Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
SPY vs VO: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, SPY returned +13.6% to VO's +12.8%; 16% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $814.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, and $103.4bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Morningstar Mid-Cap ETF.
Pair scorecard
VO costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.8 points; SPY is 7.8 times larger.
| Measure | SPY | VO |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +13.6% | +12.8% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 3.1%, high on Aug 14, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | S&P 500 Index | Morningstar US Mid Cap Index (formerly CRSP US Mid Cap Index) |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $809.2bn | $103.4bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 16% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 38.1% | 9.7% |
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 returnsSPY returned more: +906.1% to +797.9%. SPY swung less: 17.2% to 19.6%. SPY fell slightly less at its worst: −54.6% to −58.4%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | SPY | VO | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +906.1% | +797.9% | SPY | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +10.7% | +10.1% | SPY (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +564.0% | +546.9% | SPY (slight) | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 17.2% | 19.6% | SPY | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 12.2% | 13.8% | SPY | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −54.6% | −58.4% | SPY (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.57 | 0.50 | SPY | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.81 | 0.71 | SPY | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.20 | 0.17 | SPY | 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, SPY and VO hold 16% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
16% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
SPY and VO on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
SPY and VO do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. SPY follows S&P 500 Index and VO follows Morningstar US Mid Cap Index (formerly CRSP US Mid Cap Index).
- Holdings in common. 16% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026).
- Size. SPY has $809.2bn in net assets and VO $103.4bn (net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026); SPY is 7.8 times larger.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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SPY
SPY tracks the S&P 500. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.6% with distributions reinvested, against +13.7% for its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 504 positions, with the top ten at 38.1%.
VO
VO tracks an index of Mid-Cap. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +12.8% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 91% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 273 positions, with the top ten at 9.7%. It sat 3.1% below its high of Aug 14, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, SPY or VO?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SPY returned +13.6% and VO +12.8%.
- Which is cheaper, SPY or VO?
- VO is cheaper, by 0.06 percentage points a year. That is about $6 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, SPY against VO, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/spy-vs-vo
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). SPY against VO. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/spy-vs-vo
[SPY against VO (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/spy-vs-vo)
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