A split month
May 2026 divided the market by company size. All 33 mid-cap funds rose, with a median gain of 2.28%. 31 of the 35 large-cap funds fell, with a median loss of 0.95%.
The median equity fund ended the month up 0.64%, and 353 of 566 funds gained.
All figures are for the Direct plan, Growth option, computed from daily NAVs between 30 April and 29 May 2026, the last trading day of May. May and the year so far are plain percentage changes; one, three and five years are compounded annual rates.
The scorecard
Twelve SEBI equity categories, ranked by May's median return.
| Category | Funds | May | 2026 so far | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mid Cap | 33 | 2.28% | 1.60% | 8.36% | 21.44% | 18.55% |
| Small Cap | 36 | 2.08% | 4.63% | 7.19% | 18.93% | 18.57% |
| Multi Cap | 32 | 1.72% | −0.77% | 4.79% | 18.09% | 15.98% |
| Large & Mid Cap | 33 | 0.79% | −3.03% | 2.51% | 16.98% | 15.61% |
| Sectoral / Thematic | 251 | 0.68% | −2.02% | 3.76% | 17.28% | 14.60% |
| Flexi Cap | 44 | 0.31% | −4.31% | 0.59% | 14.65% | 12.97% |
| Focused | 28 | 0.28% | −4.08% | 0.62% | 15.21% | 14.10% |
| Contra | 3 | −0.07% | −6.68% | −1.13% | 17.38% | 16.74% |
| Dividend Yield | 11 | −0.36% | −4.45% | 1.13% | 16.46% | 16.15% |
| Value | 22 | −0.45% | −4.16% | 0.59% | 16.88% | 15.78% |
| ELSS | 38 | −0.48% | −5.33% | −1.53% | 13.89% | 13.50% |
| Large Cap | 35 | −0.95% | −7.12% | −1.92% | 12.17% | 11.53% |
| All equity funds | 566 | 0.64% | −2.59% | 2.42% | 16.36% | 14.64% |
"Funds" counts every Direct Growth plan on 29 May. A fund counts in a period only if it has a full record: 566 for May, 512 for one year, 376 for three years and 299 for five. Contra has only three funds.
Against the indices
Our estimates of total return, built from NSE's daily price and dividend yield, to the close of 29 May:
| Index (estimated total return) | May | 2026 so far | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nifty 50 | −1.77% | −9.40% | −3.94% | 9.59% | 10.22% |
| Nifty 500 | −0.03% | −4.64% | 0.26% | 14.15% | 12.88% |
| Nifty Midcap 150 | 2.65% | 1.65% | 7.52% | 22.69% | 19.55% |
| Nifty Smallcap 250 | 1.62% | 2.15% | 1.99% | 21.02% | 17.39% |
On price alone the Nifty 50 fell 1.87% in May, from 23,997.55 to 23,547.75.
What the numbers show
Mid and small caps are now up for the year. The median mid-cap fund is 1.60% higher than at the end of 2025 and the median small-cap fund 4.63%. They are the only two diversified categories above zero. Large caps are down 7.12%, an 8.72-point gap with mid caps in five months.
The same order holds over most periods. Mid caps lead on May, one year and three years, and trail small caps on five years by just 0.02 points. Large caps are last on May, one year, three years and five years. ELSS sits second from the bottom on three of the five columns.
One fund house stood out among diversified funds. Quant's funds took four of the six best May returns outside sector funds: Quant Focused at 7.70%, Quant Large & Mid Cap at 6.04%, Quant Flexi Cap at 5.76% and Quant Value at 5.45%. Quant Large Cap gained 4.67%, the best large-cap return of the month by more than two points.
Theme funds split by geography and sector. Nippon India Taiwan Equity led again, up 11.96%. Consumption, FMCG, rural and PSU funds were at the bottom, each down between 2.71% and 3.71%.
Equity funds are closer to their highs. On 29 May the median equity fund's NAV was 5.78% below its all-time high. At the end of March that gap was 15.03%.
What this does not tell you
A gap this wide can close either way. The numbers record that smaller companies have led large ones for most of 2026. They do not say whether that continues.
Fund-house streaks are short. Quant's lead is one month's data. In March, Quant Focused was the weakest diversified fund of all, down 13.53%.
The benchmarks are our estimates, the medians cover surviving funds only, and past returns do not predict future ones. Nothing here is advice to buy or sell any fund.
Where to go from here
The categories page has live numbers for every category, and last month's table is the April equity fund scorecard. For the month's market backdrop, see May 2026 in numbers.
For a closer look at two of May's rows, read multi-cap fund returns and mid-cap fund returns in May. Volatility by fund category shows what the leading categories cost in bumpiness.
Frequently asked questions
How did equity mutual funds do in May 2026?
The median equity fund (Direct plan, Growth option) gained 0.64% between the NAVs of 30 April and 29 May 2026; 353 of 566 rose. Mid-cap funds led with a median of 2.28% and all 33 rose. Large-cap funds had a median loss of 0.95%, and 31 of 35 fell.
Which equity fund categories are up in 2026?
To 29 May 2026, only two diversified categories had a positive median for the year: small caps (4.63%) and mid caps (1.60%). Sectoral funds were at −2.02% and large caps at −7.12%. The median equity fund was down 2.59%.
How big is the gap between mid-cap and large-cap funds in 2026?
To 29 May 2026, the median mid-cap fund was up 1.60% for the year and the median large-cap fund down 7.12%, a gap of 8.72 percentage points in five months. Our estimates of total return put the Nifty Midcap 150 up 1.65% and the Nifty 50 down 9.40%.
This is commentary on published data, not investment advice. WealthTicker is not a SEBI-registered adviser or distributor. Figures are as of the dates stated and can be revised by their source.
Keep reading
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A regular equity plan costs a median 1.16 points a year more than its direct twin, on AMFI's September 2026 data. Over ten years, direct ended 10.2% ahead.