Among equity mutual funds, small, mid and large-cap mutual funds are the most sought-after categories since they have historically provided some of the best returns in more than two decades. Large-cap mutual funds invest majority of their money in large-cap companies and are considered more stable than the rest of two. Small-cap mutual funds, on the other hand, invest in small-cap companies and are more vulnerable to market fluctuations than the rest of two.

Since small caps carry more risk than the rest of two, they have the potential of providing better returns than mid and large mutual funds.

If we have a cursory glance at their performance in the last three years (As per Value Research data), small-cap mutual funds have given 28.29 per cent returns in the last three years, compared to 24.49 per cent of mid cap, and 17.80 per cent of large caps.

In this write-up, we will pick the top mutual fund from each category and see what Rs 1 lakh lump sump investment made each of those three funds three years would have given you in present times.

Top large-cap mutual fund in 3 years

Nippon India Large Cap Fund

As per Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) data, Nippon India Large Cap Fund is the top fund in the large-cap mutual fund category.

The fund has given returns of 25.46 per cent in the last three years.

Its assets under management (AUM) are worth Rs 24,917.63 crore.

The fund’s net asset value (NAV) under its direct plan is Rs 87.5846.

The 5-star Crisil-rated fund has an expense ratio of 1.66 per cent against the category average of 2.05 per cent.

Benchmarked against S&P BSE 100 TRI, the fund has 98.74 per cent of its investment in domestic equities with the maximum of being 65.01 per cent in large caps.

The fund has 57 stocks in its portfolio against the category average of 48.71.

The fund has invested most of its fund in HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Reliance Industries.

An investment is Rs 1 lakh three years ago has grown to Rs 193,051.

Top mid-cap mutual fund in 3 years

Quant Mid Cap Fund 

Quant Mid Cap Fund tops the category of the mid-cap mutual fund as per AMFI data.

The fund has given returns of 38.74 per cent in the last three years against the benchmark return of 27.19 per cent.

Benchmarked against NIFTY Midcap 150 Total Return Index, the fund has AUM of Rs 6,019.50 crore and NAV of Rs 242.4742.

The 4-star Crisil-rated fund has expense ratio of 0.71 per cent against the category average of 0.75 per cent.

The fund launched in February 2026 has 96.94 per cent of its investments in domestic equities with 53.87 per cent of in mid caps.

The fund has most of its investment in emergy at 22.86 per cent.

Its main stocks are RIL, Aurobindo Pharma, and PNB.

A Rs 1 lakh investment in the fund three years ago has become Rs 268,033 as on today.

Top small-cap mutual fund in 3 years

Quant Small Cap Fund 

The top fund in the small-cap category has given three-year returns of 43.31 per cent against 29.79 per cent returns of its benchmark- NIFTY Smallcap 250 Total Return Index.

The fund has AUM of Rs 17,884.53 crore and NAV of Rs 259.2761.

The fund’s expense ratio is 0.7 per cent against the category average of 0.61 per cent.

The fund’s 91.78 per cent investments are in domestic equitoes with 42.83 per cent of them in small caps.

The 4-star Crisil-rated fund has 94 stocks in its portfolio against 82.22 per cent in total.

RIL, Jio Fianncials, Bikaji Foods International are the major stocks under its portfolio.

A Rs 1 lakh investment in the fund has given swelled to Rs 295,467 in the last three years.