+7.34%5Y+6.12%10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 51 (1846 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.46#171Y+5.73%3Y+7.33%5Y+6.09%10Y—
- ICICI Prudential Fixed Maturity Plan - Series 85 - 10 Years Plan IICICI Prudential · Debt₹17.49#181Y+3.76%3Y+6.90%5Y+6.01%10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 264 - 60M - 17DDSP · Debt₹13.38#191Y+5.61%3Y+7.18%5Y+5.96%10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 264 - 60M - 17DDSP · Debt₹13.38#201Y+5.61%3Y+7.18%5Y+5.96%10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 55 (1849 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.43#211Y+5.79%3Y+7.43%5Y—10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 57 (1835 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.34#221Y+5.76%3Y+7.47%5Y—10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 58 (1842 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.45#231Y+5.80%3Y+7.50%5Y—10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 60 (1878 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.36#241Y+5.79%3Y+7.59%5Y—10Y—
- Nippon India Fixed Maturity Plan - XLIII - Series 5 - Direct Plan - Growth OptionNippon India · Debt₹13.61#251Y+5.33%3Y+7.73%5Y—10Y—
- HDFC FMP 1861D March 2022 - Direct Plan - Growth OptionHDFC · Debt₹13.43#261Y+5.82%3Y+7.65%5Y—10Y—
- SBI Fixed Maturity Plan (FMP) - Series 61 (1927 Days) - Direct Plan - GrowthSBI · Debt₹13.39#271Y+5.61%3Y+7.57%5Y—10Y—
- HDFC FMP 1876D March 2022 - Direct Plan - Growth OptionHDFC · Debt₹13.37#281Y+5.69%3Y+7.62%5Y—10Y—
- Aditya Birla Sun Life Fixed Term Plan - Series TQ (1879 days)Aditya Birla Sun Life · Debt₹13.30#291Y+5.47%3Y+7.45%5Y—10Y—
- Aditya Birla Sun Life Fixed Term Plan - Series TQ (1879 days)Aditya Birla Sun Life · Debt₹13.30#301Y+5.47%3Y+7.45%5Y—10Y—
- Aditya Birla Sun Life Fixed Term Plan - Series TQ (1879 days)Aditya Birla Sun Life · Debt₹13.35#311Y+5.58%3Y+7.56%5Y—10Y—
- Nippon India Fixed Maturity Plan - XLIV - Series 1 - Direct Plan - Growth OptionNippon India · Debt₹13.46#321Y+5.65%3Y+7.69%5Y—10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 267 - 1172 DaysDSP · Debt₹13.06#331Y+5.58%3Y+7.11%5Y—10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 267 - 1172 DaysDSP · Debt₹13.00#341Y+5.47%3Y+6.99%5Y—10Y—
- Kotak FMP Series 304 - Direct Plan - Growth OptionKotak Mahindra · Debt₹13.09#351Y+2.62%3Y+7.60%5Y—10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 270 - 1172 DaysDSP · Debt₹12.77#361Y+5.46%3Y+6.99%5Y—10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 270 - 1172 DaysDSP · Debt₹12.81#371Y+5.57%3Y+7.10%5Y—10Y—
- DSP FMP Series - 270 - 1172 DaysDSP · Debt₹12.81#381Y+5.58%3Y+7.10%5Y—10Y—
- HDFC FMP 2638D February 2023 - Direct Plan - Growth OptionHDFC · Debt₹13.16#391Y+3.47%3Y+7.77%5Y—10Y—
- ICICI Prudential Fixed Maturity Plan - Series 88 - 1303 Days Plan SICICI Prudential · Debt₹12.77#401Y+5.42%3Y+7.13%5Y—10Y—
- ICICI Prudential Fixed Maturity Plan - Series 88 - 1303 Days Plan SICICI Prudential · Debt₹12.89#411Y+5.67%3Y+7.39%5Y—10Y—
- ICICI Prudential Fixed Maturity Plan - Series 88 - 1303 Days Plan SICICI Prudential · Debt₹12.89#421Y+5.68%3Y+7.39%5Y—10Y—
- ICICI Prudential Fixed Maturity Plan - Series 88 - 1303 Days Plan SICICI Prudential · Debt₹12.77#431Y+5.42%3Y+7.13%5Y—10Y—
- Nippon India Fixed Maturity Plan - XLV - Series 5 - Direct Plan - Growth OptionNippon India · Debt₹13.39#441Y+7.47%3Y+8.54%5Y—10Y—
Income funds — frequently asked questions
Which Income fund has the highest 5-year CAGR?
IL&FS Infrastructure Debt Fund Series 2A currently leads the Income category with a 5-year CAGR of 30.9%. Past returns describe what already happened and do not predict future performance — treat the ranking as a starting point for research, not a recommendation.
What is a good 5-year return for a Income fund?
Across the 44 Income schemes we track, the median 5-year CAGR is 6.4%. Comparing a fund against that median, rather than against the category's single best performer, is a more realistic benchmark.
How is CAGR calculated on this page?
CAGR is the compound annual growth rate between the NAV on the horizon start date and the latest NAV, using growth-plan NAVs published by the AMCs. Where a scheme's NAV history has a gap or a re-denomination, we adjust for it rather than report a distorted figure. Expense ratios are already reflected in NAV; exit loads and taxes are not.
Why does this list only show direct plans?
Direct plans have no distributor commission, so their expense ratio is lower and their NAV growth is higher than the regular plan of the same scheme. Showing both would list every fund twice, so we rank direct plans only.