Capital Wealth · Planning · 403(b) for Teachers

The 403(b)Fund Menus

The funds inside your 403(b) — compared, costed, and benchmarked against the S&P 500.

Two of the most common 403(b) custodians used by California teachers, classified employees, and CalSTRS / CalPERS members are Security Benefit (NEA Direct Invest / Election 1) and Orion Portfolio Solutions. Both offer Vanguard mutual funds — but the available lineup, the platform fee, and the cost per dollar are different. Below: every Vanguard fund either platform offers, with expense ratios, trailing returns, and how each compares to the S&P 500.

By Sean Anees Saifi · Capital Wealth · Data through June 12, 2026 · Sources: Vanguard fact sheets; Security Benefit Form 43-10910-03 (12/19/2025); Orion 403(b) Open Fund Availability List

Same Vanguard funds. Different all-in cost.

Key Takeaways

Two platforms, two menus. Security Benefit’s Election 1 offers 6 Vanguard passive funds behind a 0.45% platform fee; Orion’s 403(b) open list carries 22 Vanguard funds at a 0.30% admin fee.
Same fund, different all-in cost. VFIAX (Vanguard 500 Index) runs 0.49% total on Security Benefit vs. 0.34% on Orion — the fund’s own expense ratio is 0.04% either way; the platform is the difference.
Watch the cash sleeve. Election 1’s money-market position is MJGXX, a JPMorgan fund (not Vanguard) with a 0.57% ER — 1.02% all-in, the most expensive line on the page.
Bond substitution on Orion. VBTLX (Total Bond) isn’t on the Orion list; VBILX (Intermediate-Term Bond Index) is the closest substitute.
The benchmark to beat. Every table here is measured against the S&P 500 — +24.3% trailing 1-year and +14.8% annualized over 10 years through June 12, 2026.

Fees inside a 403(b) hide in two layers: the fund’s own expense ratio, and the platform fee the custodian charges to hold it. The first layer is nearly identical across these two menus — index funds cost what index funds cost. The second layer is where the money moves. Fifteen basis points sounds like rounding; on a $250,000 balance it is real dollars every year, compounding quietly against you for a career.

Performance below is gross of advisor fee, net of fund expense ratio plus platform admin fee, with trailing returns through June 12, 2026. This page is the menu; the actual model allocations we run on each platform live on the model portfolios page.

Looking for the actual model portfolios?

An empty classroom at last light — Capital Wealth · Inside the 403(b) menu

9 named 403(b) model allocations — ready to view

This page compares which funds each platform offers. The actual model portfolios (Tier 1 Aggressive, Tier 2 Balanced, Tier 3 Income, 5 Vanguard Passive risk tiers, Orion Index-Beat) live on the model portfolios page with full holdings, weights, and YTD/1-Yr returns.

See the 9 model portfolios →

At a glance: the two platforms

Security Benefit · Election 1

6 Vanguard passive funds

Risk-based model lineup (Conservative through Aggressive). Cash sleeve uses MJGXX (JPMorgan U.S. Government Money Market — not a Vanguard fund).

0.45%platform fee

6Vanguard funds

Orion · 403(b) Open List

22 Vanguard funds available

Full sleeve — sector index funds, dividend strategies, bond duration ladder, inflation-protected, real estate, international.

0.30%admin fee

22Vanguard funds

Benchmark · Jun 2026

S&P 500 trailing returns

What every Vanguard fund here is trying to keep up with — or, in the case of dividend, value, and sector tilts, deliberately diverge from.

+9.1%YTD '26

+24.3%1-Yr

+14.3%5-Yr ann.

+14.8%10-Yr ann.

Security Benefit — Election 1 Vanguard funds

The 6 funds Security Benefit's Election 1 risk-based models pull from. Cost column is total: fund ER + 0.45% platform fee. Performance is gross of advisor fee. MJGXX is included because it's the contract's cash sleeve, but it is a JPMorgan money-market fund — not Vanguard.

Ticker	Fund	ER	Total Cost	YTD '26	1-Yr	5-Yr	10-Yr
VFIAX	Vanguard 500 Index Adm	0.04%	0.49%	+9.1%	+24.4%	+14.4%	+14.8%
VTMGX	Vanguard Developed Markets Index Adm	0.05%	0.50%	+14.6%	+29.6%	+9.1%	+8.7%
VIMAX	Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Adm	0.05%	0.50%	+10.4%	+18.2%	+8.6%	+10.9%
VSMAX	Vanguard Small-Cap Index Adm	0.05%	0.50%	+15.4%	+28.8%	+7.3%	+10.4%
VBTLX	Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Adm	0.04%	0.49%	+0.3%	+4.3%	-0.4%	+2.0%
MJGXX (non-Vanguard)	JPMorgan U.S. Govt Money Market	0.57%	1.02%	+1.4%	+3.8%	+2.8%	+1.8%

Orion — Vanguard funds available (Open status)

22 Vanguard mutual funds Open on the Orion 403(b) availability list, grouped by purpose. Total cost = fund ER + 0.30% admin. Note: VBTLX (Total Bond) is NOT on Orion — VBILX (Intermediate-Term Bond Idx) is the closest substitute.

Core Equity

Ticker	Fund	ER	Total Cost	1-Yr	5-Yr	10-Yr
VTSAX	Vanguard Total Stock Market Adm	0.04%	0.34%	+9.7%	+24.8%	+13.7%
VFIAX	Vanguard 500 Index Adm	0.04%	0.34%	+9.1%	+24.4%	+14.8%
VIGAX	Vanguard Growth Index Adm	0.05%	0.35%	+5.0%	+21.2%	+16.1%
VVIAX	Vanguard Value Index Adm	0.05%	0.35%	+14.3%	+26.9%	+11.0%

International & Real Estate

Ticker	Fund	ER	Total Cost	1-Yr	5-Yr	10-Yr
VTMGX	Vanguard Developed Markets Index Adm	0.05%	0.35%	+14.6%	+29.6%	+8.7%
VEMAX	Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Adm	0.13%	0.43%	+10.9%	+25.1%	+9.3%
VGSLX	Vanguard Real Estate Index Adm	0.13%	0.43%	+12.6%	+12.9%	+6.1%

Dividend & Income

Ticker	Fund	ER	Total Cost	YTD '26	1-Yr	10-Yr
VHYAX	Vanguard High Dividend Yield Adm	0.08%	0.38%	+12.4%	+24.7%	+12.4%
VDADX	Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Adm	0.07%	0.37%	+7.7%	+18.2%	+12.8%
VEIRX	Vanguard Equity Income Adm	0.17%	0.47%	+9.4%	+21.3%	+11.5%
VDIGX	Vanguard Dividend Growth Inv	0.22%	0.52%	+2.7%	+7.7%	+11.6%

Bonds & Inflation Protection

Ticker	Fund	ER	Total Cost	Yield	1-Yr	10-Yr
VBILX	Vanguard Intermediate-Term Bond Idx Adm	0.06%	0.36%	-0.2%	+4.2%	+2.4%
VBIRX	Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Adm	0.06%	0.36%	+0.2%	+3.4%	+1.8%
VCORX	Vanguard Core Bond Inv	0.20%	0.50%	+0.6%	+4.7%	+2.1%
VAIPX	Vanguard Inflation-Protected Securities Adm	0.10%	0.40%	+1.2%	+4.5%	+2.1%

Sector Index Funds

Ticker	Fund	ER	Total Cost	YTD '26	1-Yr	10-Yr
VUIAX	Vanguard Utilities Index Adm	0.09%	0.39%	+5.0%	+11.9%	+10.5%
VGELX	Vanguard Energy Index Adm	0.20%	0.50%	+20.5%	+30.3%	+6.4%
VINAX	Vanguard Industrials Index Adm	0.10%	0.40%	+15.6%	+27.4%	+13.2%
VTCAX	Vanguard Communication Services Idx Adm	0.10%	0.40%	-3.0%	+15.4%	+10.8%
VMIAX	Vanguard Materials Index Adm	0.10%	0.40%	+13.7%	+22.1%	+11.8%
VCSAX	Vanguard Consumer Staples Index Adm	0.09%	0.39%	+10.6%	+7.4%	+9.5%
VHCIX	Vanguard Health Care Index Adm	0.10%	0.40%	-0.1%	+15.8%	+9.0%

Advisor Detail

Side-by-side: which platform actually costs less?

Cost-of-ownership comparison for the two most common Capital Wealth 403(b) custodians, plus a dollar example. Detail unlocks with the same client-review passcode used elsewhere on the site (ask Sean for the code if you don't have it).

Ticker	Fund	SB Election 1	SB Cost	Orion Open	Orion Cost	Savings
VFIAX	Vanguard 500 Index Adm	✓	0.49%	✓	0.34%	−15 bps
VTMGX	Vanguard Developed Markets	✓	0.50%	✓	0.35%	−15 bps
VIMAX	Vanguard Mid-Cap Index	✓	0.50%	—	—	SB only
VSMAX	Vanguard Small-Cap Index	✓	0.50%	—	—	SB only
VBTLX	Vanguard Total Bond Market	✓	0.49%	—	VBILX sub	SB only
+17 more	Sector / dividend / international Vanguard funds	—	—	✓	0.34–0.52%	Orion only

Cost on $250K

~$375 / yr saved

Switching a $250K balance from a shared SB-Vanguard fund to the same fund on Orion. Compounds: ~$3,750 over 10 years pre-growth.

Lineup breadth

22 vs 6 funds

Orion offers the full Vanguard sector/dividend/duration sleeve. SB Election 1 is risk-based only — no sector tilts, no dividend-growth, no inflation-protected.

YTD '26 leaders

VGELX +20.5% · VINAX +15.6%

Energy, industrials, small-cap and developed-markets indexes lead — beating the S&P (+9.1%) YTD. Bonds (VBTLX +0.3%) and defensive sectors (health care, communications) lag.

Jump straight to a model portfolio

All 9 are on a single page with a dropdown selector — click any of these to land on the right model with holdings, weights, and returns:

CWLG Custom (SB E3)

Tier 1 — Aggressive →

100% equity · 15 holdings · theme-mapped

CWLG Custom (SB E3)

Tier 2 — Balanced →

81/19 · 15 holdings · +170 bps vs Vanguard

CWLG Custom (SB E3)

Tier 3 — Income →

65/35 · 15 holdings · +266 bps vs Vanguard

Orion 403(b)

CWLG Index-Beat →

11 holdings · sector-tilted website mirror

SB Election 1 · Vanguard Passive

Aggressive →

90/10 · 5 funds (also: 4 lower-risk tiers)

The Takeaway

If the fund you want lives on both menus, the cheaper platform wins by exactly the fee spread — there is no performance to argue about, because it is the same fund. If the fund you want lives on only one menu, the question becomes whether the tilt is worth the platform. That is a portfolio decision, not a fee decision, and it’s the one we walk through in a review.

Where this fits Bubble Map: Retirement· POLARIS: Step 3 · Leverage Our Experience

POLARIS · Step 1 · Personal Approach

Your contract, your funds, your platform fee — on one page.

We work with 403(b)s for California teachers, classified employees, public-sector workers, and CalSTRS / CalPERS members every week. Bring your current contract to a fifteen-minute Zoom and we’ll walk through the funds you hold, the platform fee you’re paying, and whether a different sleeve would actually leave more in your account at retirement.

Book the 15-minute review → Start with the 403(b) overview →

Fund data: Vanguard fact sheets, Security Benefit Form 43-10910-03 (12/19/2025), and the Orion 403(b) Open Fund Availability List; trailing returns through June 12, 2026 and not updated daily. Performance shown is gross of advisor fee, net of fund expense ratio and platform admin fee. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Nothing on this page is individualized investment advice or a recommendation of any fund or platform; availability and fees change — verify with the current plan documents. Consult a licensed financial advisor before making investment decisions. Disclosures · Privacy