Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
BSV vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees
BSV's duration was 2.5 years on Jun 30, 2026 and TLT's 15.1 on Aug 31, 2026; BSV charges 0.03% to TLT's 0.15%.
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Net assets: $45.4bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETF, and $47.4bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF.
Pair scorecard
BSV costs 0.12 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 8.9 points.
| Measure | BSV | TLT |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +1.0% | −7.9% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 42.6%, high on Aug 4, 2020 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Bloomberg U.S. 1-5 Year Government/Credit Float Adjusted Index | ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.15% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $45.4bn | $46.2bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Apr 20, 2007 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,018 weekly returnsTLT returned more: +70.1% to +60.9%. BSV swung less: 2.3% to 14.2%. BSV fell less at its worst: −8.1% to −47.8%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | BSV | TLT | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +60.9% | +70.1% | TLT | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +2.5% | +2.7% | TLT | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +2.0% | −7.7% | BSV | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 2.3% | 14.2% | BSV | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 1.6% | 10.0% | BSV | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −8.1% | −47.8% | BSV | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.40 | 0.15 | BSV | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.58 | 0.22 | BSV | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.30 | 0.06 | BSV | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,018 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, BSV and TLT hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
BSV and TLT on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
BSV and TLT do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. BSV follows Bloomberg U.S. 1-5 Year Government/Credit Float Adjusted Index and TLT follows ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 BSV returned +1.0% and TLT −7.9% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 8.9 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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BSV
BSV tracks an index of Short-Term Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +1.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.
TLT
TLT tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −7.9% with distributions reinvested, against −7.8% for its benchmark, the ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. It sat 42.6% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, BSV or TLT?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BSV returned +1.0% and TLT −7.9%.
- Which is cheaper, BSV or TLT?
- BSV is cheaper, by 0.12 percentage points a year. That is about $12 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.
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown
ETFIQ, BSV against TLT, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/bsv-vs-tlt
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). BSV against TLT. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/bsv-vs-tlt
[BSV against TLT (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/bsv-vs-tlt)
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