It is never too late to invest in mutual funds for retirement. As such, if you plan to invest in some of the best funds, the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank can provide you with valuable guidance.

The best way to shortlist great mutual funds is to ensure solid performance, diversification, and low fees. Some are better than others, but utilizing the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank, we have identified three mutual funds that could be solid additions to one's retirement portfolio.

Here are the funds that have achieved the Zacks Mutual Fund Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and have low fees.

Columbia Small Cap Value I Class R4 (CVVRX Quick QuoteCVVRX - Free Report) : 1.01% expense ratio and 0.81% management fee. CVVRX is a Small Cap Value fund, and these funds are known for investing in companies with market caps under $2 billion. With annual returns of 13% over the last five years, this fund is a winner.

QS Global Equity 1 (LMPEX Quick QuoteLMPEX - Free Report) : 1.1% expense ratio and 0.75% management fee. LMPEX is a Non US - Equity option, focusing their investments acoss emerging and developed markets, and can often extend across cap levels too. LMPEX, with annual returns of 14.55% over the last five years, is a well-diversified fund with a long track record of success.

PGIM QMA Large Cap Core Equity A (PTMAX Quick QuotePTMAX - Free Report) is an attractive large-cap allocation. PTMAX is part of the Large Cap Blend section, and these mutual funds most often invest in firms with a market capitalization of $10 billion or more. By investing in bigger companies, these funds offer more stability, and are often well-suited for investors with a "buy and hold" mindset. PTMAX has an expense ratio of 0.72%, management fee of 0.35%, and annual returns of 15.05% 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.