Vanguard index funds are among the market's greatest champions of low-cost investing.

The company is a pioneer, launching the first index fund - the Vanguard 500 Index Fund (VFIAX), which provided inexpensive access to the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index - more than four decades ago.

Since then, Vanguard has introduced a slew of low-cost index mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that have saved investors hundreds of billions of dollars in fees throughout the years. The best Vanguard index funds aren't just going to save you money on the fee front, however. They'll also provide faithful exposure to asset classes and investing strategies to profit from for years to come. Take a look.

Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF

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Type: Dividend growth

Market value: $27.0 billion

Dividend yield: 1.9%

Expenses: 0.08%

The Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG, $100.68) is an ETF that's geared toward dividend growth. The fund tracks the NASDAQ US Dividend Achievers Select Index, which is a collection of roughly 180 dividend stocks that have improved their annual payments for at least 10 years.

Unsurprisingly, that portfolio is chock full of blue chips that have long held top positions in their respective industries, including the likes of Walmart (WMT), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Microsoft (MSFT).

A bit more surprising to some investors, however, is the yield. Despite the "dividend" designation, VIG doles out a yield below 2% at the moment.

Many dividend growers do not, in fact, have high yields - and that's OK. Investors should think about dividend growth almost like a screen for quality.