Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
BOXX vs VPU: Differences, Returns & Fees
BOXX is an actively managed short-term fund and VPU an equity index fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, BOXX returned +4.0% against −3.3%.
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Net assets: $14.5bn on Oct 28, 2026 for Alpha Architect 1-3 Month Box ETF, and $7.7bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Utilities ETF.
Pair scorecard
VPU costs 0.10 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 7.3 points.
| Measure | BOXX | VPU |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +4.0% | −3.3% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 8.9%, high on Feb 27, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | No index, actively managed | MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Utilities 25/50 |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.19% | 0.09% |
| Net assets, BOXX as of Oct 28, 2026 and VPU as of Sep 30, 2026 | $14.5bn | $7.7bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | not published | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 90% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 52.3% | |
Side by side
BOXX and VPU on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
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.
VPU
VPU tracks an index of Utilities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −3.3% with distributions reinvested, against −3.3% for its benchmark, the MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Utilities 25/50. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% 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 70 positions, with the top ten at 52.3%. It sat 8.9% below its high of Feb 27, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, BOXX or VPU?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BOXX returned +4.0% and VPU −3.3%.
- Which is cheaper, BOXX or VPU?
- VPU is cheaper, by 0.10 percentage points a year. That is about $10 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.
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ETFIQ, BOXX against VPU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-vpu
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). BOXX against VPU. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-vpu
[BOXX against VPU (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-vpu)
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