Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
BOXX vs TBUX: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, BOXX and TBUX finished level, +4.0% against +4.0%, and TBUX charges 0.17% to BOXX's 0.19%.
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Net assets: $14.5bn on Oct 28, 2026 for Alpha Architect 1-3 Month Box ETF, and $2.0bn on Oct 27, 2026 for T. Rowe Price Ultra Short-Term Bond ETF.
Pair scorecard
TBUX costs 0.02 points a year less; both returned +4.0% over a year; BOXX is 7.2 times larger.
| Measure | BOXX | TBUX |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +4.0% | +4.0% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | No index, actively managed | No index, actively managed |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.19% | 0.17% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 26, 2026 | $14.4bn | $2.0bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | report dates differ | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jan 6, 2023 to Oct 23, 2026 · 198 weekly returnsTBUX returned more: +22.6% to +18.9%. BOXX swung less: 0.2% to 0.7%. BOXX fell less at its worst: −0.1% to −0.2%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | BOXX | TBUX | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +18.9% | +22.6% | TBUX | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +4.6% | +5.5% | TBUX | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +18.6% | +2.5% | BOXX | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 0.2% | 0.7% | BOXX | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 0.2% | 0.4% | BOXX | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −0.1% | −0.2% | BOXX | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | −0.25 | 1.07 | TBUX | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | −0.35 | 1.83 | TBUX | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | Not measured | 29.65 | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. | |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 198 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
Side by side
BOXX and TBUX on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
BOXX and TBUX are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- Size. BOXX has $14.4bn in net assets and TBUX $2.0bn (net assets, as of Oct 26, 2026); BOXX is 7.2 times larger.
- What each follows (similar). Both follow No index, actively managed.
- One-year total return (similar). Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 BOXX returned +4.0% and TBUX +4.0% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 0.0 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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BOXX
BOXX is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +4.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.19% a year.
TBUX
TBUX is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +4.0% with distributions reinvested, against −1.4% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.17% a year.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, BOXX or TBUX?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BOXX returned +4.0% and TBUX +4.0%.
- Which is cheaper, BOXX or TBUX?
- TBUX is cheaper, by 0.02 percentage points a year. That is about $2 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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ETFIQ, BOXX against TBUX, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-tbux
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). BOXX against TBUX. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-tbux
[BOXX against TBUX (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-tbux)
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