₹5,000 SIP in Nifty Next 50 Funds: UTI, SBI, ICICI and others compared over 3 years

Nifty Next 50 index funds may track the same benchmark, but their SIP returns can still vary over time even though these funds invest in the same basket of stocks.

At first glance, a difference of just 0.5%-1% in annual returns between two funds may not look like a big deal. But over years of long SIP investing, that extra return keeps compounding and can eventually add several lakhs to your final corpus.

Since several schemes in this category are relatively new, a 5-year or 10-year comparison may not offer a like-for-like view across all funds. Therefore, this analysis focuses on 1-year and 3-year SIP performance for a ₹5,000 monthly investment in Nifty Next 50 funds.

• UTI Nifty Next 50 Index Fund-Reg(G)
• SBI Nifty Next 50 Index Fund-Reg(G)
• Motilal Oswal Nifty Next 50 Index Fund-Reg(G)
• HDFC Nifty Next 50 Index Fund-Reg(G)
• ICICI Pru Nifty Next 50 Index Fund(G)

Before going into the funds, one important thing to keep in mind is that we are looking at some of the most widely tracked Nifty Next 50 index funds based on size and relevance in the category.

Before reading further, please note that this is just for informational purposes only and should not be considered as recommendation of any of the schemes mentioned below.

The data has been sourced from the ACE MF website, and the returns are as of 6 May 2026.

UTI and SBI funds lead 3-year SIP returns

The UTI and SBI schemes generated the strongest SIP outcomes over the three years, with both funds turning a ₹1.8 lakh investment into more than ₹2.13 lakh.

Why do returns differ despite tracking the same index?

All five schemes track the Nifty Next 50 TRI benchmark, and their top holdings remain broadly similar, including stocks such as Vedanta, Tata Motors, TVS Motor, Divi’s Laboratories and Hindustan Aeronautics.

Interestingly, the UTI fund’s top holdings showed slight deviations compared to peers, with higher allocations to Adani Power, Varun Beverages and Hindustan Aeronautics.

• Tracking error

• Expense ratios

• Cash allocation

• Portfolio rebalancing efficiency

Several NIFTY Next 50 index funds in the category were launched only in recent years. For instance: HDFC’s scheme launched in November 2021, SBI’s fund launched in May 2021, while Motilal Oswal’s scheme began in December 2019.

ICICI Prudential remains the largest fund in the category

ICICI Prudential NIFTYNext 50 Index Fund remains the biggest scheme among the compared funds, with assets under management (AUM) of more than ₹7,600 crore.

The fund, managed by Nishit Patel, is also among the oldest schemes in the category, having launched in 2010.

Meanwhile, the Motilal Oswal scheme has the smallest AUM at around ₹381 crore.

Nifty Next 50 index funds have gained traction among retail investors seeking exposure beyond the traditional Nifty 50 universe. The index includes emerging large-cap companies that could potentially become future Nifty 50 constituents.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is for informational purposes only and does not represent investment advice from Upstox. Investment decisions should be made based on independent research or consultation with a registered financial advisor. Past performance is not indicative of future results.