Which returned more over the last year, TLT or VNQ?

In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, TLT returned −6.4% and VNQ returned +5.6%, so VNQ returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.

Which is cheaper, TLT or VNQ?

TLT charges 0.15% a year and VNQ charges 0.13%, so VNQ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.

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TLT vs VNQ: how they differ

TLT and VNQ hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and VNQ returned more over the year.

iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF and Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund.

What they hold in common

By the books each fund has filed, TLT and VNQ hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.

Largest positions each one holds and the other does not
Only in TLT	Only in VNQ
TREASURY BOND (2OLD) 4.16%	Vanguard Real Estate II Index Fund 14.67%
TREASURY BOND (OLD) 4.05%	Welltower Inc 7.86%
TREASURY BOND (OTR) 1.03%	Prologis Inc 7.02%
TREASURY BOND 0.02%	Equinix Inc 5.66%
	American Tower Corp 4.55%
	Digital Realty Trust Inc 3.67%
	Simon Property Group Inc 3.54%
	Realty Income Corp 3.12%

Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Apr 30, 2026 and Sep 10, 2026.

TLT and VNQ on the fields both publish, as of Sep 13, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
	TLT iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF	VNQ Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund
Where it sits	Core index fund	Core index fund
Issuer	iShares	Vanguard
What it is	20+ year Treasuries	US real estate
Total return, 1 year	−6.4%	+5.6%
S&P 500 over the same days	+17.5%	+17.5%
Gap to the S&P 500	−23.9 pts	−11.9 pts
Expense ratio	0.15%	0.13%
Holdings	41	146

TLT in plain words

TLT is a bond fund tracking the 20+ year Treasuries. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned −6.4% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. It sat 42.9% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Sep 11, 2026.

VNQ in plain words

VNQ is an index equity fund tracking the US real estate. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +5.6% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.13% a year. By its holdings filed for Apr 30, 2026, 63% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 146 positions, with the top ten at 54.9%. It sat 6.1% below its high of Jul 28, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, TLT or VNQ?: In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, TLT returned −6.4% and VNQ returned +5.6%, so VNQ returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Which is cheaper, TLT or VNQ?: TLT charges 0.15% a year and VNQ charges 0.13%, so VNQ is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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Where these figures came from

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.

TLT against VNQ, ETFIQ, data as of Sep 13, 2026. Every figure is arithmetic on a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page. ETFIQ, TLT against VNQ, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/tlt-vs-vnq Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.

A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources