Data as of Sep 12, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
VGSH vs VHT: how they differ
VGSH and VHT hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and VHT returned more over the year.
Vanguard Short-Term Treasury Index Fund and Vanguard Health Care Index Fund.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, VGSH and VHT hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in VGSH | Only in VHT |
|---|---|
| United States Treasury Note/Bond 2.26% | Eli Lilly & Co 14.07% |
| United States Treasury Note/Bond 1.41% | Johnson & Johnson 8.48% |
| United States Treasury Note/Bond 1.36% | AbbVie Inc 6.10% |
| United States Treasury Note/Bond 1.32% | UnitedHealth Group Inc 5.46% |
| United States Treasury Note/Bond 1.31% | Merck & Co Inc 4.67% |
| United States Treasury Note/Bond 1.30% | Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc 2.93% |
| United States Treasury Note/Bond 1.27% | Amgen Inc 2.87% |
| United States Treasury Note/Bond 1.27% | Gilead Sciences Inc 2.64% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated May 31, 2026.
| VGSH Vanguard Short-Term Treasury Index Fund | VHT Vanguard Health Care Index Fund | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | Vanguard | Vanguard |
| What it is | Short-Term Treasury | Health Care |
| Total return, 1 year | +1.8% | +21.6% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | −15.7 pts | +4.1 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.09% |
| Holdings | 91 | 401 |
VGSH in plain words
VGSH is a bond fund tracking the Short-Term Treasury. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +1.8% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.
VHT in plain words
VHT is an index equity fund tracking the Health Care. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +21.6% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings filed for May 31, 2026, 86% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 401 positions, with the top ten at 52.0%. It sat 5.7% below its high of Aug 19, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, VGSH or VHT?
- In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VGSH returned +1.8% and VHT returned +21.6%, so VHT returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, VGSH or VHT?
- VGSH charges 0.03% a year and VHT charges 0.09%, so VGSH is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, VGSH against VHT, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/VGSH-VHT Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources