# Active funds beat passive ones only in some categories, study shows 2026-08-13T16:46:10+00:00 | Business & Economy | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Active mutual funds beat their benchmarks in only 30-52% of rolling periods for large-cap, mid-cap and large & mid-cap categories, according to a study by Apurv Gupta of Otto Money. The analysis covered 44,500 fund-window observations from January 2013 across seven equity categories. Active funds outperformed in 57-65% of periods for flexi-cap, focused and value funds. Small-cap funds were the standout, beating benchmarks in 90% of seven-year windows. The median advantage over benchmarks was less than 1% annually for categories where active funds did better. The study found a wide gap between top and bottom performers within the same category. Over seven years, the best flexi-cap fund beat its benchmark by 5.8%, while the worst underperformed by 4.3%. Regular plans, which carry commissions, sharply reduced active funds' chances of beating benchmarks compared with direct plans. For large-cap funds, active direct plans beat benchmarks in 30% of periods versus 11% for regular plans. ## Coverage - livemint.com Tags: active vs passive investing, direct vs regular plans, index funds, mutual funds, Otto Money study, small-cap funds Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/active-funds-beat-passive-ones-only-in-some-categories-study-shows/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/active-funds-beat-passive-ones-only-in-some-categories-study-shows/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.