Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
IBB vs VHT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, IBB returned +37.5% to VHT's +25.0%, and VHT charges 0.09% to IBB's 0.44%.
askIQ about this page
askIQ about IBB and VHT
Net assets: $11.0bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares Biotechnology ETF, and $19.1bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Health Care ETF.
Pair scorecard
VHT costs 0.35 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 12.5 points; VHT is 1.7 times larger.
| Measure | IBB | VHT |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +37.5% | +25.0% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Biotech | MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Health Care 25/50 |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.44% | 0.09% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $11.2bn | $19.1bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 99% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 19% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 50% | 51.8% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Feb 6, 2004 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,185 weekly returnsVHT returned slightly more: +797.6% to +738.4%. VHT swung less: 16.4% to 22.5%. IBB and VHT fell about the same at their worst: −37.5% and −38.1%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | IBB | VHT | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +738.4% | +797.6% | VHT (slight) | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +9.8% | +10.1% | VHT (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +702.6% | +552.3% | IBB | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 22.5% | 16.4% | VHT | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 15.7% | 11.6% | VHT | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −37.5% | −38.1% | Tie | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.45 | 0.56 | VHT | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.64 | 0.79 | VHT | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.26 | 0.27 | Tie | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,185 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, IBB and VHT hold 19% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
19% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
IBB and VHT on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
IBB and VHT do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. IBB follows Biotech and VHT follows MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Health Care 25/50.
- Holdings in common. 19% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 IBB returned +37.5% and VHT +25.0% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 12.5 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
The two-page PDF for this pair is coming. Save the comparison to follow its changes. Free. It needs an email sign-in, once.
IBB
By weight, 40% of IBB's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 99%. The top ten holdings are 50% of the fund across 245 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +37.5% with distributions reinvested.
VHT
VHT tracks an index of Health Care. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +25.0% with distributions reinvested, against +25.4% for its benchmark, the MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Health Care 25/50. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 86% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 414 positions, with the top ten at 51.8%.
Questions people ask
- Are IBB and VHT in the same category?
- IBB is a thematic ETF and VHT 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, IBB or VHT?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IBB returned +37.5% and VHT +25.0%.
- Which is cheaper, IBB or VHT?
- VHT is cheaper, by 0.35 percentage points a year. That is about $35 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, IBB against VHT, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-vht
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). IBB against VHT. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-vht
[IBB against VHT (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-vht)
Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.