Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
TIP vs VTIP: Differences, Returns & Fees
TIP's duration was 6.3 years on Jul 31, 2026 and VTIP's 2.3 on Jun 30, 2026; VTIP charges 0.03% to TIP's 0.18%.
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Net assets: $14.6bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares TIPS Bond ETF, and $20.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund ETF Shares.
Pair scorecard
VTIP costs 0.15 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.2 points; VTIP is 1.5 times larger.
| Measure | TIP | VTIP |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −1.0% | +2.2% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | ICE U.S. Treasury Inflation Linked Bond Index | Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) 0-5 Years Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.18% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $14.2bn | $20.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 50% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 26, 2012 to Oct 23, 2026 · 730 weekly returnsVTIP returned more: +35.7% to +24.4%. VTIP swung less: 2.3% to 5.5%. VTIP fell less at its worst: −5.5% to −14.2%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | TIP | VTIP | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +24.4% | +35.7% | VTIP | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +1.6% | +2.2% | VTIP | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −12.8% | −2.1% | VTIP | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 5.5% | 2.3% | VTIP | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 4.1% | 1.7% | VTIP | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −14.2% | −5.5% | VTIP | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | −0.02 | 0.17 | VTIP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | −0.03 | 0.22 | VTIP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.11 | 0.40 | VTIP | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 730 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, TIP and VTIP hold 50% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026.
half
50% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
TIP and VTIP on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
TIP and VTIP do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. TIP follows ICE U.S. Treasury Inflation Linked Bond Index and VTIP follows Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) 0-5 Years Index.
- Holdings in common. 50% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Jun 30, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 TIP returned −1.0% and VTIP +2.2% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 3.2 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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TIP
TIP tracks an index of TIPS Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −1.0% with distributions reinvested, against −0.8% for its benchmark, the ICE U.S. Treasury Inflation Linked Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.18% a year.
VTIP
VTIP tracks an index of Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.2% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, TIP or VTIP?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, TIP returned −1.0% and VTIP +2.2%.
- Which is cheaper, TIP or VTIP?
- VTIP 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, TIP against VTIP, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/tip-vs-vtip
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). TIP against VTIP. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/tip-vs-vtip
[TIP against VTIP (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/tip-vs-vtip)
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