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

In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, HYG returned +2.9% and VNQ returned +5.6%, so VNQ returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.

Which is cheaper, HYG or VNQ?

HYG charges 0.49% 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

HYG vs VNQ: how they differ

HYG and VNQ hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and VNQ returned more over the year.

iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF and Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund.

What they hold in common

By the books each fund has filed, HYG and VNQ hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.

Largest positions each one holds and the other does not
Only in HYG	Only in VNQ
BLK CSH FND TREASURY SL AGENCY 0.68%	Vanguard Real Estate II Index Fund 14.67%
1261229 BC LTD 144A 0.56%	Welltower Inc 7.86%
MERIDIAN ARC HOLDCO LLC 144A 0.47%	Prologis Inc 7.02%
PR RNO PROPERTY OWNER 1 LLC 144A 0.35%	Equinix Inc 5.66%
WULF COMPUTE LLC 144A 0.29%	American Tower Corp 4.55%
GALAXY HELIOS DATA CENTERS II LLC 144A 0.28%	Digital Realty Trust Inc 3.67%
PANTHER ESCROW ISSUER LLC 144A 0.28%	Simon Property Group Inc 3.54%
SV RNO PROPERTY OWNER 1 LLC 144A 0.28%	Realty Income Corp 3.12%

Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Apr 30, 2026 and Sep 10, 2026.

HYG and VNQ on the fields both publish, as of Sep 13, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
	HYG iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF	VNQ Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund
Where it sits	Core index fund	Core index fund
Issuer	iShares	Vanguard
What it is	US high yield bonds	US real estate
Total return, 1 year	+2.9%	+5.6%
S&P 500 over the same days	+17.5%	+17.5%
Gap to the S&P 500	−14.6 pts	−11.9 pts
Expense ratio	0.49%	0.13%
Holdings	1326	146

HYG in plain words

HYG is a bond fund tracking the US high yield bonds. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +2.9% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.49% a year.

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, HYG or VNQ?: In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, HYG returned +2.9% and VNQ returned +5.6%, so VNQ returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Which is cheaper, HYG or VNQ?: HYG charges 0.49% 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.

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

A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources