To build a strong financial backbone, one should invest the money in the right financial instrument. Though, not every investment guarantees substantial returns, but, if you invest wisely and for a good amount of time, the potential to gain healthy returns is higher. Especially, a salaried person who has to manage investments and expenses within a stipulated Income. Hence, a salaried individual need to consider amount, risk, risk, and return while determining the best investment option for them.
So, if you are someone looking out for a safe investment option, here are some of the best investment options in 2025.
Most people consider the Fixed Deposit investment as a part of their Retirement investment options because it enables money to be deposited with banks for a fixed maturity period, ranging from 15 days to five years (& above) and it allows to earn a higher rate of interest than other conventional Savings Account. During the time of maturity, the investor receives a return which is equal to the principal and also the interest earned over the duration of the fixed deposit
Bank fixed deposits can be one of the Best Short Term Investment Options, as these are secure investments. Also, many banks provide better interest rates on FDs, which typically range from 3 percent to 7 percent, per annum. Investors can park their money for a minimum period of seven days to a maximum of 10 years.
A Recurring deposit is an investment cum savings option for those who want to save regularly over a certain period of time and earn a higher interest rate. Every month, a fixed amount of money is deducted either from a Savings Account or a current account. At the end of the maturity period, investors are paid back their invested funds with accrued interest.
Salaried people can consider Investing in an equity-oriented product. While investing in Equity Funds, one should consider taking a systematic way, i.e. one should put a fixed amount of money every month instead of putting the money all at once. Also, within equity funds, one should diversify investment as per risk and return expectation. Ideally, a salaried person should stay invested for a long duration to earn good returns.
Since equity funds have various categories, investors with a moderate risk appetite can go for large-cap or multi-cap equity funds and investors with a high-risk appetite can invest in a mid-cap and small cap fund. Equity investment through SIP mode reduces the risk in the long term.
Some of the best mutual funds to invest in India having Assets more than 300 Crore
and having best CAGR
returns for last 5 years are :
Fund NAV Net Assets (Cr) 3 MO (%) 6 MO (%) 1 YR (%) 3 YR (%) 5 YR (%) 2024 (%) ICICI Prudential Infrastructure Fund Growth ₹190.55
↓ -0.94 ₹8,043 6.2 7.6 0.6 29.5 35.9 27.4 HDFC Infrastructure Fund Growth ₹46.767
↓ -0.20 ₹2,591 6.1 7.9 -2.2 29.8 34.1 23 Nippon India Small Cap Fund Growth ₹164.669
↓ -1.81 ₹66,602 7.8 4.1 -4.8 24 34 26.1 Motilal Oswal Midcap 30 Fund Growth ₹99.4516
↓ -2.77 ₹33,053 4.3 2.1 1.8 27.4 33.3 57.1 Bandhan Infrastructure Fund Growth ₹49.006
↓ -0.53 ₹1,749 6.1 5.3 -10.9 27.9 32.9 39.3 Note: Returns up to 1 year are on absolute basis & more than 1 year are on CAGR basis. as on 8 Aug 25 Research Highlights & Commentary of 5 Funds showcased
Commentary ICICI Prudential Infrastructure Fund HDFC Infrastructure Fund Nippon India Small Cap Fund Motilal Oswal Midcap 30 Fund Bandhan Infrastructure Fund Point 1 Lower mid AUM (₹8,043 Cr). Bottom quartile AUM (₹2,591 Cr). Highest AUM (₹66,602 Cr). Upper mid AUM (₹33,053 Cr). Bottom quartile AUM (₹1,749 Cr). Point 2 Oldest track record among peers (19 yrs). Established history (17+ yrs). Established history (14+ yrs). Established history (11+ yrs). Established history (14+ yrs). Point 3 Rating: 3★ (lower mid). Rating: 3★ (bottom quartile). Rating: 4★ (upper mid). Rating: 3★ (bottom quartile). Top rated. Point 4 Risk profile: High. Risk profile: High. Risk profile: Moderately High. Risk profile: Moderately High. Risk profile: High. Point 5 5Y return: 35.89% (top quartile). 5Y return: 34.10% (upper mid). 5Y return: 34.05% (lower mid). 5Y return: 33.29% (bottom quartile). 5Y return: 32.92% (bottom quartile). Point 6 3Y return: 29.47% (upper mid). 3Y return: 29.80% (top quartile). 3Y return: 23.96% (bottom quartile). 3Y return: 27.39% (bottom quartile). 3Y return: 27.94% (lower mid). Point 7 1Y return: 0.64% (upper mid). 1Y return: -2.17% (lower mid). 1Y return: -4.79% (bottom quartile). 1Y return: 1.83% (top quartile). 1Y return: -10.90% (bottom quartile). Point 8 Alpha: 0.00 (upper mid). Alpha: 0.00 (lower mid). Alpha: -2.86 (bottom quartile). Alpha: 3.89 (top quartile). Alpha: 0.00 (bottom quartile). Point 9 Sharpe: 0.01 (upper mid). Sharpe: -0.23 (bottom quartile). Sharpe: -0.10 (lower mid). Sharpe: 0.23 (top quartile). Sharpe: -0.29 (bottom quartile). Point 10 Information ratio: 0.00 (upper mid). Information ratio: 0.00 (lower mid). Information ratio: -0.10 (bottom quartile). Information ratio: 0.44 (top quartile). Information ratio: 0.00 (bottom quartile). ICICI Prudential Infrastructure Fund
HDFC Infrastructure Fund
Nippon India Small Cap Fund
Motilal Oswal Midcap 30 Fund
Bandhan Infrastructure Fund
Public Provident Fund (PPF) is one of the most popular long term investment options in India. Since it's backed by the Government of India, it is a safe investment with an attractive interest rate. Moreover, it offers tax benefits under Section 80C, of income tax 1961, and also the interest income is exempted from tax. PPF comes with a maturity period of 15 years, however, it can be extended within a year of maturity for five years and more. Annual deposits of minimum INR 500 to maximum INR 1.5 lakh can be invested in PPF account.
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New Pension Scheme is gaining popularity in India as one of the best retirement investment options. NPS is open to all but, is mandatory for all government employees. An investor can deposit a minimum of INR 500 per month or INR 6000 yearly, making it as the most convenient for Indian citizens. Investors can consider NPS as a good idea for their Retirement planning because there is no direct tax exemption during the time of withdrawal as the amount is tax-free as per Tax Act, 1961. This scheme is a risk-free investment as it's backed by the Government of India.
Indian investors often look for Investing in Gold and it's also one of the good long term investment options. Gold is used as an Inflation hedge. Investing in gold can be done via buying physical gold, gold deposit scheme, gold ETF, Gold Bar or gold Mutual Fund. Some of the best underlying Gold ETFs in India are as follows:
Fund NAV Net Assets (Cr) 3 MO (%) 6 MO (%) 1 YR (%) 3 YR (%) 5 YR (%) 2024 (%) Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund Growth ₹29.5606
↑ 0.28 ₹636 4.3 17.7 45.4 23.4 11.3 18.7 Invesco India Gold Fund Growth ₹28.6803
↑ 0.11 ₹168 4.2 17.3 43.7 23.2 10.8 18.8 SBI Gold Fund Growth ₹29.7522
↑ 0.14 ₹4,410 4.2 18 45.2 23.6 11.3 19.6 Nippon India Gold Savings Fund Growth ₹38.9441
↑ 0.19 ₹3,126 4.1 17.7 44.7 23.2 11 19 ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund Growth ₹31.5118
↑ 0.14 ₹2,274 4.2 17.9 45.4 23.3 11.2 19.5 Note: Returns up to 1 year are on absolute basis & more than 1 year are on CAGR basis. as on 8 Aug 25 Research Highlights & Commentary of 5 Funds showcased
Commentary Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund Invesco India Gold Fund SBI Gold Fund Nippon India Gold Savings Fund ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund Point 1 Bottom quartile AUM (₹636 Cr). Bottom quartile AUM (₹168 Cr). Highest AUM (₹4,410 Cr). Upper mid AUM (₹3,126 Cr). Lower mid AUM (₹2,274 Cr). Point 2 Established history (13+ yrs). Established history (13+ yrs). Established history (13+ yrs). Oldest track record among peers (14 yrs). Established history (13+ yrs). Point 3 Top rated. Rating: 3★ (upper mid). Rating: 2★ (lower mid). Rating: 2★ (bottom quartile). Rating: 1★ (bottom quartile). Point 4 Risk profile: Moderately High. Risk profile: Moderately High. Risk profile: Moderately High. Risk profile: Moderately High. Risk profile: Moderately High. Point 5 5Y return: 11.33% (top quartile). 5Y return: 10.82% (bottom quartile). 5Y return: 11.27% (upper mid). 5Y return: 11.01% (bottom quartile). 5Y return: 11.22% (lower mid). Point 6 3Y return: 23.44% (upper mid). 3Y return: 23.22% (bottom quartile). 3Y return: 23.59% (top quartile). 3Y return: 23.22% (bottom quartile). 3Y return: 23.31% (lower mid). Point 7 1Y return: 45.36% (top quartile). 1Y return: 43.70% (bottom quartile). 1Y return: 45.21% (lower mid). 1Y return: 44.69% (bottom quartile). 1Y return: 45.35% (upper mid). Point 8 1M return: 4.25% (bottom quartile). 1M return: 4.13% (bottom quartile). 1M return: 4.37% (lower mid). 1M return: 4.40% (upper mid). 1M return: 4.56% (top quartile). Point 9 Alpha: 0.00 (top quartile). Alpha: 0.00 (upper mid). Alpha: 0.00 (lower mid). Alpha: 0.00 (bottom quartile). Alpha: 0.00 (bottom quartile). Point 10 Sharpe: 1.79 (top quartile). Sharpe: 1.69 (bottom quartile). Sharpe: 1.73 (upper mid). Sharpe: 1.71 (lower mid). Sharpe: 1.67 (bottom quartile). Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund
Invesco India Gold Fund
SBI Gold Fund
Nippon India Gold Savings Fund
ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund
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