Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
GRID vs VUG: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, GRID returned +7.9% to VUG's +6.6%, and VUG charges 0.03% to GRID's 0.56%.
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Net assets: $11.4bn on Oct 27, 2026 for First Trust NASDAQ Clean Edge Smart Grid Infrastructure Index Fund, and $232.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF.
Pair scorecard
VUG costs 0.53 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.3 points.
| Measure | GRID | VUG |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +7.9% | +6.6% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its all-time high | 14.7%, high on May 11, 2026 | |
| Below its high | 4.1%, high on Oct 6, 2026 | |
| Against its benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Electrification and the grid | Morningstar US Large Cap Growth Index |
| Against its benchmark, 1 year | behind by 5.4 pts | |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.56% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, GRID as of Oct 27, 2026 and VUG as of Sep 30, 2026 | $11.4bn | $232.9bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 92% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 6% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 57% | 63.1% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Nov 27, 2009 to Oct 23, 2026 · 882 weekly returnsVUG returned more: +1,100.1% to +555.3%. VUG swung less: 18.4% to 22.1%. VUG fell slightly less at its worst: −35.6% to −39.0%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | GRID | VUG | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +555.3% | +1,100.1% | VUG | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +11.7% | +15.8% | VUG | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +444.6% | +911.4% | VUG | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 22.1% | 18.4% | VUG | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 15.2% | 12.4% | VUG | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −39.0% | −35.6% | VUG (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.54 | 0.81 | VUG | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.79 | 1.20 | VUG | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.30 | 0.44 | VUG | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 882 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, GRID and VUG hold 6% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
6% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
GRID and VUG on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
GRID and VUG do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. GRID follows Electrification and the grid and VUG follows Morningstar US Large Cap Growth Index.
- Holdings in common. 6% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026).
- Cost. GRID charges 0.56% of assets a year and VUG 0.03%, a gap of 0.53 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +7.9% with distributions reinvested against +13.3% for its benchmark, the Russell 3000 Index, so a holder was behind by 5.4 pts.
By weight, 41% of GRID's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 92%. The top ten holdings are 57% of the fund across 122 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. It sits 14.7% below its all-time high of May 11, 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
- Are GRID and VUG in the same category?
- GRID is a thematic ETF and VUG is a stock ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
- Which returned more over the last year, GRID or VUG?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GRID returned +7.9% and VUG +6.6%.
- Which is cheaper, GRID or VUG?
- VUG is cheaper, by 0.53 percentage points a year. That is about $53 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, GRID against VUG, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/grid-vs-vug
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). GRID against VUG. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/grid-vs-vug
[GRID against VUG (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/grid-vs-vug)
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