Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
GARP vs VUG: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, GARP returned +18.0% to VUG's +6.6%; 54% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $3.6bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares MSCI USA Quality GARP ETF, and $232.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF.
Pair scorecard
VUG costs 0.12 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 11.4 points; VUG is far larger, $232.9bn against $3.4bn.
| Measure | GARP | VUG |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +18.0% | +6.6% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 7.0%, high on Oct 6, 2026 | 4.1%, high on Oct 6, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI USA Quality GARP Select Index | Morningstar US Large Cap Growth Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.15% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $3.4bn | $232.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 54% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 43.5% | 63.1% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jan 24, 2020 to Oct 23, 2026 · 352 weekly returnsGARP returned more: +232.4% to +183.6%. GARP swung slightly less: 22.3% to 22.8%. GARP fell less at its worst: −30.1% to −35.6%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | GARP | VUG | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +232.4% | +183.6% | GARP | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +19.4% | +16.6% | GARP | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +215.4% | +172.6% | GARP | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 22.3% | 22.8% | GARP (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 14.9% | 15.2% | GARP (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −30.1% | −35.6% | GARP | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.78 | 0.66 | GARP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.16 | 0.99 | GARP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.65 | 0.47 | GARP | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 352 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, GARP and VUG hold 54% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
54% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
GARP and VUG on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
GARP and VUG are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. GARP follows MSCI USA Quality GARP Select Index and VUG follows Morningstar US Large Cap Growth Index.
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 GARP returned +18.0% and VUG +6.6% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 11.4 points.
- Cost. GARP charges 0.15% of assets a year and VUG 0.03%, a gap of 0.12 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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GARP
GARP tracks the MSCI USA Quality GARP. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +18.0% with distributions reinvested, against +13.3% for its benchmark, the MSCI USA Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 94% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 131 positions, with the top ten at 43.5%. It sat 7.0% below its high of Oct 6, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
VUG
VUG tracks an index of US growth. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +6.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 137 positions, with the top ten at 63.1%. It sat 4.1% below its high of Oct 6, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, GARP or VUG?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GARP returned +18.0% and VUG +6.6%.
- Which is cheaper, GARP or VUG?
- VUG 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.
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ETFIQ, GARP against VUG, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/garp-vs-vug
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). GARP against VUG. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/garp-vs-vug
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