VONG: Could This Growth ETF Make You a Millionaire?

If you want to become a millionaire, one of the best ways is to buy stocks and watch your investments grow over the years with the power of compound interest. You might need less money than you think. One of the easiest investment strategies to try to achieve this goal is to buy growth stock ETFs.

The Vanguard Russell 1000 Growth ETF (NASDAQ: VONG) is a popular ETF that lets you own hundreds of large U.S. growth stocks at a low cost. For the past several years, this fund has delivered the potential for millionaire-making returns for its investors.

Let's take a closer look at how investing in the VONG could make you a millionaire over time.

Image source: Getty Images.

What is the Vanguard Russell 1000 Growth ETF (VONG)?

The Vanguard Russell 1000 Growth ETF holds a select group of 391 large U.S. companies. Because the goal of this fund is to offer high investment growth potential, it tends to hold many technology stocks. Looking at the fund's portfolio by sector, Technology makes up 59.7% of the ETF's holdings. Consumer Discretionary stocks are a distant second, with 17.5% of the fund.

As is typical for Vanguard ETFs, the VONG charges low fees. This ETF has an expense ratio of only 0.06%. So that means if you invest $1,000 in this fund, the cost that you pay to Vanguard each year will be only $0.60. Want to know which actual stocks you'll get to buy with the VONG? The ETF's top five holdings are all major tech names: Nvidia (12.7% of the fund), Apple (10.8%), Microsoft (9.2%), Amazon (4.8%), and Broadcom (4.6%).

Is the VONG a millionaire-maker ETF?

If you're a long-term investor, the stock market has delivered average annualized returns of 9% to 10%. The Vanguard Russell 1000 Growth ETF has done even better. Ever since its inception in September 2010, the VONG has delivered average annual returns of 16.5%.

With that powerful annualized growth rate, your investments could reach millionaire status faster than you might think. Let's say you invest $500 per month in the VONG, and your investment grows at that same average rate of 16.5% returns per year. After 15 years, you'd have about $323,000. After 20 years, you'd have about $735,000. After 22 years, you'd have over $1 million.

Keep in mind that past performance is no guarantee of future results. The VONG has performed so well for the past 15 years because U.S. technology stocks have outperformed the rest of the market. With recent investor skepticism toward artificial intelligence (AI) stocks and concerns about AI's impact on the U.S. tech industry, that trend might not last forever.

But the biggest takeaway here is that a simple, low-cost, long-term stock ETF like the VONG really could make you a millionaire. Just keep investing and let compound interest work for you.

Ben Gran has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia and is short shares of Apple. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.