Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
SDY vs VCSH: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, SDY returned +16.5% to VCSH's +1.3%; 0% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $21.9bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street SPDR S&P Dividend ETF, and $43.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF.
Pair scorecard
VCSH costs 0.32 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 15.2 points; VCSH is 2.2 times larger.
| Measure | SDY | VCSH |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +16.5% | +1.3% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | S&P High Yield Dividend Aristocrats Index | Bloomberg U.S. 1-5 Year Corporate Bond Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $20.4bn | $43.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 84% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 20.4% | |
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 returnsSDY returned more: +508.1% to +59.9%. VCSH swung less: 3.5% to 15.1%. VCSH fell less at its worst: −11.3% to −32.4%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | SDY | VCSH | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +508.1% | +59.9% | SDY | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +11.2% | +2.8% | SDY | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +240.8% | +2.8% | SDY | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 15.1% | 3.5% | VCSH | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 10.5% | 2.5% | VCSH | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −32.4% | −11.3% | VCSH | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.68 | 0.37 | SDY | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.98 | 0.52 | SDY | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.35 | 0.25 | SDY | 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, SDY and VCSH 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
SDY and VCSH on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
SDY and VCSH do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. SDY follows S&P High Yield Dividend Aristocrats Index and VCSH follows Bloomberg U.S. 1-5 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 SDY returned +16.5% and VCSH +1.3% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 15.2 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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SDY
SDY tracks the S&P Dividend. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +16.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.35% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 84% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 156 positions, with the top ten at 20.4%.
VCSH
VCSH tracks an index of Short-Term Corporate Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +1.3% with distributions reinvested, against +1.3% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. 1-5 Year Corporate Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, SDY or VCSH?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SDY returned +16.5% and VCSH +1.3%.
- Which is cheaper, SDY or VCSH?
- VCSH is cheaper, by 0.32 percentage points a year. That is about $32 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, SDY against VCSH, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/sdy-vs-vcsh
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). SDY against VCSH. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/sdy-vs-vcsh
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