VT

Gloriam_Insights

The answer depends on what this money is actually for. If it's long-term wealth building, the boring answer is the right one: broad ETFs like VT or VOO. Not exciting, but it works. Because roughly 40% of individual stocks experience permanent drawdowns of 70%+ with no recovery. Inside an ETF, that doesn't matter. One outlier winner can offset the rest. That's why ETFs are so powerful for a regular investor. If you want to treat part of it as an experiment: crypto, industries you've never been exposed to, bonds. But it might be riskier depending on what you choose. And nothing wrong with that, as long as you know the difference. The "top 5-7 commented stocks" idea is the one I'd push back on hardest. By letting people decide where to invest, you're mostly gambling and not investing, because random people on Reddit probably won't pick the best ones, let's be honest. But if you go with this one, it isn't necessarily bad. Just be aware of the risks.

qaz135wsx

Microsoft, Google, VT

wandererarkhamknight

VOO is S&P 500. VT is global market, VXUS is ex-US market. VOO alone isn’t necessarily bad. But adding international will give you exposure to more market and the benefits of diversification. Generally US and international takes turns. Lots of people had started investing at a time when US market is on a bull run. So there is some bias towards US market.

zendaddy76

VT 🤙🏽

Important_Shirt_1567

why do VT and VXUS seem so much more volatile than spy right now? VXUS doen 4% and VT down 2% , while VOO only down less than 1%?

Important_Shirt_1567

Any idea why VXUS AND VT got hammered while SPY was down less than 1%?

Cuentacero

Hahaha bro you hate PROP and it’s management on another level!  Cheers 🥂

amoorefan2

I keep mine in SGOV. When the market dips, I buy a bit of VT. I know this is stocks, I sometimes buy individual stocks when I think they’re beaten down by a story that doesn’t affect the business.

cedrus_libani

I have admittedly been in bear mode for a while. At the start of the year, I had around 50% VT, 30% cash/bonds, 10% EUAD (European defense), 10% degenerate gambling. After the cartel flare-up in Mexico, I put most of my gambling budget into silver. Mexico makes a lot of silver. I'm down a bit, haven't given up yet. I sold the EUAD on Monday. I bought it when that sector was underpriced, and now the market has caught up. I plan to roll that money into SCHF, which has similar vibes (mid-large companies in developed ex-US). Just not yet.

IronyElSupremo

Global will include US such as Vanguard’s VT, State Street’s SPGM, and iShares ACWI etfs, unless it’s clear the U.S. isn’t included (ex-U.S.), such as the ACWX etf. Probably to take advantage of the dollar acting differently as the iShares products track very well for traders. It’s not just the U.S., as there’s a developed global ETF without Japan (iShares Kokusai etf ..TOK), due to some wanting to avoid it due to underperformance since the early 1990s (or maybe adding a cheaper Japan etf and maybe an emerging index ETF) . Most of the time there’s an “x” like VECX .. Vanguard’s new emerging mkt etc ex-China.

sc181818

Depends your invest philosophy mainly, I only look for long term holds or 6 month-12 month positions for quick profits, to then roll into the long term positions and look for new ST holdings. With that strategy in mind and my young age I don’t want to lose out on potential gains by being conservative with VT. I would rather be more aggressive into VOO and QQQM for the long haul. But to each their own risk tolerance wise. VT wont lose money I just doubt it will ever match the pace of returns from VOO in a 10/20 year horizon.

abstractraj

Sometimes VOO gains faster than VT and sometimes it doesn’t. The S&P is just chopping sideways this year, but international is seeing improvement. I think it’s just simpler to cover all your bases. If you want to keep an eye on it and go VOO, then by all means. I actually keep a chunk of SPY so I can sell covered calls

Oatz3

If it was a single stock OP just consider it a lesson in diversification. Hold the taxes separately if you need to and get into VT

abstractraj

VT and chill. It covers the world. You’ll be diversified across thousands of stocks. Shift some into SCHD/BND closer to retirement

MitchCurry

Honestly, I'd recommend starting free and just reading and learning. This is something Claude and Gemini could be useful for. If you don't know what a term means, google or ask AI. The money you would pay for a service is better off being invested in VOO or VT or VTI or something similar. Putting it there instead of YF's pocket will reap you far larger dividends down the road.

therealjerseytom

> SCHD has much lower PE ratio There are reasons for this. It's important to consider what sectors a fund leans into, and what kind of PE is typical of those sectors. It could be sitting at a lower PE than the broader market, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it's an attractive valuation. With that said, there are those, like Vanguard, who see value and smaller-cap style boxes, as well as ex-US equities, as being more attractive on a valuations basis than US growth mega-caps. Rather than VOO, VTI, or SCHD, if it's me I'd be looking at VT for your time horizon.

DungeonWalkerCarl

What's your number where you quit and go VT or some other boglehead etf?

DigitalDensity

To elaborate on this, OP, FZROX is a zero-expense VTI and FZILX zero-expense VXUS. As others have said, this combination gets you (nearly) every publicly traded company. The only caveat here is you’d have to decide what you want your US vs Ex-US allocation to be which would be avoidable with VT. Something to note, these are not ETFs like how the Vanguard funds are. You place a buy or sell order for however much in dollars or shares and buy/sell when the NAV changes for the trading day. ETFs (VTI, VT, VXUS, etc) are bought and sold throughout the day. If you automate investments and don’t plan to actively trade the Roth IRA (which shouldn’t be done anyway), this is a non factor but I know some people get antsy about it. Last, these are Fidelity-locked. If you ever want to move your Roth IRA elsewhere, you’ll need to first sell the shares of the funds before you move the money elsewhere and buy the other ETFs/index funds in the other broker. In a tax sheltered account like a Roth IRA, this doesn’t really matter. In a taxable brokerage, this’ll force you to recognize gains or losses and to pay taxes on those gains. All that being said, I love my Fidelity Zero holdings and would definitely recommend them so long as you have no plans to move out of Fidelity any time soon.

Legal-Koala-5590

This is why we invest in VT.

adultdaycare81

Pay your taxes! Probably turn up your withholding at work so you don’t under withhold. Then diversify (unless that was VT). Learned a valuable lesson

SecretFishWorshiper

Care to explain why? Lol I just dumped $2,000 into VT today because it was down 3%

InvisibleEar

A while ago I posted here why shouldn't I keep my emergency fund in VT because stocks don't go down. Well I actually did it for some of it and it turns out they can go down

drew-gen-x

I just spent 3 months salary BTD. I bought $CAT, $DE, $PHYS (Gold), $EWJ (Japan), $EWW (Mexico), $EWY (South Korea), $ACWX (World Ex US), $VT (World plus US). Let's see how trying to time the market works vs DCA. I believe peak fear is already here. We'll prolyl get a TACO Trump tweet any minute now.

R3dFiveStandingBye

Bro VT is getting obliterated, who’s international market blew up

R3dFiveStandingBye

VT and suffer

boyinahouse

Wrong. Wrong. If you pay taxes NOW, then that money is "out of the game" and done compounding. Versus, you stay 100% invested in something like VT, then a lower return is equivalent to your higher return, simply because of less tax drag. Not to mention, significantly less risk.

Mega_Mons

I don't know why people think I'm trolling when I've literally done better than if I had followed his philosophy. I just see it as lazy, which isn't necessarily bad if you just want to forget about your investments, but I think a lot of people can do better. Like, what are the research tools in your brokerage even for if you're just going to put everything into VT and this would somehow be the superior strategy?

MomentPrestigious180

Jack Bogle said I'm not a regarded for sitting on VT and not panic sell during uncertain time like this. Imma believe him.

cjorgensen

You can still contribute for 2025, so make sure any money you put in there goes to that year first. You have until Tax Day to contribute for the prior year. Just put your money in VT and forget it. If you want VTI/VXUS. You might want to check out r/bogleheads. If you take their philosophy to heart you won't ever miss out on the best stocks.

abstractraj

You could stick it all in VT. It follows the world market. Eventually when you get closer to retirement you can add bonds

Key_Lifeguard_8659

Dude, why are you getting so worked up? What do you care how much I have in SGOV, or the over-weighted positions I trimmed to accumulate cash? It's all part of investing. So, I had 57% of my taxable account ready to deploy, if warranted. That's a strategy, it's called capital preservation. I've got a military retirement, two revenue streams from co-owned storage facilities, a rented house in Costa Rica, and another in Spain. I'm not concerned about having everything I have in VT at my age. I'm struggling to find hard assets to store capital and the market isn't my first choice and owning real estate abroad has its own set of problems. Don't judge when you don't know anything about my situation.

AwesomeAsian

Well I would ask myself when do I want to use the $30k? Do I want to save and take it out at retirement? If Yes, I would contribute the max amount in a Roth IRA in a target date fund and forget about it. Then I would use the rest of the funds to put in VT or VTWAX (balance with bonds as you get older). If I’m just looking to use that money in the next 5 years, I would put it in a money market fund.

Beastman5000

Put it into VT and leave it alone (or better yet add to it regularly if you can).

Internal_Field5970

VT

drew-gen-x

We can learn to walk & chew gum at the same time. Do 2 things at once. Go half & half w/ $SPY and $ACWX for example. Or 1/2 $SPY and 1/2 $VT. Then choose your 10% gamble.

drew-gen-x

You got to invest in what you believe in to have conviction to hold during downturns. I am not a tech guy, & believe in cycles, but your port indicates you are tech guy. So maybe if I was thinking like you were I would hold onto $QQQ position and sell my $VOO shares and buy $VT or another all world plus US ETF instead of holding the $VOO. I do think you are giving up on $VXUS too early as I think we are entering foreign stock cycle of outperformance vs US stocks. Good luck regardless.

chfr

$2000 with no source of income goes right into a high yield savings account. Unfortunately, it's not worth getting into the investing game until you've got a source of income.  Once that's the case, pick a number you're comfortable with each month and dump that amount into VTI or VT. You'll get rich slowly, but you'll get rich.

LemonTeaCool

How is VOO green but not VT?

drew-gen-x

You have a lot of tech stocks where you are double dipping b/w individual stock holdings, and their inclusion also in your $QQQ and $SPY/$VOO holdings. I do like that you are adding to $AVDU and $AVUV. You have chosen those 2 where I am investing in $EWY and $EWJ. I would increase your $AVDU & $AVUV percentage or just buy a non USA world EFT like $ACWI and sell the individual stocks or your $QQQ holdings. Your individual tech stocks and $QQQ holdings likely will go up or down at the same time. I am also moving towards ETFs over individual stocks due to time & life. But the industries & indices matter more than just stocks vs ETFs. I would add non USA indices ETFs. Or at least all world ETF like $VT over holding both the $QQQ and $SPY/$VOO). Pick either the $QQQ or $SPY/$VOO, one or the other and buy $ACWI or $VT for the other indices holding. My worthless unasked for 2 cents.

leaning_on_a_wheel

This is less diverse than just buying something like VOO, VTI or VT

StregaCagna

I sold that shit in May and replaced my entire position with VT. Probably my best investment decision of last spring.

HadrianXVI

Hang loose and see, may have missed it, VT and VTI started down but are coming back up. If this drags on and oil/commodity prices spike you’ll probably see a decline, but it was pretty well priced in last Thursday and Friday. But who knows. So much winning

MomentPrestigious180

I full port VT but now it's down -0.8% while the FX rate is up 1.0%. Didn't know I'm naturally hedged against this stuff. Can't even go down lmao.

TreGet234

Everything is better. Has VT ever had a lost decade? Bonds are close to having one right now.

markpreston54

congratulations. there might be several things you want to invest in. 1. your skills/money making machineries, are there tools, courses, hardwares you want to invest in to help you make new gam(es) or DLC, or spending on social media influencer to further capitalize your success? after 1, maybe 2.the standard VT/bond and chill play book in retirement saving account makes sense

MomentPrestigious180

Reminds me of that meme that Squidward is looking through his window blinds watching SpongeBob and Patrick having running outside. That's how SPY is looking at VXUS and VT.

Spl00ky

> will throw off monthly cash to augment salary/retirement, If you knew what you were doing, then you would know this doesn't make sense. You should still focus on total returns and put it all into VT or VTI.

LEAPStoTheTITS

Please just VT and chill until you’re doing better bro.

Key_Lifeguard_8659

Yes, I suppose I should preface every one of my posts with. Hi, not an amateur...have tried nearly every conceivable way of investing, so telling me VT and chill is going to make me wealthy when I'm 90 (60 now). I get it...a lot of you have literally educated yourselves on Reddit, or Bogelheads, being the Ivy League of Reddit... a cult-like following whose credo is---VT alone will guarantee you stay slightly ahead of inflation, despite pullbacks, corrections, bear markets, or even a lost decade. Let me have my fun and invest my way...which has evolved for the better every year.

Acrobatic-Song-3151

Great responses, let’s polish that up a bit.  Did you mean to say VT and chill?

Acrobatic-Song-3151

I was with you till Elon Musk. The only reason Tesla is still high is because he’s figured out pumping and the SEC is essentially non existent. That clown wants space X in the S&P immediately after IPO so he can have more of our passive dollars for investor exit liquidity.  VT, not Voo.

AnkleMuncher64

VT

thewayyoulook2night

Hello all, I've recently made posts on WSB and problemgambler documenting a really bad last few days to cap off years of anxiety and losses from the market. The long story short is that I started "investing" in the GME days and chased big wins (and losses) in form of meme stocks and short term options. After losses, I would pivot strategies (like doing thetagang) but it always led me back to losing on buying 0dte options. I tried quitting a few times but never stuck to it, but I'm determined to stop once and for all. I have lost $160,000 of my initial $240,000, leaving roughly $80,000 left after starting in December 2020. I think know the answer but just could use some reinforcement. I still have a lot of shares of high beta companies on margin. I don't think I can keep monitoring them and thus will need to liquidate them for a loss this week to clear the margin. Once done, put those funds into an ETF like VOO/VTI/VT. I'm also transferring my account finally out of Robinhood into Fidelity. And of course, staying out of WSB for good. I'm aware options exist there but I think a change of scenery will do the mind well. I feel like such a failure. I let my parents know and they were reasonably understanding. I know I'm not in debt but it's shameful what I did to set myself back. Here's what I have left as a 35 year old living in a HCOL city making $94k a year. $80k in taxable, $140k in retirement (luckily I always stayed the course there with VOO and a bit of mag7), $25k in my savings and $50k in company stocks. Thank you.

terrible-investor

hah, I've been holding 40% nuclear 60% VT for about half a year. Looks like your 54% has me beat, may the best investments win!

leaning_on_a_wheel

No one knows. Maybe you’d prefer an all world fund like VT

DopeCyclist

Rather than swing trading, you would be further ahead and have less stress just plopping it all into VT and keeping buying as soon as you have money. Add bonds BND to your risk tolerance and keep the allocation the same no matter what.

Machine8851

I try to keep VT to at least a minimum of 50% and invest in AVDV and AVXC. AVXC has returned 18.15% this year while AVDV has returned 17.15% this year. I would say VT, AVDV and AVXC would produce solid risk adjusted returns.

zendaddy76

VT and chill my friend 🤙🏽

aj1805

I love this guy - op, door is always in VT if you need some good weed on you’re travels hit me up

West_Flounder2840

Talk to your doctor about VT and chill today!

nuxenolith

VT and chill is a great starting point. Ignore the calls for 100% of your investments being into a US index... it's a big world out there, and the US is not all of it. US markets have had a good run these past 15 years, but that makes them likelier to underperform going forward, not outperform.

Virtual_Rest6107

Even VT can take a beating

MizDiana

• HYSA: $85k earning about $200/month in interest That's a waste. Cash loses value due to inflation. The 85k should be invested in some index (perhaps VT) in a brokerage fund, put into a different store of value (like, say, a gold ETF), or at least put into treasuries or something like that. Keep a few months of expenses in the HYSA as an emergency fund (aka a "fuck off fund" just in case you land a bad boyfriend or girlfriend, lol). Since Trump was elected, I prefer broad ETFs of non-USA stocks. Stuff like VGK (Europe), FLKR (Korea), or ASEA (South-east Asia). VXUS (everywhere but the US) or VT (the USA + the rest of the world too) if you want super-broad based etfs that you ignore forever and ever. You're 23. Stocks go up over the long-term (because companies overall become more profitable as technology improves). In a brokerage account you want to invest in ETFs or stocks that you will hold for a year or more. (In the USA, stock market gains are taxed as capital gains if you held the investment for more than a year. They are taxed as regular income if you held the investment for less than a year. Capital gains taxes are much lower than income taxes.) "How do you mentally handle market dips?" Not looking. Seriously. Keeping in mind you want broad, diverse ETFs that you will hold for a year or more, I wouldn't bother to pay any attention to the brokerage account unless you are adding more money to it. "Did you transition money gradually from HYSA into investments or lump sum it? I lump summed it. No real reason to transfer gradually, in my opinion. Though in my case I never had an HYSA. Never saw the point. "how you decided on your allocation at a similar age" I didn't invest until I was older, but it went like this: Oh my goodness, I have money now. I know money always loses value over time due to inflation. I should invest my money, because stocks and real estate don't lose value to inflation like the dollar does. The classic investments for Americans building wealth are real estate and the stock market. I can't afford a house and don't want one where I currently live anyway. I'll invest in stocks. Bonds and other conservative assets like gold generally grow slower & are more suited for risk-adverse retirees, so I'll just stick to stocks. I want what will grow most over the next few decades, so, stocks. I'll max out a Roth IRA and then put the rest in a brokerage account. (Contractor business income - no 401k.) I'll invest in broad-based ETFs with diverse holdings so that no one company falling apart can hurt me too badly. I'll invest in ETFs holding USA stocks even though they are overvalued because the markets believe in American Exceptionalism and USA stocks bizarrely keep growing faster than everywhere else. That went well. Oh my goodness, Trump was RE-elected. American Exceptionalism is dead. I'll shift my money into broad-based ETFs holding non-USA stocks. That went really well. Hey, look, a reddit post I think I can answer helpfully.

Ok-Sheepherder7898

Don't worry about income just worry about net worth.  VT is similar.

MizDiana

"Or it could be 80% VT and 20% bonds." That's trying to beat the market by timing it. By your definition, any change at all, for any reason, from a set allocation strategy trying to represent the global economy is trying to beat the market by timing it. In other words, if there is any allocation strategizing involved, you are trying to time the market to beat it. By your definition as you have described it.

Inner-Platypus-7534

No, a set allocation strategy could be set at 100% VT. Or it could be 80% VT and 20% bonds. Or it could be set at 40% VXUS and 60% VTI, because your 401K doesn’t have VT, like mine.  I’m starting to think you don’t know as much about this as you’re letting on. 

abstractraj

You’re better off putting 100% in VT until the various problems relax a bit (AI, inflation)

Inner-Platypus-7534

Look, I just thought it was funny that you said you weren’t market timing or trying to beat the market, when you were trying to do both. That’s all. I didn’t really comment on your strategy. I don’t care how you invest. I just suggest that you own it - you intend to beat VT by reading into macroeconomic conditions and timing when to enter and exit certain markets. There are millions of investors who say the same thing. Let’s just be honest about it 

MizDiana

You make it sound like I'm day-trading, lol. Point of fact, unless you are 100% into VT, you are also "trying to beat the market, and you’re doing so by selecting the right time to buy or sell". This thing you see as so ridiculous. No one is being deceptive. We started with different definitions of terms.

Ill-Tennis4451

I love VT! Many people don’t agree with me glad to see someone else

Pale_Drink4455

Put it in a brokerage in a low cost S&P ETF such as VT, VTI, VOO, VTSAX etc and let it grow.

SaveTheAles

Invited a chick over for some VT and chill. Maybe get a little boglehead while she was there.

Godkun007

Spy isn't "the index". The index would be something like VT which tracks global markets. The S&P 500 actually looks artificially better over VT since inception due to VT starting in late 2007. But VT is the way to go for the long term.

TheShaveStickGuy

Save 25% of your net pay; $VT and chill. All you need to know about investing.

MizDiana

"When someone says “the market” they almost always mean the broader US or global market, essentially SPY/VTI or VT. " Thank you. Though I'd add that SPY/VTI and VT are significantly different things. "Regardless of which of the two I was referring to, you are trying to beat both by timing when you buy and sell based on what you perceive as macro conditions" Yes, I agree, in as much as I sold out of USA holdings for broadly diversified long-term holdings in Jan. 2025. But, then, I would argue that someone investing in SPY or VTI is trying to beat "the market" in the same way as I am (just with a different thesis). I think this statement is the only place we disagree. I'd define "the market" as the "global market", weakly using VT for lack of a better stand-in.

Detail4

What did you buy? I sentence you to 12 years of only purchasing VT or VOO. Never sell, do nothing else. You can revisit this stupidity later.

Infinite_Playdate_XO

VTI and chill if in a taxable brokerage. VT and chill in a Roth IRA

Inner-Platypus-7534

When someone says “the market” they almost always mean the broader US or global market, essentially SPY/VTI or VT.  Regardless of which of the two I was referring to, you are trying to beat both by timing when you buy and sell based on what you perceive as macro conditions, so my answer doesn’t reframe the discussion in any way. 

TreGet234

Best boglehead split with a slight amount of regardation? I think mixing QQQ, VT and VXUS depending on how much US vs international expusure you want. Can even add a small/midcap USA etf (though i don't like russel 2000), i don't know which etf though as i would prefer active screening for solid fundamentals. (VT does seem to have all cap expusure) For the regardation i'm thinking metals/uranium miners, SMH, korea/taiwan/brazil index, space or defense etf, even bitcoin or fintech etf. Any other interesting etf plays? I may even consider tips bonds if you think a huge crash is imminent but i think i will just hold a larger cash position in hysa/0 month tbills. Not liking leverage right now tbh. Stock market looks funky. American market weak af and ex-usa market in its own valuation bubble. I can see it blowing up one way or the other soon even without ai unraveling.

GrapeAyp

I just buy VT and BND

TreGet234

Maybe some bitcoin but that's fairly risky. 4 year cycle says the next cycle top shouöd be september 2029. That also makes me believe there won't be a recession that year. Hard to say though if the ai bubble doesn't pop in the next year or two. Gold (and maybe gold miners) is good too, 10k/oz may actually happen. SMH and QQQ if you believe in tech. (With leverage there are SOXL and TQQQ but any crashes in the meantime could hurt them a lot). VT as a boring global stock but it's unlikely to do crazy numbers. There are are UFO, JEDI and SHLD for the space and war plays. URNM for uranium. Really hard to say...

Putrid_Pollution3455

IBIT, USFR, VT equal portions. Bitcoin loosely follows a four year cycle it’ll probably bottom in October followed by three good years. USFR is basically a high yield savings account that you can margin against. VT is a global equity etf so if the world production increases you win.

MizDiana

What is your "the market"? VT? S&P 500? DOW?

drew-gen-x

I would look at $VT. If you invest world stock ETF you are going to get more industrials, materials, etc b/c unlike US stocks, world indices lean more to non tech stocks. Plus you still get US tech stocks. Now that is the smart move. If you want to play around w/ 25% then I've been buying gold, $EWY (South Korea), $EWJ (Japan), $IGF (world infrastructure), $TLT (US Treasuries), $XLU (utilities). But $VT might be the best if you are looking to diversify now.

Putrid_Pollution3455

Try boring stuff. 90% VT 10% whatever. You’re just a punk kid, don’t be giving up! You’re barely old enough to sign contracts! You will be great someday

bombastica

VT and chill

Logical-Idea-1708

VT is up 22% and S&P is supposed to be half of the composition. Just think how much better the other half is doing 😂

lrobb09

The good news if you’ve learned you should only buy VT for the rest of your life. Just buy VT and go hang out with your friends.

lMexl

I'm by no means a pro, but I think adding a small cap etf makes a lot of sense. I would skip the dividend ETF at your age. I made my portfolio last year with the help of a FA and we built one very similar to yours but with the addition of a small cap ETF. And no uranium lol. Kinda feels like VT with extra steps, but I guess it's nice to be able to rebalance yourself if you want.

carnewbie911

VT etf return was 22%. Maybe they should take a page out of passive investing and just VT and chill?

Gloriam_Insights

1. Yes, if you want minimum headache with solid returns, just keep investing into the S&P 500. It has shown strong results over the last few decades and will most likely continue. Of course, nobody can guarantee that — it's possible that America gets pushed off the pedestal as the leading economy, and as a result the S&P becomes less relevant while other countries and indices outperform. But realistically, predictions like that are nearly impossible to make. 2. As for growth ETFs and individual stocks — it helps to think of it as a risk scale. If we're only talking about stocks, here's roughly how it breaks down from least to most risky: 1. Global ETFs (VT, VXUS) - widest diversification across countries, continents, and sectors 2. Broad market ETFs (VOO, SPY, IVV) - S&P 500 and similar, strong track record 3. Sector/narrow ETFs (QQQ, ARKK, SOXX) - more growth potential, but more volatile 4. Individual stocks - closest thing to a casino. Nobody can guarantee with 100% certainty that a company won't change direction, replace its CEO, or run into unexpected problems. The general rule: the younger you are, the more it makes sense to lean toward the riskier end of this scale. If those bets pay off — great. If not, you still have decades until retirement to recover. But the higher the potential growth, the higher the risk. That tradeoff is always there. The good news is you don't have to pick just one. You can combine them — keep the S&P 500 as your core and add a smaller allocation to something more aggressive. The key is deciding how much risk you're actually comfortable with.

BenFromOgden

VT and chill. If the money flows out of the US, it will flow into stocks you own. If it doesn't, you keep gaining. In the era of trade volatility and it's hard to know when restrictions will come or when they will be reversed ... so own everything.

BenFromOgden

VT and chill. If the money flows out of the US , it will flow into stocks you own. If it doesn’t, you keep gaining. In the era of 🍊man everything is volatile and it’s hard to know if or when the 🌮trade will come true… so own everything.

AdQuick8612

VT. Look at it when you retire.

cedrus_libani

Around 4-5 months of cold hard cash, spread over three banks. Another 6+ months in very conservative investments. Right now my portfolio is loaded for bear, so it's more like 2 years' worth of spending hidden away. I have money in the stock market, but most of it goes into diversified funds. There's a reason "VT and chill" is popular advice - diversification is the only free lunch in all of investing. I will bet on specific sectors, if I have a hunch that it will go up over the next year, but even there I will just buy an ETF. I also have self-imposed limits on how much I can put into any one bet.

Upset-Reputation-222

Aggressive (diversified) is having 90%+ invested in stocks. It does not mean only investing in 5 stocks - that goes beyond aggressive into. Stay the course with VTI, VT and VOO - save more as your earnings increase. Assume you have $100k already invested and continue putting in $7500 for 30 years. At an average 7% return you end up with: **Total balance $1,519,273** Contributions: $325,000 (in addition to the $100k starting balance) Investment Return: $1,194,273 Diversification over time gives you the best chance for success with relatively low risk.

TreGet234

15% gold, 35% smh, 30% VXUS, 20% VT Might be the play.

Sapere_aude75

VT is a simple blend of both as well. I would personally split between VTI and VXUS

JealousFuel8195

This is one of my pet peeves. I've been investing for almost 40 years. The pro-international investor are running victory laps after one year. I get it! They finally get proven right. Since 2009, VT has outperformed VTI 5 out of 17 years. Of which, one year was less than 1%. Through 2025. A $100k investment in VTI would be valued at over $1m compared to $618k for VT. VT will have to outperform VTI by 65% to catch VTI.

Altruistic-Mammoth

VT and chill