Which returned more over the last year, BOXX or USMV?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BOXX returned +4.0% and USMV +10.8%.

Which is cheaper, BOXX or USMV?

USMV is cheaper, by 0.04 percentage points a year. That is about $4 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

BOXX vs USMV: Differences, Returns & Fees

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BOXX is an actively managed short-term fund and USMV an equity index fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, USMV returned +10.8% against +4.0%.

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Net assets: $14.5bn on Oct 28, 2026 for Alpha Architect 1-3 Month Box ETF, and $24.1bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF.

BOXX on its own →USMV on its own →

At a glance

+4.0%

BOXX total return, 1 year

+10.8%

USMV total return, 1 year

0.19%

BOXX expense ratio

0.15%

USMV expense ratio

Pair scorecard

USMV costs 0.04 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 6.8 points; USMV is 1.7 times larger.

BOXX vs USMV: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	BOXX	USMV
Return
Measure	BOXX	USMV
Total return, 1 year	+4.0%	+10.8%
Benchmark
Measure	BOXX	USMV
What it tracks	No index, actively managed	MSCI USA Minimum Volatility (USD) Index
Cost and size
Measure	BOXX	USMV
Expense ratio	0.19%	0.15%
Net assets, as of Oct 23, 2026	$14.4bn	$24.1bn
Holdings
Measure	BOXX	USMV
Holdings in common	not published
In the S&P 500, by weight		93%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund		14.8%

Method

Risk and return

Jan 6, 2023 to Oct 23, 2026 · 198 weekly returns

BOXX USMV

Return

Total return edge USMV +18.9% +49.1%

Annualized edge USMV +4.6% +11.1%

Price return edge USMV +18.6% +40.1%

Risk

Volatility edge BOXX 0.2% 9.9%

Max drawdown edge BOXX −0.1% −7.5%

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge USMV −0.25 0.64

Sortino edge USMV −0.35 0.94

Calmar Not measured 1.48

Reading

USMV returned more: +49.1% to +18.9%. BOXX swung less: 0.2% to 9.9%. BOXX fell less at its worst: −0.1% to −7.5%.

Full scorecard

9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: BOXX vs USMV: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	BOXX	USMV	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+18.9%	+49.1%	USMV	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+4.6%	+11.1%	USMV	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	+18.6%	+40.1%	USMV	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	0.2%	9.9%	BOXX	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	0.2%	6.8%	BOXX	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−0.1%	−7.5%	BOXX	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	−0.25	0.64	USMV	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	−0.35	0.94	USMV	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Calmar	Not measured	1.48		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 Alpha Architect 1-3 Month Box ETF USMV iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF

Where it sits Bond ETF Stock ETF

Issuer Alpha Architect iShares

What it is Actively managed Tracks the MSCI USA Min Vol Factor

Total return, 1 year +4.0% +10.8%

Expense ratio 0.19% 0.15%

Holdings not counted 176

Net assets, BOXX as of Oct 28, 2026 and USMV as of Oct 27, 2026 $14.5bn $24.1bn

BOXX and USMV on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-494980C7DD

BOXX and USMV do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?

What each follows. BOXX follows No index, actively managed and USMV follows MSCI USA Minimum Volatility (USD) Index.
One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 BOXX returned +4.0% and USMV +10.8% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 6.8 points.
Cost (similar). BOXX charges 0.19% of assets a year and USMV 0.15%, a gap of 0.04 points.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund

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.

USMV

USMV tracks the MSCI USA Min Vol Factor. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +10.8% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 93% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 176 positions, with the top ten at 14.8%.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, BOXX or USMV?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BOXX returned +4.0% and USMV +10.8%.
Which is cheaper, BOXX or USMV?: USMV is cheaper, by 0.04 percentage points a year. That is about $4 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BOXX vs RDVY BOXX vs CGGR BOXX vs SPMO BOXX vs DFUS USMV vs VBIL MINT vs USMV USFR vs USMV PULS vs USMV

Where to next

BOXX on its own →USMV on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →BOXX dividend history →USMV dividend history →USMV holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

BOXX filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

BOXX prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Alpha Architect website ↗

USMV filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

USMV prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for USMV ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BOXX against USMV, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-usmv

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Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.