How to Track Your Mutual Fund Investments Effectively?

Mutual funds are super popular in India right now and it’s easy to see why. With over 10 crore people investing and total assets crossing ₹67 lakh crore in early 2025, they’re no longer just for finance experts.

But here’s something important to remember: investing is just the first step. If you’re not keeping an eye on your mutual fund investments, you might miss out on better returns or end up sticking with funds that aren’t doing well.

Read on to know the step-by-step guide to help you track mutual funds the right way.

Check Your Consolidated Portfolio Value

The first step is to check the total current value of all your mutual fund investments. This will give you an idea of how your investments have grown over time. Nowadays, keeping track of your mutual funds is easy, thanks to the availability of online portfolios.

Most mutual fund houses like ICICI Prudential, HDFC, Aditya Birla Sun Life, etc, allow you to create a consolidated view of all schemes you have invested in. This helps you track the value of your entire mutual fund portfolio in one place instead of checking individual schemes.

You can log in to the website of your mutual fund company and find the option to create an online portfolio under the investor services section. Add all your mutual fund folios here to track their NAVs and value in one consolidated view.

Check Your Portfolio Performance

Simply knowing the absolute portfolio value doesn’t give you much insight. You need to check the performance of your mutual fund portfolio relative to its value when you make the investments.

Most online portfolios show important metrics like capital invested, current value and returns to help you gauge the performance easily.

You can also calculate performance metrics like absolute returns and XIRR (Extended Internal Rate of Return) using tools like Value Research. XIRR helps you measure returns after accounting for the timing and size of your cash inflows and outflows.

Review Your Funds’ Performance

Apart from tracking mutual fund portfolio, you must also evaluate how well each of your mutual fund schemes has performed. Here are some tips for reviewing scheme performance:

• Compare returns with category average: Find out if your equity fund has beaten its benchmark and given higher returns than the category average. For debt funds, ensure that short-term and liquid schemes have beaten average T-Bill returns.
• Analyse rolling returns: Evaluate 1/3/5 year rolling returns to assess the consistency of performance. Good funds tend to beat category average as well as benchmark indices consistently.
• Check risk metrics: Along with returns, also analyse risk metrics like standard deviation, Sharpe and Sortino ratios. Lower volatility than peers indicates effective fund management.
• Review portfolio and positioning: For equity funds, evaluate portfolio in terms of sector allocation, market-cap-weighted holdings, top 10 holdings, etc. This shows how well the fund manager has positioned the portfolio.
  

Also, compare your fund’s metrics with top-performing schemes in the same category to assess the scope of improvement.

Track the Latest NAVs and Total Returns

NAV, or net asset value, indicates the per-unit value of your fund holdings. Tracking the latest NAVs daily or monthly helps you monitor the ongoing growth of your investment. It shows if your fund value is consistently rising over the long term and provides short-term market-linked fluctuations.

Total returns indicate returns from NAV appreciation and any dividend payouts from the mutual fund scheme. Hence, total returns represent actual returns accrued to investors and tend to be higher than just NAV returns in the case of dividend-paying funds.

Many mutual fund portfolios also provide total return graphs that allow you to track the NAV and dividend payout growth of each fund easily. Additionally, paid platforms like Value Research also offer NAV charts with SIP return calculators to track mutual funds.

Monitor Portfolio Risk Profile

As an investor, you must periodically review the risk profile of your mutual fund portfolio. For instance, assess your asset allocation to see if your portfolio has become equity-heavy and, hence, more risky than planned initially.

Also, within equity funds, evaluate if market cap allocation has changed drastically, with higher exposure to volatile mid- and small caps than originally intended.

Such portfolio drifts towards higher risk can impact your ability to meet financial goals. Check if your mutual fund portfolio asset allocation aligns with your risk tolerance before making any additional investments.

Stay Updated on Latest News and Updates

Other than tracking mutual fund portfolio, stay updated regarding the latest news and developments related to your mutual funds.

Go through the latest scheme annual reports and factsheets to check any fund manager changes, shifts in investment strategy, or changes in sector positioning, among others.

Many mutual funds also provide monthly portfolio holding statements to offer more transparency. Review these from time to time to assess the latest equity or debt positioning of your schemes.

You can also subscribe to expert research analysis, outlook and updates from platforms like Morningstar, which offer guidance about the potential impact on your funds.

Additionally, keep track of relevant regulatory changes in the mutual fund industry, such as changes in taxation policy or category categorisation. Such updates influence investor decisions and are important to note.

Conclusion

We hope this detailed guide on how to check mutual fund performance helps you manage your portfolio better. Tracking mutual funds requires some effort initially, but doing so can help you maximise portfolio returns, achieve financial goals and make well-informed investment decisions. 

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FAQs on Mutual Fund Investments

How often should I check my mutual fund performance?

It is recommended that you check your mutual fund portfolio performance at least once a quarter. This will help you evaluate whether your funds are performing well and identify any that need corrective action. More frequent monthly tracking is even better to monitor returns closely, but a quarterly review should be sufficient for most retail investors.

Can I track all my mutual fund investments in one place?

Yes, mutual fund houses allow you to create a consolidated portfolio on their website that brings together all your investment schemes spread across various folios. This single online portfolio or dashboard allows you to get a consolidated view and track the performance of your overall mutual fund holdings in one place, conveniently.

How can I check my mutual fund holdings through SMS?

Several AMCs facilitate the convenience of tracking mutual fund portfolios via SMS. You can SMS a predefined code with your portfolio number to a particular fund house mobile number to receive the latest scheme holding details and values.