Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
FREL vs VNQ: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, FREL returned +4.6% to VNQ's +4.8%; 81% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Sep 30, 2026: $1.3bn for Fidelity MSCI Real Estate Index ETF and $35.9bn for Vanguard Real Estate ETF.
Pair scorecard
FREL costs 0.05 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.2 points; VNQ is far larger, $35.9bn against $1.3bn.
| Measure | FREL | VNQ |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +4.6% | +4.8% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 8.4%, high on Jul 28, 2026 | 8.3%, high on Jul 28, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI USA IMI Real Estate 25/25 Index | MSCI US Investable Market Real Estate 25/50 Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.08% | 0.13% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $1.3bn | $35.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 81% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 47.5% | 55.8% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Feb 13, 2015 to Oct 23, 2026 · 610 weekly returnsFREL returned slightly more: +80.6% to +73.3%. FREL and VNQ swung about the same: 21.0% and 21.1%. FREL and VNQ fell about the same at their worst: −39.3% and −39.6%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | FREL | VNQ | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +80.6% | +73.3% | FREL (slight) | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +5.2% | +4.8% | FREL (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +16.7% | +9.0% | FREL | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 21.0% | 21.1% | Tie | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 14.6% | 14.8% | Tie | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −39.3% | −39.6% | Tie | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.24 | 0.23 | FREL (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.35 | 0.32 | FREL (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.13 | 0.12 | FREL (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 610 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, FREL and VNQ hold 81% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026.
half
81% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
FREL and VNQ on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
FREL and VNQ are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. FREL follows MSCI USA IMI Real Estate 25/25 Index and VNQ follows MSCI US Investable Market Real Estate 25/50 Index.
- Size. FREL has $1.3bn in net assets and VNQ $35.9bn (net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026); VNQ is 27.6 times larger.
- Holdings in common (similar). 81% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026).
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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FREL
FREL tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +4.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings filed for Jul 31, 2026, 73% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 122 positions, with the top ten at 47.5%. It sat 8.4% below its high of Jul 28, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
VNQ
VNQ tracks an index of US real estate. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +4.8% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.13% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 63% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 141 positions, with the top ten at 55.8%. It sat 8.3% below its high of Jul 28, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, FREL or VNQ?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FREL returned +4.6% and VNQ +4.8%.
- Which is cheaper, FREL or VNQ?
- FREL is cheaper, by 0.05 percentage points a year. That is about $5 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.
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ETFIQ, FREL against VNQ, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/frel-vs-vnq
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). FREL against VNQ. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/frel-vs-vnq
[FREL against VNQ (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/frel-vs-vnq)
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