Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
AVUS vs VYM: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, AVUS and VYM finished level, +18.0% against +18.0%, and they share 38% of their weight.
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Net assets: $14.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for Avantis U.S. Equity ETF, and $78.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF.
Pair scorecard
VYM costs 0.11 points a year less; both returned +18.0% over a year.
| Measure | AVUS | VYM |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +18.0% | +18.0% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | No index, actively managed | FTSE High Dividend Yield Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.15% | 0.04% |
| Net assets, AVUS as of Oct 27, 2026 and VYM as of Sep 30, 2026 | $14.8bn | $78.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 38% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 30.0% | 26.2% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 4, 2019 to Oct 23, 2026 · 368 weekly returnsAVUS returned more: +183.7% to +126.9%. VYM swung less: 17.1% to 19.5%. VYM fell slightly less at its worst: −32.4% to −35.1%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | AVUS | VYM | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +183.7% | +126.9% | AVUS | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +15.9% | +12.3% | AVUS | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +158.5% | +84.3% | AVUS | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 19.5% | 17.1% | VYM | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 13.6% | 12.3% | VYM (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −35.1% | −32.4% | VYM (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.71 | 0.59 | AVUS | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.02 | 0.83 | AVUS | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.45 | 0.38 | AVUS | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 368 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, AVUS and VYM hold 38% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
38% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
AVUS and VYM on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
AVUS and VYM do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. AVUS follows No index, actively managed and VYM follows FTSE High Dividend Yield Index.
- Holdings in common. 38% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026).
- Number of holdings. AVUS holds 1,943 positions and VYM holds 595.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +18.0% with distributions reinvested, against +13.3% for its benchmark, the Russell 3000.
AVUS is actively managed and tracks no index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 84% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 1,943 positions, with the top ten at 30.0%.
VYM
VYM tracks an index of US high dividend. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +18.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.04% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 90% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 595 positions, with the top ten at 26.2%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, AVUS or VYM?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AVUS returned +18.0% and VYM +18.0%.
- Which is cheaper, AVUS or VYM?
- VYM is cheaper, by 0.11 percentage points a year. That is about $11 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, AVUS against VYM, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/avus-vs-vym
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). AVUS against VYM. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/avus-vs-vym
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