Core Fixed Income Portfolio

Core Fixed Income Portfolio

Objective

The Core Fixed Income Portfolio seeks above-average total return over a market cycle of three to five years.

Fees and Expenses

The table below describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Portfolio. For purchases of Class A shares, you may qualify for a sales charge discount if the cumulative net asset value ("NAV") of Class A shares of the Portfolio purchased in a single transaction, together with the NAV of all Class A shares of other portfolios of Morgan Stanley Institutional Fund Trust (the "Fund") or Class A shares of other Morgan Stanley Multi-Class Funds (as defined in the section of this Prospectus entitled "Shareholder Information—Exchange Privilege") held in Related Accounts (as defined in the section of this Prospectus entitled "Shareholder Information—How To Purchase Class A Shares"), amounts to $25,000 or more. More information about this combined purchase discount and other discounts is available from your financial intermediary and in the section of this Prospectus entitled "Shareholder Information—How To Purchase Class A Shares."

Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)

Shareholder Fees Core Fixed Income Portfolio	Class I Shares	Class A Shares		Class L
Maximum sales charge (load) imposed on purchases (as a percentage of offering price)	none	4.25%		none
Maximum deferred sales charge (load) (as a percentage based on the lesser of the offering price or NAV at redemption)	none	none	[1]	none

Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Annual Fund Operating Expenses Core Fixed Income Portfolio		Class I Shares	Class A Shares	Class L
Advisory Fee		0.375%	0.375%	0.375%
Distribution and/or Shareholder Service (12b-1) Fee		none	0.25%	0.50%
Other Expenses		1.09%	1.52%	13.22%
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses	[1]	1.47%	2.15%	14.10%
Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement	[1]	0.97%	1.30%	13.00%
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement	[1]	0.50%	0.85%	1.10%

Example

The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Portfolio, your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Portfolio's operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Expense Example Core Fixed Income Portfolio (USD $)	1 Year	3 Years	5 Years	10 Years
Class I Shares	51	160	280	628
Class A Shares	508	685	876	1,429
Class L	112	350	606	1,340

Portfolio Turnover

The Portfolio pays transaction costs when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Portfolio shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Portfolio's performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Portfolio's portfolio turnover rate was 172% of the average value of its portfolio.

Principal Investment Strategies

Under normal circumstances, at least 80% of the Portfolio's assets will be invested in fixed income securities. This policy may be changed without shareholder approval; however, you would be notified in writing of any changes. The Portfolio invests primarily in a diversified mix of U.S. dollar-denominated fixed income securities, particularly U.S. government, corporate, municipal and mortgage-backed securities and will ordinarily seek to maintain an average weighted maturity between five and ten years. The Portfolio invests in securities that carry an investment grade rating or, if unrated, are determined to be of a comparable quality by the Adviser at the time of purchase.

The Adviser employs a value approach toward fixed income investing and evaluates the relative attractiveness among corporate, mortgage and U.S. government securities. The Adviser relies upon value measures to guide its decisions regarding sector and security selection, such as the relative attractiveness of the extra yield offered by securities other than those issued by the U.S. Treasury. The Adviser also measures various types of risk by monitoring interest rates, inflation, the shape of the yield curve, credit risk and prepayment risk.

The Portfolio's mortgage securities may include collateralized mortgage obligations ("CMOs"), commercial mortgage-backed securities ("CMBS"), stripped mortgage-backed securities ("SMBS") and inverse floating rate obligations ("inverse floaters"). In addition, the Portfolio may invest in to-be-announced pass-through mortgage securities, which settle on a delayed delivery basis ("TBAs"). The Portfolio may also invest in U.S. dollar-denominated securities of foreign issuers, including issuers located in emerging market or developing countries. The Portfolio may also invest in restricted and illiquid securities.

The Portfolio may, but it is not required to, use derivative instruments for a variety of purposes, including hedging, risk management, portfolio management or to earn income. The Portfolio's use of derivatives may involve the purchase and sale of derivative instruments such as futures, options, swaps and other related instruments and techniques. Derivative instruments used by the Portfolio will be counted towards the 80% policy discussed above to the extent they have economic characteristics similar to the securities included within that policy.

Principal Risks

There is no assurance that the Portfolio will achieve its investment objective and you can lose money investing in this Portfolio. The principal risks of investing in the Portfolio include:

•  Fixed Income Securities. Fixed income securities are subject to the risk of the issuer's inability to meet principal and interest payments on its obligations (i.e., credit risk) and are subject to price volatility resulting from, among other things, interest rate sensitivity, market perception of the creditworthiness of the issuer and general market liquidity (i.e., market risk). The historically low interest rate environment increases the risk associated with rising interest rates, including the potential for periods of volatility and increased redemptions. The Portfolio may face a heightened level of interest rate risk, especially since the Federal Reserve Board has ended its quantitative easing program and may begin to raise rates. Securities with longer durations are likely to be more sensitive to changes in interest rates, generally making them more volatile than securities with shorter durations.

•  Municipal Securities. Municipal obligations may be general obligations or revenue bonds. General obligation bonds are secured by the issuer's full faith and credit as well as its taxing power for payment of principal or interest. Revenue bonds are payable solely from the revenues derived from a specified revenue source, and therefore involve the risk that the revenues so derived will not be sufficient to meet interest and or principal payment obligations. The value of municipal securities may be affected by political changes as well as uncertainties related to taxation, legislative developments and the rights of municipal security holders. Municipal securities and issuers of municipal securities may be more susceptible to downgrade, default and bankruptcy as a result of recent periods of economic stress. Municipal securities involve the risk that an issuer may call securities for redemption, which could force the Portfolio to reinvest the proceeds at a lower rate of interest.

•  Mortgage Securities. Investments in mortgage securities are subject to the risk that if interest rates decline, borrowers may pay off their mortgages sooner than expected which may adversely affect the Portfolio's return. Rising interest rates tend to discourage refinancings, with the result that the average life and volatility of mortgage securities will increase and market price will decrease. Rates of prepayment, faster or slower than expected by the Adviser, could reduce the Portfolio's yield, increase the volatility of the Portfolio and/or cause a decline in NAV. Certain mortgage-backed securities may be more volatile and less liquid than other traditional types of debt securities. In addition, an unexpectedly high rate of defaults on the mortgages held by a mortgage pool may adversely affect the value of a mortgage-backed security and could result in losses to the Portfolio. Investments in TBAs may give rise to a form of leverage and may cause the Portfolio's turnover rate to appear higher. Leverage may cause the Portfolio to be more volatile than if the Portfolio had not been leveraged.

•  U.S. Government Securities. The U.S. government securities in which the Portfolio invests can be subject to two types of risk: credit risk and interest rate risk. When the general level of interest rates goes up, the prices of most fixed income securities go down. When the general level of interest rates goes down, the prices of most fixed income securities go up. While the credit risk associated with U.S. government securities generally is considered to be minimal, the interest rate risk can be substantial. With respect to U.S. government securities that are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government, there is the risk that the U.S. Government will not provide financial support to such U.S. government agencies, instrumentalities or sponsored enterprises if it is not obligated to do so by law.

•  Foreign and Emerging Market Securities. Investments in foreign markets entail special risks such as currency, political, economic and market risks. There also may be greater market volatility, less reliable financial information, higher transaction and custody costs, decreased market liquidity and less government and exchange regulation associated with investments in foreign markets. In addition, investments in certain foreign markets, which have historically been considered stable, may become more volatile and subject to increased risk due to ongoing developments and changing conditions in such markets. Moreover, the growing interconnectivity of global economies and financial markets has increased the probability that adverse developments and conditions in one country or region will affect the stability of economies and financial markets in other countries or regions. The risks of investing in emerging market countries are greater than risks associated with investments in foreign developed countries.

•  Liquidity. The Portfolio's investments in restricted and illiquid securities may entail greater risk than investments in publicly traded securities. These securities may be more difficult to sell, particularly in times of market turmoil. Additionally, the market for certain investments deemed liquid at the time of purchase may become illiquid under adverse market or economic conditions. Illiquid securities may be more difficult to value. If the Portfolio is forced to sell an illiquid security to fund redemptions or for other cash needs, it may be forced to sell the security at a loss.

•  Derivatives. A derivative instrument often has risks similar to its underlying asset and may have additional risks, including imperfect correlation between the value of the derivative and the underlying asset, risks of default by the counterparty to certain transactions, magnification of losses incurred due to changes in the market value of the securities, instruments, indices or interest rates to which they relate and risks that the transactions may not be liquid. Certain derivative transactions may give rise to a form of leverage. Leverage magnifies the potential for gain and the risk of loss.

Shares of the Portfolio are not bank deposits and are not guaranteed or insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

Performance Information

The bar chart and table below provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Portfolio by showing changes in the Portfolio's Class I shares' performance from year-to-year and by showing how the Portfolio's average annual returns for the past one, five and 10 year periods and since inception compare with those of a broad measure of market performance, as well as an index that represents a group of similar mutual funds, over time. The performance of the other Classes, which is shown in the table below, will differ because the Classes have different ongoing fees. The Portfolio's returns in the table include the maximum applicable sales charge for Class A and assume you sold your shares at the end of each period (unless otherwise noted). The Portfolio's past performance, before and after taxes, is not necessarily an indication of how the Portfolio will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available online at www.morganstanley.com/im.

Annual Total Returns—Calendar Years

High Quarter	9/30/09	4.63	%
Low Quarter	9/30/08	–5.21	%

Average Annual Total Returns (for periods ended December 31, 2014)

Average Annual Returns Core Fixed Income Portfolio		Average Annual Returns, 1 Year	Average Annual Returns, 5 Years	Average Annual Returns, 10 Years	Average Annual Returns, Since Inception		Average Annual Returns, Inception Date
Class I Shares		5.94%	4.86%	3.56%	6.63%		Sep. 29, 1987
Class A Shares		1.08%	3.66%	2.85%	4.03%		Mar. 01, 1999
Class L		5.24%			2.47%		Apr. 27, 2012
After Taxes on Distributions Class I Shares		4.40%	3.57%	1.98%	4.28%
After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares Class I Shares		3.35%	3.24%	2.13%	4.30%
Barclays U.S. Aggregate Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	[1]	5.97%	4.45%	4.71%	6.99%	[2]	Sep. 29, 1987
Lipper Core Bond Funds Index (reflects no deduction for taxes)	[3]	5.86%	5.12%	4.61%

The after-tax returns shown in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates during the period shown and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. After-tax returns for the Portfolio's other Classes will vary from Class I shares' returns. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor's tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns are not relevant to investors who hold their Portfolio shares through tax deferred arrangements such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts. After-tax returns may be higher than before-tax returns due to foreign tax credits and/or an assumed benefit from capital losses that would have been realized had Portfolio shares been sold at the end of the relevant periods, as applicable.

[1] Investments that are not subject to any sales charges at the time of purchase are subject to a contingent deferred sales charge ("CDSC") of 0.50% that will be imposed if you sell your shares within 18 months after the last day of the month of purchase, except for certain specific circumstances. See "Shareholder Information-How to Redeem Shares-Class A Shares" for further information about the CDSC waiver categories.

[1] The Portfolio's "Adviser," Morgan Stanley Investment Management Inc., has agreed to reduce its advisory fee and/or reimburse the Portfolio so that Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses, excluding certain investment related expenses, taxes, interest and other extraordinary expenses (including litigation), will not exceed 0.50% for Class I, 0.85% for Class A and 1.10% for Class L. The fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements will continue for at least one year or until such time as the Fund's Board of Trustees acts to discontinue all or a portion of such waivers and/or reimbursements when it deems such action is appropriate.

[1] The Barclays U.S. Aggregate Index tracks the performance of U.S. government agency and Treasury securities, investment-grade corporate debt securities, agency mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities. It is not possible to invest directly in an index.

[2] Since Inception reflects the inception date of Class I.

[3] The Lipper Core Bond Funds Index is an equally weighted performance index of the largest qualifying funds (based on net assets) in the Lipper Core Bond Funds classification. There are currently 30 funds represented in this Index.