Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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IBDU vs VSDB: Differences, Returns & Fees

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IBDU's duration was 2.6 years on Jul 31, 2026 and VSDB's 2.5 on Jun 30, 2026; IBDU charges 0.10% to VSDB's 0.15%.

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Net assets: $4.0bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares iBonds Dec 2029 Term Corporate ETF, and $1.0bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Short Duration Bond ETF.

At a glance
+1.3%
IBDU total return, 1 year
+1.7%
VSDB total return, 1 year
0.10%
IBDU expense ratio
0.15%
VSDB expense ratio

Pair scorecard

IBDU costs 0.05 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.4 points; IBDU is 4.0 times larger.

IBDU vs VSDB: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureIBDUVSDB
Return
Total return, 1 year+1.3%+1.7%
Benchmark
What it tracksBloomberg December 2029 Maturity Corporate IndexNo index, actively managed
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.10%0.15%
Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026$4.0bn$1.0bn
Holdings
Holdings in common5%

Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026. Method

Risk and return

Apr 11, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026 · 80 weekly returns
IBDU VSDB
Return
Total return edge IBDU (slight) +7.6% +7.1%
Annualized edge IBDU (slight) +4.9% +4.5%
Price return edge VSDB +0.4% +0.5%
Risk
Volatility edge VSDB 2.3% 1.8%
Max drawdown edge VSDB (slight) −1.5% −1.4%
Downside capture 100.2% 27.1%
Beta 1.21 0.43
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe edge IBDU 0.38 0.29
Sortino edge IBDU 0.58 0.40
Treynor −0.003 0.012
Calmar edge IBDU (slight) 3.36 3.19
Against the benchmark
Alpha +1.7% a year +0.8% a year
Alpha t-stat 1.21 1.16
Information ratio 0.34 0.54
Tracking error 3.9% 2.3%

Each against its own benchmark: IBDU against IUSB, Sep 27, 2019 to Oct 23, 2026; VSDB against AGG, Apr 11, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026.

Reading

IBDU returned slightly more: +7.6% to +7.1%. VSDB swung less: 1.8% to 2.3%. VSDB fell slightly less at its worst: −1.4% to −1.5%.

Full scorecard

19 measures, with how each is measured
Open ↓
Risk and return: IBDU vs VSDB: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureIBDUVSDBEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+7.6%+7.1%IBDU (slight)Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized+4.9%+4.5%IBDU (slight)Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return+0.4%+0.5%VSDBPrice change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility2.3%1.8%VSDBSpread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation1.5%1.3%VSDBLike volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown−1.5%−1.4%VSDB (slight)Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture109.0%50.5%Share of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture100.2%27.1%Share of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta1.210.43Not an edgeHow far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared0.800.76Not an edgeShare of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe0.380.29IBDUReturn above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino0.580.40IBDUReturn above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor−0.0030.012Return above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar3.363.19IBDU (slight)Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
BenchmarkIUSBAGGThe ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha+1.7% a year+0.8% a yearNot significantYearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat1.211.16Not an edgeHow sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range−1.1% to +4.4%−0.6% to +2.2%Includes zeroThe 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio0.340.54Return against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error3.9%2.3%Not an edgeHow far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 80 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

5%

By the books each fund has filed, IBDU and VSDB hold 5% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

5% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first IBDU VSDB
Pacific Gas and Electric Co, due Jan 15, 2029 0.26% 0.35%
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc, due Jul 16, 2029 0.49% 0.22%
AerCap Ireland Capital DAC / AerCap Global Aviation Trust, due Sep 10, 2029 0.25% 0.21%
NVIDIA Corp, due Jun 15, 2029 0.56% 0.18%
Sumisho Air Lease Corp, due Mar 24, 2029 0.18% 0.32%
Charter Communications Operating LLC / Charter Communications Operating Capital, due Jun 1, 2029 0.28% 0.17%
Boeing Co/The, due Mar 1, 2029 0.19% 0.16%
Charter Communications Operating LLC / Charter Communications Operating Capital, due Mar 30, 2029 0.25% 0.15%
Verizon Communications Inc, due Dec 3, 2029 0.63% 0.12%
Fidelity National Information Services Inc, due Mar 10, 2029 0.32% 0.11%
eBay Inc, due Mar 6, 2029 0.11% 0.12%
Ameren Corp, due Jan 15, 2029 0.12% 0.10%
Only in one fund ↓
Only in IBDU
AbbVie Inc, due Nov 21, 2029 0.97%
International Business Machines Corp, due May 15, 2029 0.61%
AT&T Inc, due Mar 1, 2029 0.58%
Fiserv Inc, due Jul 1, 2029 0.57%
Anheuser-Busch InBev Worldwide Inc, due Jan 23, 2029 0.56%
AbbVie Inc, due Mar 15, 2029 0.50%
Cisco Systems Inc, due Feb 26, 2029 0.49%
Amazon.com Inc, due Jul 9, 2029 0.49%
Only in VSDB
US TREASURY N/B, due Nov 30, 2027 1.90%
US TREASURY N/B, due Jun 30, 2029 1.66%
US TREASURY N/B, due Nov 30, 2027 1.55%
US TREASURY N/B, due Dec 31, 2027 1.55%
US TREASURY N/B, due May 31, 2029 1.50%
US TREASURY N/B, due Dec 31, 2027 1.50%
US TREASURY N/B, due Feb 15, 2028 1.23%
TREASURY BILL, due Jun 10, 2027 1.16%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

IBDU iShares iBonds Dec 2029 Term Corporate ETF VSDB Vanguard Short Duration Bond ETF
Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF
What it is Tracks an index Actively managed
Total return, 1 year +1.3% +1.7%
Its benchmark over the same days −1.2% (IUSB) −1.4% (AGG)
Gap to its benchmark +2.5 pts vs IUSB +3.1 pts vs AGG
Expense ratio 0.10% 0.15%
Holdings 729 1525
Net assets, IBDU as of Oct 27, 2026 and VSDB as of Sep 30, 2026 $4.0bn $1.0bn

IBDU and VSDB on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-48BC9ED205

IBDU and VSDB are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?

  1. What each follows. IBDU follows Bloomberg December 2029 Maturity Corporate Index and VSDB follows No index, actively managed.
  2. Holdings in common. 5% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Jun 30, 2026).
  3. Size. IBDU has $4.0bn in net assets and VSDB $1.0bn (net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026); IBDU is 4.0 times larger.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund
IBDU

IBDU tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +1.3% with distributions reinvested, against −1.2% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Universal Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.10% a year.

VSDB

VSDB is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +1.7% with distributions reinvested, against −1.4% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, IBDU or VSDB?
In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IBDU returned +1.3% and VSDB +1.7%.
Which is cheaper, IBDU or VSDB?
IBDU is cheaper, by 0.05 percentage points a year. That is about $5 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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ETFIQ, IBDU against VSDB, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibdu-vs-vsdb

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