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

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BOXX returned +4.0% and XHLF +3.5%.

Which is cheaper, BOXX or XHLF?

XHLF is cheaper, by 0.16 percentage points a year. That is about $16 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

BOXX vs XHLF: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, BOXX returned +4.0% to XHLF's +3.5%, and XHLF charges 0.03% 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 $1.9bn on Jul 31, 2026 for BondBloxx Bloomberg Six Month Target Duration US Treasury ETF.

BOXX on its own →XHLF on its own →

At a glance

+4.0%

BOXX total return, 1 year

+3.5%

XHLF total return, 1 year

0.19%

BOXX expense ratio

0.03%

XHLF expense ratio

Pair scorecard

XHLF costs 0.16 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.5 points.

BOXX vs XHLF: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	BOXX	XHLF
Return
Measure	BOXX	XHLF
Total return, 1 year	+4.0%	+3.5%
Benchmark
Measure	BOXX	XHLF
What it tracks	No index, actively managed	Bloomberg US Treasury Six Month Target Duration Index
Cost and size
Measure	BOXX	XHLF
Expense ratio	0.19%	0.03%
Net assets, BOXX as of Oct 28, 2026 and XHLF as of Jul 31, 2026	$14.5bn	$1.9bn
Holdings
Measure	BOXX	XHLF
Holdings in common	report dates differ

Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026. Method

Risk and return

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

BOXX XHLF

Return

Total return edge BOXX (slight) +18.9% +18.0%

Annualized edge BOXX (slight) +4.6% +4.4%

Price return edge BOXX +18.6% +0.3%

Risk

Volatility edge BOXX 0.2% 0.3%

Max drawdown edge XHLF −0.1% 0.0%

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge BOXX −0.25 −0.88

Sortino edge BOXX −0.35 −1.22

Calmar Not measured Not measured

Reading

BOXX returned slightly more: +18.9% to +18.0%. BOXX swung less: 0.2% to 0.3%. XHLF fell less at its worst: 0.0% to −0.1%.

Full scorecard

9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: BOXX vs XHLF: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	BOXX	XHLF	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+18.9%	+18.0%	BOXX (slight)	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+4.6%	+4.4%	BOXX (slight)	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	+18.6%	+0.3%	BOXX	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	0.2%	0.3%	BOXX	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	0.2%	0.2%	BOXX	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−0.1%	0.0%	XHLF	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	−0.25	−0.88	BOXX	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	−0.35	−1.22	BOXX	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Calmar	Not measured	Not measured		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 XHLF BondBloxx Bloomberg Six Month Target Duration US Treasury ETF

Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF

Issuer Alpha Architect BondBloxx

What it is Actively managed Tracks an index

Total return, 1 year +4.0% +3.5%

Expense ratio 0.19% 0.03%

Net assets, BOXX as of Oct 28, 2026 and XHLF as of Jul 31, 2026 $14.5bn $1.9bn

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

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-99E4221511

BOXX and XHLF are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?

What each follows. BOXX follows No index, actively managed and XHLF follows Bloomberg US Treasury Six Month Target Duration Index.
Cost. BOXX charges 0.19% of assets a year and XHLF 0.03%, a gap of 0.16 points.
One-year total return (similar). Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 BOXX returned +4.0% and XHLF +3.5% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 0.5 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.

XHLF

XHLF tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +3.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, BOXX or XHLF?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BOXX returned +4.0% and XHLF +3.5%.
Which is cheaper, BOXX or XHLF?: XHLF is cheaper, by 0.16 percentage points a year. That is about $16 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BOXX vs VRIG BOXX vs FLDR BOXX vs CLIP BOXX vs IBTH FLOT vs XHLF ICSH vs XHLF GBIL vs XHLF TBIL vs XHLF

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

BOXX filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

BOXX prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Alpha Architect website ↗

XHLF filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

XHLF prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

BondBloxx website ↗

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

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

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

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