Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
QQQ vs VCLT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, QQQ returned +15.2% to VCLT's −5.9%; 0% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $483.0bn on Oct 27, 2026 for Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1, and $7.5bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Long-Term Corporate Bond ETF.
Pair scorecard
VCLT costs 0.15 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 21.1 points.
| Measure | QQQ | VCLT |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +15.2% | −5.9% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.5%, high on Oct 6, 2026 | 17.8%, high on Sep 22, 2021 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Nasdaq-100 Index | Bloomberg U.S. 10+ Year Corporate Bond Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.18% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, QQQ as of Oct 27, 2026 and VCLT as of Sep 30, 2026 | $483.0bn | $7.5bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 96% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 46.7% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Dec 4, 2009 to Oct 23, 2026 · 881 weekly returnsQQQ returned more: +1,744.1% to +101.2%. VCLT swung less: 12.5% to 19.1%. VCLT fell slightly less at its worst: −34.0% to −35.1%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | QQQ | VCLT | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +1,744.1% | +101.2% | QQQ | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +18.8% | +4.2% | QQQ | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +1,496.6% | −6.3% | QQQ | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 19.1% | 12.5% | VCLT | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 12.7% | 8.7% | VCLT | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −35.1% | −34.0% | VCLT (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.92 | 0.27 | QQQ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.38 | 0.39 | QQQ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.54 | 0.12 | QQQ | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 881 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, QQQ and VCLT hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
QQQ and VCLT on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
QQQ and VCLT do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. QQQ follows Nasdaq-100 Index and VCLT follows Bloomberg U.S. 10+ Year Corporate Bond Index.
- Holdings in common. 0% 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 QQQ returned +15.2% and VCLT −5.9% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 21.1 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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QQQ
QQQ tracks the Nasdaq-100. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +15.2% with distributions reinvested, against +15.2% for its benchmark, the Nasdaq-100 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.18% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 96% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 103 positions, with the top ten at 46.7%. It sat 4.5% below its high of Oct 6, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
VCLT
VCLT tracks an index of Long-Term Corporate Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −5.9% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. It sat 17.8% below its high of Sep 22, 2021 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, QQQ or VCLT?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, QQQ returned +15.2% and VCLT −5.9%.
- Which is cheaper, QQQ or VCLT?
- VCLT is cheaper, by 0.15 percentage points a year. That is about $15 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, QQQ against VCLT, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-vclt
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). QQQ against VCLT. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-vclt
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