For most investors buying today, a plain S&P 500 index fund is the better bet. The Growth Fund of America (AGTHX) has essentially matched the index over the past 15 years before its sales charge, lagged it over 5 years, and trailed its own growth-style benchmark in every window. You pay up to 5.75% upfront for a coin flip.
Key takeaways
- AGTHX returned 14.1% annualized over the 15 years through December 31, 2025, at net asset value, a dead heat with the S&P 500 Total Return index's 14.1%. Over 10 years it edged ahead (15.1% vs 14.8%), and over 5 years it lagged badly (11.7% vs 14.4%), based on dividend-adjusted NAV history.
- Judged against its actual style benchmark, the fund looks worse: the S&P 500 Growth index (SPYG as a proxy) compounded at 16.9% over 10 years and 15.9% over 15, ahead of AGTHX in both windows.
- Class A shares carry a maximum 5.75% front-end sales charge and a 0.59% expense ratio (Capital Group). Large S&P 500 index funds charge roughly 0.02% to 0.09% with no load.
- The base rates are brutal: per the SPIVA U.S. Scorecard (year-end 2024), 89.5% of active large-cap funds underperformed the S&P 500 over 15 years, and 95.9% of large-cap growth funds underperformed the S&P 500 Growth.
- AGTHX is a respectable fund, not a bad one. If you already hold it in a 401(k) share class with no load and lower fees, the case for selling is much weaker than the case against buying the A shares fresh.
What the Growth Fund of America actually is
The Growth Fund of America launched on December 1, 1973, and grew into one of the largest actively managed equity funds on the planet. Capital Group reported total fund assets of roughly $342 billion as of July 31, 2026, across all share classes. That scale is itself a testament to the fund's long record: it compounded wealth for decades and became a default holding in millions of advisor-sold accounts and retirement plans.
Capital Group runs it with a multi-manager system. The portfolio is split among a group of managers who invest their sleeves independently, which dampens single-manager risk and helps explain why the fund behaves less like a concentrated growth bet and more like a slightly tilted version of the broad market. Top holdings read like the S&P 500's leaderboard: mega-cap technology names dominate.
That resemblance matters. When a $342 billion fund holds largely the same giants that drive the index, its results will hug the index too, minus fees. Which is roughly what the numbers show.
Performance: AGTHX vs the S&P 500
Total returns at NAV (no sales charge deducted), annualized through December 31, 2025. Fund figures computed from dividend-adjusted NAV history; the index is the S&P 500 Total Return. The S&P 500 Growth column uses SPYG, the SPDR S&P 500 Growth ETF, as a tracker proxy.
| Period | AGTHX (at NAV) | S&P 500 TR | S&P 500 Growth (SPYG) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 (1 year) | 19.7% | 17.9% | 22.1% |
| 5 years | 11.7% | 14.4% | 15.0% |
| 10 years | 15.1% | 14.8% | 16.9% |
| 15 years | 14.1% | 14.1% | 15.9% |
Three honest observations, in both directions.
First, the fund is not a disaster. Beating the S&P 500 in 2025, and sitting slightly ahead of it over 10 years before sales charges, puts AGTHX well above the median active large-cap fund. Its early decades were genuinely strong, which is how it earned its size.
Second, the 5-year number is ugly, and 2022 is why. AGTHX lost just over 30% that year while the S&P 500 fell 18.1%. A growth-heavy portfolio got hit by the rate shock, and the fund has spent the years since climbing out of that hole.
Third, the benchmark choice flatters the fund. AGTHX is a large-cap growth fund, and against the S&P 500 Growth index it lagged in every window above. Comparing a growth fund to the blend index during a decade when growth crushed value makes active management look better than it was. This is the same benchmark trick to watch for in hedge fund performance claims.
The cost gap, in dollars
Fees are where the comparison stops being close. AGTHX Class A shares charge a 0.59% annual expense ratio, including a 0.25% 12b-1 distribution fee, plus a front-end sales charge that starts at 5.75% (Capital Group). Breakpoints reduce the load for larger purchases: a $100,000 investment pays 3.50%, and purchases of $1 million or more pay nothing. An S&P 500 index fund or ETF charges 0.02% to 0.09% and no load. SPY, VOO, and their peers all sit in that range.
Here is what that does to $100,000 invested for 10 years, using each option's actual 10-year return through 2025 (index fund assumed at the S&P 500 TR return, which slightly overstates it by a few basis points of fund expenses):
| Option | Upfront charge | Value after 10 years |
|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 index fund | $0 | ~$398,000 |
| AGTHX at NAV (no load, hypothetical) | $0 | ~$407,000 |
| AGTHX with 3.50% load ($100k breakpoint) | $3,500 | ~$392,000 |
| AGTHX with maximum 5.75% load | $5,750 | ~$383,000 |
Read that table carefully, because it captures the whole debate. Over the one long window where AGTHX beat the index at NAV, the sales charge alone flipped the outcome. The fund's managers added about 0.24 points a year of gross outperformance over that decade, and the load took back more than all of it. Over the 15-year window, where NAV returns were a tie, any load at all means you lost to the index.
Two fairness notes. Wealthy investors buying $1 million or more pay no load, and retirement-plan share classes such as R-6 carry no load with expenses roughly half the A shares'. In those wrappers the comparison is much closer to a pure 0.3-point annual fee bet on Capital Group's stock picking. That is a defensible bet. It is just not the bet most retail A-share buyers are getting.
The base-rate problem
Even if you set AGTHX's specific record aside, the odds facing any active large-cap fund are well documented. The SPIVA U.S. Scorecard from S&P Dow Jones Indices (year-end 2024) found that 65% of active large-cap funds underperformed the S&P 500 in 2024 alone, 84.3% underperformed over 10 years, 89.5% over 15 years, and 92.0% over 20. For large-cap growth funds measured against the S&P 500 Growth index, the 15-year underperformance rate was 95.9%.
AGTHX has done better than those base rates, which is real credit to Capital Group. But the investor's question is forward-looking: what are the odds the next 15 years land in the winning tail, by enough to overcome a load and a 0.59% expense ratio, when the fund's sheer size forces it to own mostly the same stocks as the index? History says roughly one fund in ten clears the first hurdle, before the load.
Who should own which
Buy the index fund if you are investing new taxable money. Lower cost, no load, near-identical exposure, and better tax efficiency from minimal turnover. This is the default for a reason, and the arithmetic above shows the load erasing even a decade of genuine outperformance.
Think twice before dumping AGTHX you already own. The load is sunk. If you hold a no-load share class in a 401(k), you own an above-average active fund at a modest fee, and in a taxable account the embedded capital gains from decades of appreciation may cost more to realize than the fee gap will cost to keep. Run the tax math before you sell.
Skip the A shares as a new purchase unless you are at the $1 million no-load breakpoint and specifically want Capital Group's multi-manager approach as a slightly tamer growth tilt. Even then, understand that you are paying about half a point a year for stock picking that has roughly matched the blend index and trailed the growth index.
The Growth Fund of America earned its reputation honestly over five decades. But reputation is priced in dollars here, and at today's fee gap the index keeps the money in your pocket. For how the S&P 500 stacks up against other alternatives, the full S&P 500 comparison hub covers the rest of the field.
Frequently asked questions
Does the Growth Fund of America charge a sales load?
Yes, Class A shares carry a maximum 5.75% front-end sales charge plus a 0.59% annual expense ratio. Breakpoints reduce the load for larger purchases: a $100,000 investment pays 3.50%, and purchases of $1 million or more pay nothing. A broad S&P 500 index fund charges 0.02% to 0.09% with no load.
Has AGTHX actually beaten the S&P 500?
AGTHX has essentially matched the S&P 500, not clearly beaten it. Over 15 years through December 31, 2025 it returned 14.1% annualized at net asset value, a dead heat with the index's 14.1%. It edged ahead over 10 years (15.1% vs 14.8%) but lagged badly over 5 years (11.7% vs 14.4%), all before its sales charge.
Why did the Growth Fund of America fall so hard in 2022?
AGTHX lost just over 30% in 2022 while the S&P 500 fell 18.1% because its growth-heavy portfolio got hit by the rate shock. That single year is why the fund's 5-year return looks ugly, and it has spent the years since climbing out of that hole.
Should I sell Growth Fund of America shares I already own?
Think twice before selling AGTHX you already own, because the load is already sunk. If you hold a no-load share class such as R-6 in a 401(k), you own an above-average active fund at a modest fee. In a taxable account, decades of embedded capital gains may cost more to realize than the fee gap costs to keep, so run the tax math first.
Does a $342 billion fund like AGTHX behave differently from the index?
Not by much, because its sheer size forces it to own mostly the same giants that drive the index. Capital Group runs it with a multi-manager system that dampens single-manager risk, and its top holdings read like the S&P 500's leaderboard. When a fund that large holds the same mega-caps, its results hug the index too, minus fees.