Best Corporate Bond Funds in India

21 corporate bond funds in India, of which 18 meet the eligibility criteria, ranked on Sharpe ratio. Income with less volatility than equity?

Ranked on risk-adjusted return, not raw return — the point of this group is smoother outcomes.

Corporate Bond Funds ranked by Sharpe ratio

#Fund
1DSP Corporate Bond Fund - Direct - GrowthSilver1.60-3.2%+5.70%23%+5.92%₹2,948 Cr0.29%
2Franklin India Corporate Debt Fund - Direct - GROWTHGold1.38-7.4%+8.46%70%+6.22%₹1,345 Cr0.26%
3ICICI Prudential Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Plan - GrowthPlatinum1.29-2.0%+7.99%71%+6.35%₹30,202 Cr0.36%
4Axis Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Plan GrowthSilver1.22-3.8%+7.58%51%+6.01%₹7,748 Cr0.36%
5BARODA BNP PARIBAS Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Plan - Growth OptionBronze1.18-2.3%+8.05%81%+6.09%₹270 Cr0.21%
6Nippon India Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Plan Growth Plan - Growth OptionGold1.07-1.7%+7.98%66%+5.65%₹9,432 Cr0.37%
7Kotak Corporate Bond Fund- Direct Plan- Growth OptionGold1.07-1.9%+7.99%61%+5.62%₹15,171 Cr0.36%
8BANDHAN Corporate Bond Fund - Direct GrowthBronze1.05-3.5%+7.45%44%+6.06%₹13,688 Cr0.34%
9UTI Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option0.97-3.0%+6.68%34%+5.56%₹4,800 Cr0.32%
10HSBC Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Growth0.96-0.7%+7.55%50%+5.57%₹5,951 Cr0.30%
11Tata Corporate Bond Fund-Direct Plan-Growth0.95-1.7%+7.75%57%+5.43%₹3,238 Cr0.33%
12SBI Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Plan - GrowthBronze0.94-2.9%+6.30%26%+5.40%₹22,260 Cr0.37%
13Invesco India Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Plan - GrowthSilver0.88-4.7%+7.27%42%+5.46%₹4,222 Cr0.29%
14Sundaram Corporate Bond Fund Direct Plan - Growth0.83-11.0%+7.72%58%+5.19%₹620 Cr0.32%
15Aditya Birla Sun Life Corporate Bond Fund - Growth - Direct PlanSilver0.78-2.4%+8.06%69%+5.37%₹23,623 Cr0.34%
16HDFC Corporate Bond Fund - Growth Option - Direct PlanBronze0.78-4.0%+8.11%68%+5.26%₹30,664 Cr0.38%
17CANARA ROBECO CORPORATE BOND FUND - DIRECT PLAN - GROWTH OPTION0.73-2.0%+7.40%40%+5.21%₹106 Cr0.37%
18Union Corporate Bond Fund - Direct Plan - Growth Option0.72-5.7%+5.98%13%+4.86%₹293 Cr0.41%

Badges are our own quality tiers — Platinum (top 10%), Gold (25%), Silver (50%), Bronze (75%) — scored within each sub-category, so they compare a fund with its peers and not with funds of a different type. “3Y typical” is the median annualised return across every 3-year holding period the fund has lived through, not a single 3-year figure; “3Y loss odds” is the share of those periods that ended down. “Beat peers” is the share in which it beat its category's median, and “worst fall” is its deepest peak-to-trough drop. Open a fund for the full distribution. Click any numeric column to re-sort; funds with no value for that column sort last. Returns over 1 year are annualised (CAGR). Past performance does not indicate future returns. Eligibility: Direct, Growth only, minimum AUM ₹100 Cr, at least 1 year(s) old. Past performance. Returns for 3y/5y are annualised (CAGR) and are withheld where the NAV series does not support the period.

Corporate Bond Funds — FAQs
Why rank these on risk-adjusted return?

The purpose of this group is a smoother path, not the highest possible number. A fund that earned slightly less with much less volatility is doing the job better, which is what a risk-adjusted measure captures and a raw return does not.

What risks do debt funds carry?

Two main ones. Interest-rate risk: when yields rise, existing bonds fall in value, and longer-duration funds move more. Credit risk: a borrower may be downgraded or default, which affects the NAV directly. Categories differ substantially in how much of each they take.