The Only Account the IRS Never Taxes Going In, Growing, or Coming Out: 3 ETFs That Belong Inside It
One account legally strips taxes from contributions, growth, and withdrawals all at once, and most people who have it are leaving the compounding power almost entirely on the table. Three ETFs can fix that problem for good.
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Most tax-advantaged accounts give you a break on the way in or the way out. Traditional IRAs defer tax. Roth IRAs tax you up front. The Health Savings Account does something no other account does: contributions are deductible, growth is untaxed, and qualified medical withdrawals come out tax-free. Triple tax-free. If you are healthy, paying your doctor bills out of pocket, and treating your HSA as a stealth retirement account, the investments inside it deserve the same care as a Roth. Three low-cost ETFs give you a complete long-horizon portfolio: Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSEARCA:VOO), Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHG), and iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF (NASDAQ:IXUS).
Why the HSA Deserves Real Investments
To fund an HSA, you need a high-deductible health plan. The IRS defines this for 2026 as a plan with a self-only deductible of at least $2,900 and no more than $4,400, or a family deductible of at least $5,850 and up to $8,750. If you can pay current medical costs from your checking account and leave the HSA untouched, every dollar you invest compounds tax-free for decades. After age 65, withdrawals for anything can be taken without penalty, though non-medical withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income (medical withdrawals stay tax-free at any age). That last piece is what turns the HSA into a supercharged IRA. The three ETFs below cover the entire equity market at a rock-bottom cost.
VOO: The Foundation
VOO tracks the S&P 500, giving you a stake in roughly 500 of the largest U.S. companies. The expense ratio is 0.03%, which means $9,997 of every $10,000 stays invested. You are buying the market at index cost. Performance reflects that discipline: VOO is up 12.85% year to date, 20.9% over the past year, and 313.91% over the past decade. For an HSA balance you may not touch for 20 or 30 years, a broad, cheap, tax-efficient index fund belongs at the center of the portfolio. The first stock index fund just turned 50, and the case for owning the whole market has only grown stronger.
SCHG: The Compounding Engine
SCHG tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Large-Cap Growth Total Stock Market Index. It concentrates on the fastest-growing large-caps: NVIDIA at roughly 11% of net assets, Apple near 9.8%, Microsoft around 7.2%, plus Amazon, Alphabet, Broadcom, Meta, and Eli Lilly. Total net assets sit at roughly $61.1 billion. The fund is up 17.17% over the past year and 445.43% over the past decade, outrunning the broader S&P thanks to that growth tilt. Inside an HSA, the tax drag on rebalancing and dividends is zero, so the higher-turnover, higher-appreciation profile of a growth fund becomes even more valuable. SCHG is the accelerator you bolt onto the VOO core.
IXUS: The Rest of the Planet
U.S. stocks are roughly 60% of global market cap, which means an all-domestic HSA ignores 40% of the world. IXUS fixes that in one ticker, tracking the MSCI ACWI ex USA IMI Index across developed and emerging markets. Fund assets total about $56.2 billion. Holdings run from Alibaba and Royal Bank of Canada to Shopify, Toronto-Dominion Bank, and Volvo. Foreign markets have led in 2026: IXUS is up 16.33% year to date and 26.57% over the past year, ahead of VOO on both measures. Even if U.S. dominance resumes, holding international equities smooths returns across decades.
Trade-Offs You Should Know
Two catches to be blunt about. First, most HSA custodians require a minimum cash balance (often $1,000 to $2,000) before you can invest the rest, and some charge a monthly investment fee. Check your provider before assuming every dollar is working. Second, an HSA only works as a retirement vehicle if you can actually pay medical bills from other savings. If a surprise ER visit forces you to sell VOO in a down year, the tax magic still applies, but you lose the compounding you were counting on. Build a cash buffer outside the HSA first. Then let VOO, SCHG, and IXUS do the quiet, tax-free work of decades.
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Ryne Mauck is an investment writer covering exchange-traded funds, portfolio strategy, and opportunities across public markets. His investment approach emphasizes fundamental analysis, valuation, and disciplined risk-taking.
Through his work at 24/7 Wall St. and other investment platforms, including Seeking Alpha, he aims to provide readers with clear, research-driven insights into investment fundamentals, portfolio construction, and risk management. His goal is to help investors make more informed decisions while maintaining a disciplined long-term approach to investing.
Ryne holds a B.Sc. in Finance and an M.A. in Political Science.
