Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
IBB vs VTWO: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, IBB returned +37.5% to VTWO's +14.3%, and VTWO charges 0.06% to IBB's 0.44%.
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Net assets: $11.0bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares Biotechnology ETF, and $16.6bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Russell 2000 ETF.
Pair scorecard
VTWO costs 0.38 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 23.2 points; VTWO is 1.5 times larger.
| Measure | IBB | VTWO |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +37.5% | +14.3% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 7.5%, high on Aug 14, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Biotech | Russell 2000 Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.44% | 0.06% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $11.2bn | $16.6bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 99% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 10% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 50% | 5.4% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 1, 2010 to Oct 23, 2026 · 838 weekly returnsIBB returned more: +647.7% to +409.2%. VTWO swung slightly less: 21.0% to 22.7%. IBB fell slightly less at its worst: −37.5% to −40.2%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | IBB | VTWO | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +647.7% | +409.2% | IBB | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +13.3% | +10.6% | IBB | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +622.4% | +315.9% | IBB | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 22.7% | 21.0% | VTWO (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 15.5% | 14.5% | VTWO (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −37.5% | −40.2% | IBB (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.59 | 0.51 | IBB | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.87 | 0.74 | IBB | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.35 | 0.26 | IBB | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 838 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, IBB and VTWO hold 10% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
10% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
IBB and VTWO on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
IBB and VTWO do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. IBB follows Biotech and VTWO follows Russell 2000 Index.
- Holdings in common. 10% 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 VTWO +14.3% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 23.2 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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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.
VTWO
VTWO tracks the Russell 2000. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +14.3% with distributions reinvested, against +14.1% for its benchmark, the Russell 2000 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.06% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 2,002 positions, with the top ten at 5.4%. It sat 7.5% below its high of Aug 14, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Are IBB and VTWO in the same category?
- IBB is a thematic ETF and VTWO 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 VTWO?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IBB returned +37.5% and VTWO +14.3%.
- Which is cheaper, IBB or VTWO?
- VTWO is cheaper, by 0.38 percentage points a year. That is about $38 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, IBB against VTWO, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-vtwo
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). IBB against VTWO. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-vtwo
[IBB against VTWO (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-vtwo)
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