Our "Magnificent Retirement Mutual Funds" list includes some of the best managed and best performing funds around. If you're already invested in these, congratulations! But if you're just now discovering them, don't worry. When it comes to your retirement, it's never too late to start investing in the best.

The easiest way to judge a mutual fund's quality over time is by analyzing its performance, diversification, and fees. Using our Zacks Rank of over 19,000 mutual funds, we've identified three outstanding mutual funds that are ideally suited to help long-term investors pursue and achieve their retirement investing goals.

Let's break down some of the mutual funds with the highest Zacks Rank and the lowest fees.

Alger Capital Appreciation Focus I (ALGRX Quick QuoteALGRX - Free Report) has a 0.89% expense ratio and 0.52% management fee. ALGRX is a Large Cap Growth mutual fund, and these funds invest in many large U.S. firms that are projected to grow at a faster rate than their large-cap peers. With yearly returns of 16.29% over the last five years, this fund clearly wins.

Payson Total Return Fund (PBFDX Quick QuotePBFDX - Free Report) : 0.86% expense ratio and 0.6% management fee. PBFDX is classified as an Allocation Balanced fund, which seeks to invest in a balance of asset types, like stocks, bonds, and cash, and including precious metals or commodities is not unusual. PBFDX, with annual returns of 10.31% over the last five years, is a well-diversified fund with a long track record of success.

Janus Henderson Global Technology S (JATSX Quick QuoteJATSX - Free Report) is an attractive large-cap allocation. JATSX is part of the Sector - Tech mutual fund category that invests in technology and lets investors own a stake in a notoriously volatile sector, but with a much more diversified approach. JATSX has an expense ratio of 1.19%, management fee of 0.64%, and annual returns of 23.1% over the past five years.

These examples highlight the fact that there are some astonishingly good mutual funds out there. If your advisor has you in the good ones, bravo! If not, you may need to have a talk.

Do You Know the Top 9 Retirement Investing Mistakes?

Investing in underperforming mutual funds is just one of the key errors that can derail your retirement plans.

To learn more, read our just-released report: 9 Retirement Mistakes You Need to Avoid.