Vanguard S&P 500 ETF
Hacker ApprovedRanked 4 of 11 index funds by recommenders
People recommend VOO as a low-effort way to hold a broad basket of US stocks over a long period.
People recommend VOO as a low-effort way to hold a broad basket of US stocks over a long period.
10 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 10
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 6 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 10 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 6 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Simple buy and hold
“The most profitable (and effort efficient way) is to routinely invest in a broad basket of stocks over a long period. Ie Voo and Hold.”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?” “start putting $100/mo in VOO and save what little money you have for your future”
Comment from 1 Dec 2025 in “Is America's jobs market nearing a cliff?” “As long as you're <40 you SHOULD always buy SPY or VOO, even at the very top.”
Comment from 2 Jun 2026 in “Can the stockmarket swallow Anthropic, SpaceX and OpenAI?” Broad exposure to US stocks
“The most profitable (and effort efficient way) is to routinely invest in a broad basket of stocks over a long period. Ie Voo and Hold.”
Comment from 26 Dec 2025 in “Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?” “a mixed VOO-VTI-VWO strategy”
Comment from 6 Mar 2026 in “CBP says it can't comply with refund order” Good for cautious investors
“If you are risk adverse, just park it in VOO or SCHD.”
Comment from 30 Jan 2026 in “County pays $600k to pentesters it arrested for assessing courthouse security” “Buy $5M of VOO and $5M of VTEB or BND.”
Comment from 13 Jan 2026 in “Ask HN: If you had $10M in the bank, would you still show up to your job?” Core holding for savings
“it is hard to say that you shouldn't have a big chunk of your savings in something like $QQQ or $VOO”
Comment from 4 May 2026 in “Why Almost Everyone Loses–Except a Few Sharks–On Prediction Markets” “start putting $100/mo in VOO and save what little money you have for your future”
Comment from 1 Dec 2025 in “Is America's jobs market nearing a cliff?”
Other index funds people recommend
The four most recommended other index funds, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 index fund | 28 | 13 | 68% | 11 | — | Approved |
| Invesco QQQ Trust | 11 | 10 | 52% | 7 | — | — |
| Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF | 11 | 4 | 73% | 7 | — | Approved |
| Vanguard S&P 500 ETFThis page | 10 | 0 | 100% | 6 | — | Approved |
| Vanguard S&P 500 ETF | 9 | 2 | 82% | 7 | — | — |
What people said
All 10 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“As long as you're <40 you SHOULD always buy SPY or VOO, even at the very top.”
“Had pension fund just invest in VOO, PE won't need to exist.”
“I would have been vastly better off renting and buying VOO with my equity stake.”
“it is hard to say that you shouldn't have a big chunk of your savings in something like $QQQ or $VOO”
“I'm just your average retail investor but I don't get killed by inflation.”
“a mixed VOO-VTI-VWO strategy”
“If you are risk adverse, just park it in VOO or SCHD.”
“Buy $5M of VOO and $5M of VTEB or BND.”
“The most profitable (and effort efficient way) is to routinely invest in a broad basket of stocks over a long period. Ie Voo and Hold.”
“start putting $100/mo in VOO and save what little money you have for your future”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.