Which returned more over the last year, GLD or VNQ?

In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GLD returned +19.1% and VNQ returned +5.6%, so GLD returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.

Which is cheaper, GLD or VNQ?

GLD charges 0.40% a year and VNQ charges 0.13%, so VNQ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.

ETFIQetfiq.com · independent ETF data

GLD vs VNQ: how they differ

GLD is a commodity fund and VNQ an equity index fund, and over the year GLD returned more, +19.1% against +5.6%.

SPDR Gold Shares and Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund.

GLD and VNQ on the fields both publish, as of Sep 13, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
	GLD SPDR Gold Shares	VNQ Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund
Where it sits	Core index fund	Core index fund
Issuer	State Street	Vanguard
What it is	Gold	US real estate
Total return, 1 year	+19.1%	+5.6%
S&P 500 over the same days	+17.5%	+17.5%
Gap to the S&P 500	+1.6 pts	−11.9 pts
Expense ratio	0.40%	0.13%
Holdings	not filed	146

GLD in plain words

GLD is a commodity fund tracking the Gold. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +19.1% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.40% a year. It sat 19.6% below its high of Jan 29, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

VNQ in plain words

VNQ is an index equity fund tracking the US real estate. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +5.6% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.13% a year. By its holdings filed for Apr 30, 2026, 63% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 146 positions, with the top ten at 54.9%. It sat 6.1% below its high of Jul 28, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, GLD or VNQ?: In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GLD returned +19.1% and VNQ returned +5.6%, so GLD returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Which is cheaper, GLD or VNQ?: GLD charges 0.40% a year and VNQ charges 0.13%, so VNQ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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Where these figures came from

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.

GLD against VNQ, ETFIQ, data as of Sep 13, 2026. Every figure is arithmetic on a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page. ETFIQ, GLD against VNQ, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/gld-vs-vnq Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.

A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources