Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
GOVT vs VTIP: Differences, Returns & Fees
GOVT's duration was 5.5 years on Jul 31, 2026 and VTIP's 2.3 on Jun 30, 2026; VTIP charges 0.03% to GOVT's 0.05%.
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Net assets: $42.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF, and $20.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund ETF Shares.
Pair scorecard
VTIP costs 0.02 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.7 points; GOVT is 2.0 times larger.
| Measure | GOVT | VTIP |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −1.5% | +2.2% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 8.1%, high on Aug 4, 2020 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | ICE U.S. Treasury Core Bond Index | Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) 0-5 Years Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.05% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $41.4bn | $20.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 26, 2012 to Oct 23, 2026 · 730 weekly returnsVTIP returned more: +35.7% to +15.9%. VTIP swung less: 2.3% to 4.5%. VTIP fell less at its worst: −5.5% to −18.7%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | GOVT | VTIP | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +15.9% | +35.7% | VTIP | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +1.1% | +2.2% | VTIP | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −11.9% | −2.1% | VTIP | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 4.5% | 2.3% | VTIP | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 3.3% | 1.7% | VTIP | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −18.7% | −5.5% | VTIP | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | −0.15 | 0.17 | VTIP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | −0.21 | 0.22 | VTIP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.06 | 0.40 | VTIP | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 730 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, GOVT and VTIP hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
GOVT and VTIP on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
GOVT and VTIP do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. GOVT follows ICE U.S. Treasury Core Bond Index and VTIP follows Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) 0-5 Years Index.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Jun 30, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 GOVT returned −1.5% and VTIP +2.2% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 3.7 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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GOVT
GOVT tracks an index of U.S. Treasury Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −1.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.05% a year. It sat 8.1% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Oct 28, 2026.
VTIP
VTIP tracks an index of Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.2% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, GOVT or VTIP?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GOVT returned −1.5% and VTIP +2.2%.
- Which is cheaper, GOVT or VTIP?
- VTIP is cheaper, by 0.02 percentage points a year. That is about $2 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, GOVT against VTIP, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/govt-vs-vtip
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). GOVT against VTIP. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/govt-vs-vtip
[GOVT against VTIP (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/govt-vs-vtip)
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