Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
GLD vs VUG: Differences, Returns & Fees
GLD is a commodity fund and VUG an equity index fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, VUG returned +6.6% against +2.5%.
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Net assets: $135.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for SPDR Gold Shares, and $232.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF.
Pair scorecard
VUG costs 0.37 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 4.1 points; VUG is 1.6 times larger.
| Measure | GLD | VUG |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +2.5% | +6.6% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 24.7%, high on Jan 29, 2026 | 4.1%, high on Oct 6, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Gold | Morningstar US Large Cap Growth Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.40% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $141.7bn | $232.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | not published | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 97% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 63.1% | |
Risk and return
Nov 26, 2004 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,143 weekly returnsVUG returned more: +1,198.6% to +709.5%. GLD swung slightly less: 17.3% to 18.8%. GLD fell less at its worst: −44.7% to −49.9%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | GLD | VUG | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +709.5% | +1,198.6% | VUG | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +10.0% | +12.4% | VUG | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +709.5% | +933.9% | VUG | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 17.3% | 18.8% | GLD (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 11.9% | 13.0% | GLD (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −44.7% | −49.9% | GLD | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.53 | 0.62 | VUG | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.77 | 0.90 | VUG | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.22 | 0.25 | VUG | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,143 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
Side by side
GLD and VUG on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
GLD and VUG do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. GLD follows Gold and VUG follows Morningstar US Large Cap Growth Index.
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 GLD returned +2.5% and VUG +6.6% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 4.1 points.
- Cost. GLD charges 0.40% of assets a year and VUG 0.03%, a gap of 0.37 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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Its expense ratio is 0.40% a year, for the three months to Jun 30, 2026, as its 10-Q states.
GLD holds gold. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.5% with distributions reinvested, against +2.7% for its benchmark, the price of gold. It sat 24.7% below its high of Jan 29, 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, GLD or VUG?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GLD returned +2.5% and VUG +6.6%.
- Which is cheaper, GLD or VUG?
- VUG is cheaper, by 0.37 percentage points a year. That is about $37 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.
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ETFIQ, GLD against VUG, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/gld-vs-vug
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). GLD against VUG. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/gld-vs-vug
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