SEBI sub-category

ELSS funds

Funds

Direct plans only

Category 1Y avg

+6.92%

Category 5Y CAGR

+14.26%

Direct vs Regular

Direct Regular

5-Year return distribution

How the 50 ELSS funds spread across return buckets. Taller bars = more funds in that band.

Risk vs Return — ELSS

Each dot is a fund. Up-and-left = high return for low risk (the sweet spot). Down-and-right = under-performing with high volatility. Colour = 5-year peer quartile.

Q1 (top 25%) Q2 Q3 Q4 (bottom 25%) 41 funds plotted

All ELSS funds

Sort by: 1Y 3Y 5Y 7Y 10Y

#	Scheme	NAV	1Y	3Y	5Y	7Y	10Y	Peer Q (5Y)	Sharpe	Max DD
1	Sundaram Long Term Tax Advantage Fund Series IV Direct Plan - Growth Sundaram	37.63	+8.76%	+17.05%	+18.52%	+22.59%	—	Q1	0.58	-22.1%
2	Motilal Oswal ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option Motilal Oswal	63.92	+4.79%	+22.24%	+18.46%	+20.18%	+17.89%	Q1	0.77	-27.7%
3	Sundaram Long Term Tax Advantage Fund Series III Direct Plan - Growth Sundaram	32.75	+8.97%	+16.96%	+18.45%	+22.60%	—	Q1	0.58	-22.7%
4	SBI ELSS Tax Saver FUND - DIRECT PLAN -GROWTH SBI	478.88	-0.28%	+17.52%	+17.17%	+18.67%	+15.02%	Q1	0.83	-15.8%
5	Sundaram Long Term Micro Cap Tax Advantage Fund Series IV Direct Plan - Growth Sundaram	32.28	+5.66%	+15.97%	+16.96%	+22.02%	—	Q1	0.51	-24.1%
6	SBI Long Term Advantage Fund - Series V - Direct Plan - Growth SBI	33.39	+1.03%	+20.42%	+16.95%	+18.55%	—	Q1	0.88	-16.2%
7	quant ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Growth Option - Direct Plan Quant	463.81	+13.25%	+17.38%	+16.82%	+25.59%	+20.76%	Q1	0.71	-25.8%
8	Sundaram Long Term Micro Cap Tax Advantage Fund Series III Direct Plan - Growth Sundaram	37.36	+5.65%	+15.87%	+16.78%	+21.56%	—	Q1	0.50	-24.5%
9	Sundaram Long Term Micro Cap Tax Advantage Fund Series VI Direct Plan - Growth Sundaram	30.44	+4.81%	+16.04%	+16.77%	+22.31%	—	Q1	0.52	-23.4%
10	HDFC ELSS Tax saver - Growth Option - Direct Plan HDFC	1,489.76	-1.99%	+15.45%	+16.61%	+16.03%	+13.91%	Q2	0.70	-14.8%
11	Sundaram Long Term Micro Cap Tax Advantage Fund Series V Direct Plan - Growth Sundaram	31.67	+5.99%	+16.66%	+16.59%	+22.17%	—	Q2	0.54	-23.6%
12	JM ELSS Tax Saver Fund (Direct) - Growth Option —	58.32	+3.96%	+16.53%	+15.64%	+18.28%	+16.60%	Q2	0.65	-20.9%
13	ICICI Prudential Long Term Wealth Enhancement Fund - Direct Plan Cumulative Option ICICI Prudential	30.19	+1.51%	+14.85%	+15.44%	+15.97%	—	Q2	0.62	-18.9%
14	Nippon India ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan Growth Plan - Growth Option Nippon India	144.95	+1.98%	+14.71%	+14.47%	+14.74%	+11.51%	Q2	0.61	-20.1%
15	Tata ELSS Fund-Growth-Direct Plan Tata	54.00	+4.96%	+14.14%	+14.37%	+15.89%	+14.86%	Q2	0.58	-18.5%
16	DSP ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth DSP	156.24	+0.21%	+16.20%	+14.24%	+17.97%	+15.91%	Q2	0.69	-16.2%
17	ITI ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option ITI	28.82	+2.47%	+18.68%	+14.02%	—	—	Q2	0.70	-22.6%
18	Franklin India ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct - Growth Franklin India	1,610.73	-3.02%	+13.52%	+13.92%	+15.52%	+13.16%	Q2	0.56	-16.7%
19	Edelweiss ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan-Growth Option Edelweiss	138.84	+5.52%	+14.93%	+13.89%	+16.20%	+14.05%	Q2	0.63	-18.5%
20	Kotak ELSS Tax Saver Fund-Growth - Direct Kotak	138.90	+1.60%	+12.75%	+13.79%	+16.67%	+15.06%	Q3	0.50	-19.6%
21	SBI Long Term Advantage Fund - Series VI - Direct Plan - Growth SBI	32.03	-2.50%	+13.55%	+13.59%	+17.32%	—	Q3	0.47	-22.2%
22	BANK OF INDIA ELSS Tax Saver -Direct Plan- Growth Bank of India	194.56	+2.53%	+15.12%	+13.44%	+20.46%	+16.89%	Q3	0.59	-23.9%
23	Parag Parikh ELSS Tax Saver Fund- Direct Growth Parag Parikh	32.05	-7.03%	+11.50%	+13.38%	+18.08%	—	Q3	0.47	-14.7%
24	Mirae Asset ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Mirae Asset	57.54	+3.02%	+14.46%	+13.34%	+17.75%	+17.82%	Q3	0.59	-17.1%
25	BANDHAN ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Bandhan	178.33	+1.90%	+11.47%	+13.28%	+17.56%	+15.80%	Q3	0.45	-17.7%
26	BANK OF INDIA Mid Cap Tax Fund Series 1 Direct Plan Growth Bank of India	30.33	+6.38%	+15.71%	+13.20%	+20.86%	—	Q3	0.60	-25.0%
27	Union ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option Union	72.31	+1.36%	+12.28%	+12.69%	+16.58%	+13.61%	Q3	0.46	-18.3%
28	ICICI Prudential ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth ICICI Prudential	1,039.66	+1.11%	+12.83%	+12.59%	+14.91%	+13.41%	Q3	0.53	-17.6%
29	CANARA ROBECO ELSS TAX SAVER - DIRECT PLAN - GROWTH OPTION Canara Robeco	201.94	+2.24%	+12.70%	+12.56%	+17.31%	+15.46%	Q3	0.50	-18.2%
30	SBI Long Term Advantage Fund - Series IV - Direct Plan - Growth SBI	50.18	+3.24%	+10.81%	+12.32%	+21.52%	—	Q4	0.34	-21.0%
31	Mahindra Manulife ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan -Growth Mahindra Manulife	32.90	-2.40%	+10.28%	+12.11%	+15.92%	—	Q4	0.32	-16.4%
32	BANK OF INDIA Midcap Tax Fund Series 2 Direct Plan Growth Bank of India	35.25	+2.29%	+14.95%	+11.99%	+19.50%	—	Q4	0.57	-23.9%
33	PGIM India ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option PGIM India	40.12	-0.72%	+9.64%	+11.77%	+15.17%	+13.92%	Q4	0.28	-16.5%
34	Taurus ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Taurus	197.81	-4.80%	+11.03%	+11.65%	+13.67%	+12.94%	Q4	0.38	-16.7%
35	LIC MF ELSS Tax Saver-Direct Plan-Growth LIC	171.01	-3.06%	+11.24%	+11.64%	+13.74%	+13.00%	Q4	0.39	-17.4%
36	Invesco India ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Invesco	148.56	-2.45%	+13.30%	+11.37%	+15.48%	+14.24%	Q4	0.47	-20.5%
37	Groww ELSS Tax Saver Fund (formerly known as Indiabulls Tax Savings Fund)- Direct Plan- Growth Option Groww	21.82	-5.05%	+10.53%	+10.79%	+12.55%	—	Q4	0.32	-20.8%
38	UTI ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option UTI	229.09	-1.09%	+10.69%	+10.05%	+14.65%	+12.56%	Q4	0.34	-18.6%
39	Shriram ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Growth Shriram	23.77	-0.65%	+9.04%	+9.98%	+12.66%	—	Q4	0.22	-23.5%
40	Aditya Birla Sun Life ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Growth - Direct Plan Aditya Birla Sun Life	69.95	+2.82%	+12.93%	+9.71%	+12.15%	+11.48%	Q4	0.51	-18.3%
41	Axis ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option Axis	109.89	+0.50%	+11.23%	+8.23%	+12.57%	+12.62%	Q4	0.39	-16.5%
42	360 ONE ELSS Tax Saver Nifty 50 Index Fund - Direct Plan - Growth 360 ONE	13.77	-2.47%	+8.01%	—	—	—	—	0.13	-15.4%
43	BAJAJ FINSERV ELSS TAX SAVER FUND - DIRECT - GROWTH Bajaj Finserv	11.90	+3.71%	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
44	BARODA BNP PARIBAS ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option Baroda BNP Paribas	113.18	+4.88%	+16.54%	—	—	—	—	0.72	-17.3%
45	HSBC ELSS Tax saver Fund - Direct Growth HSBC	153.72	+3.13%	+16.95%	—	—	—	—	0.66	-19.2%
46	NAVI ELSS TAX SAVER NIFTY 50 INDEX FUND - DIRECT PLAN GROWTH Navi	14.73	-2.54%	+8.05%	—	—	—	—	0.14	-15.5%
47	NJ ELSS Tax Saver Scheme Direct Growth NJ	14.83	-6.04%	+12.45%	—	—	—	—	0.42	-22.8%
48	Samco ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option Samco	13.16	-8.16%	+5.37%	—	—	—	—	0.00	-29.6%
49	Sundaram ELSS Tax Saver Fund Direct Plan Growth Sundaram	533.41	-2.67%	+10.32%	—	—	—	—	0.34	-15.9%
50	WhiteOak Capital ELSS Tax Saver Fund Direct Plan Growth WhiteOak Capital	19.03	+2.62%	+17.88%	—	—	—	—	0.79	-16.4%

Direct plans typically outperform Regular plans by around 50 basis points per year because they carry no distributor commission. The "Peer Q (5Y)" column shows the fund's quartile within this category over the 5-year window: Q1 = top 25%.

Frequently asked questions

Generated from this category's live aggregates — average returns, fund counts, quartile spreads. Updated daily.

ELSS (Equity Linked Savings Scheme) funds qualify for ₹1.5 L deduction under Section 80C of the Income-tax Act (old regime). They have a 3-year lock-in — the shortest among tax-saving instruments. ≥80% must be in equity.

We currently track 50 active ELSS schemes (Direct plan, Growth option). The list updates daily after AMFI publishes new NAVs and SEBI re-classifies schemes. 9 of them sit in the top quartile by 5-year CAGR.

Over the last 5 years, the average ELSS (Direct plan) has returned 14.26% CAGR — that turns ₹1 lakh into roughly ₹194,771. Over the last 12 months the category averaged 6.92%. Top-quartile funds in this category typically beat the average by 3-6 percentage points per year — fund selection within a category matters more than the category choice itself.

Over the trailing 5-year window, the highest-returning ELSS in our database is **Sundaram Long Term Tax Advantage Fund Series IV Direct Plan - Growth** (Sundaram) with a CAGR of 18.52%. The category average is 14.26%. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns — top-quartile funds in one window often slip in the next.

The best 1-year return in the ELSS category right now is **quant ELSS Tax Saver Fund - Growth Option - Direct Plan** (Quant) at 13.25%. 1-year numbers are noisy and shouldn't be the sole basis for picking — cross-check rolling returns and 5-year CAGR before deciding.

Across all ELSS schemes with 5 years of history, the 5-year CAGR ranges from 8.22% (worst) to 18.52% (best), with a median of 13.59%. That spread of about 10 percentage points between top and bottom is a useful gauge of how much fund selection matters in this category.

On ProfitGuruOnline you can browse either ELSS Direct plans (lower expense ratio, no broker commission baked in) or Regular plans (sold through distributors). Use the filter on the category page. Direct typically outperforms Regular by 0.5-1% per year in the same scheme — meaningful over 10+ years.

ELSS is classified as an Equity scheme. Held for 12 months or more: 12.5% LTCG on gains exceeding ₹1.25 lakh per FY per PAN. Held for under 12 months: 20% STCG. Rates updated by Budget 2024.

Yes. Equity categories like ELSS are well-suited to SIP because the monthly drip averages out entry timing — you buy more units when NAVs are low. Over 7+ year horizons, SIP XIRRs typically end up within 1-2 pp of lump-sum, but with much less stress.

ELSS schemes suit 5+ year horizons. Equity drawdowns of 25-40% are normal in a bad year; the long horizon lets you ride them out.

Moderate-to-high equity risk. Expect 20-30% drawdowns in normal corrections, 40%+ in severe bear markets like 2008 and 2020.

Two or three schemes from different AMCs is usually enough for a single category. Beyond that you'd be re-creating the category average minus your selection cost. Focus on consistency (% of rolling-return windows that ended positive) over chasing top performers — top quartile rarely repeats.

Quarterly is plenty for monitoring NAVs and aggregate gain; annually (or after major regulatory changes like Budget 2024) is the right cadence for re-evaluating against alternatives. Don't churn based on 1-month or even 1-year underperformance — equity funds need 3-5 year horizons to fairly judge.

We rank funds within each category by point-to-point CAGR over the chosen window (1Y, 3Y, 5Y, 7Y, 10Y, since inception), then assign quartile and decile bands so any fund's standing relative to peers is one click away. Numbers are recomputed nightly after AMFI's NAV publish.

Daily NAVs are pulled directly from AMFI's published feed. Category classification uses SEBI's October-2017 mutual-fund categorisation circular. We compute returns, rolling-window stats, SIP backtests, drawdowns and Sharpe ratios in-house — no third-party feeds, no hidden adjustments.

Educational content only — not investment advice. Tax rules summarised above reflect Budget 2024; consult a qualified adviser before transacting.