Tier 1 – Target Date Funds

Investing Style: Diversified portfolio within a single fund that shifts its emphasis to more conservative investments as the year of retirement nears.

Target-date funds are designed for participants who prefer a single-fund solution that includes a mix of stocks, bonds, and short-term assets. Each of the funds creates a diversified portfolio within one fund, based on your expected retirement year (the “target date” of the fund) at age 65.

These funds:

  • Have built-in diversification—by investing in major asset classes such as bonds, US stocks, international stocks, real estate, and commodities—that endeavor to manage risk and performance over time.
  • Are managed to become more conservative as the fund get closer to your retirement date, gradually shifting the fund’s investments from higher-risk to lower-risk investments.
  • Are managed by professionals, whose objectives are to manage your portfolio, with the goal of creating a mix of risk and return appropriate to each stage of your life.
  • Are one of the lowest-fee target-date funds currently available.

The target-date funds are offered in five-year increments. You invest in a fund according to your current age, as follows:

If You Were Born… Your Estimated Retirement Date (Assuming You Retire at Age 65)… Your Target-Date Fund Is… 
Before 1952 Before 2007 Vanguard Target Retirement Income Fund 
1/1/1953–12/31/1957 2018–2022 Vanguard Target Retirement 2020 Fund
1/1/1958–12/31/1962 2023–2027 Vanguard Target Retirement 2025 Fund
1/1/1963–12/31/1967 2028–2032 Vanguard Target Retirement 2030 Fund
1/1/1968–12/31/1972 2033–2037 Vanguard Target Retirement 2035 Fund
1/1/1973–12/31/1977 2038–2042 Vanguard Target Retirement 2040 Fund
1/1/1978–12/31/1982 2043–2047 Vanguard Target Retirement 2045 Fund
1/1/1983–12/31/1987 2048–2052 Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund
1/1/1988–12/31/1992 2053–2057 Vanguard Target Retirement 2055 Fund
1/1/1993–12/31/1997 2058–2062 Vanguard Target Retirement 2060 Fund
1/1/1998 – 12/31/2022 2063 -2067 Vanguard Target Retirement 2065 Fund
2003 and later 2068 or later Vanguard Target Retirement 2070