Want $1 Million in Retirement? 2 Simple Index Funds to Buy and Hold for Decades.

Retiring a millionaire is often the broad goal that many investors have, but getting there takes money, time, and a lot of discipline. Thankfully, exchange-traded funds make it easy to invest by charging low management fees and offering a broad range of investment strategies.

If you've got a few decades before retirement, here are two of the best Vanguard ETFs to buy today that can bring you closer to achieving your $1 million goal.

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1. Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF

With the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (NYSEMKT: VTI), you don't have to worry about trying to tap into the latest investment trends, pick the next hot stock, or try outsmart Wall Street analysts. That's because the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF invests in the entire market -- all 3,544 publicly traded companies.

The fund tracks the CRSP U.S. Total Market Index, giving you exposure to all stocks listed on American stock exchanges. This means that you'll have the most diversified equities portfolio possible, spanning across all sectors and companies. Vanguard charges an expense ratio of just 0.03% annually, which means you'll pay just $3 for every $10,000 invested.

The average annual return of the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF is about 9.2%, not accounting for inflation. So, if you want to retire a millionaire with this fund, here are a few examples for how to get there:

Source: Author's calculations.

Obviously, the longer your investment timeline, the less you'll have to contribute each month to reach $1 million. What's more, there's no guarantee that the fund will continue to perform as it has in the past.

But the main point here is that buying the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF and contributing to it each month could make you a millionaire with regular contributions and letting the power of compound earnings and compound interest do the work for you.

2. The Vanguard Information Technology ETF

With technology driving much of the stock market's gains these days, you might be interested in the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (NYSEMKT: VGT). This fund tracks the MSCI US Investable Market Information Technology 25/50 index, which includes more than 300 small- and large-cap companies -- each focused on different areas of the tech sector.

This means that you'll be invested in large semiconductor companies, including Nvidia and AMD, legacy tech stocks like Apple and Microsoft, as well as younger growth stocks such as Palantir. Whether it's artificial intelligence you're interested in, cloud computing, data center infrastructure, or software, this fund has all the tech bases covered.

There's more risk of volatility when honing in on tech stocks, compared to buying a fund that tracks the entire market -- but there's more potential for higher returns as well. The Vanguard Information Technology ETF has returned 14.1% since its inception in 2004.

There's no guarantee the fund will continue at that rate of return, but if we assume it will, here are a few examples of how the Vanguard Information Technology ETF could turn you into a millionaire:

Source: Author's calculations.

With returns that average much higher than the broader market, the Vanguard Information Technology ETF can potentially help you reach $1 million faster and with less in monthly contributions. Just keep in mind that tech trends are often cyclical, which means that it's more than likely that some stretches of time invested in this fund could experience significant volatility.

Still, the fund is a great option for investors who have a long investment timeline. You'll also pay just 0.09% for its annual expense ratio, which is slightly lower than the average fee for similar funds. More importantly, you'll be invested in some of the most innovative companies in the world by owning just one fund.

Chris Neiger has positions in Apple. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Palantir Technologies, and Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.