An active fund has a manager who chooses what to buy and sell, aiming to beat a benchmark — usually an index — after costs. A passive fund follows rules instead: an index fund holds what its index holds, in the same proportions, aiming to match the index minus its costs.
What you're paying for differs. Active funds charge more for research and judgement, and their results can land well above or well below the benchmark depending on the manager's choices. Passive funds charge less and give you the market's return, including its falls, with nobody trying to sidestep them. Either way the fund's ongoing charge comes out every year. The app doesn't show fund charges, so the fund's factsheet is the place to find them.
Described, not ranked: one charges for judgement, the other for a copy.
Educational content only. It is not personal financial advice.