Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
TLT vs VTEB: Differences, Returns & Fees
TLT's duration was 15.1 years on Aug 31, 2026 and VTEB's 7.1 on Jul 31, 2026; VTEB charges 0.03% to TLT's 0.15%.
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Net assets: $47.4bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF, and $49.6bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Tax-Exempt Bond ETF.
Pair scorecard
VTEB costs 0.12 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 7.5 points; VTEB is 1.1 times larger.
| Measure | TLT | VTEB |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −7.9% | −0.4% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 42.6%, high on Aug 4, 2020 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index | S&P National AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.15% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $46.2bn | $49.6bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Sep 4, 2015 to Oct 23, 2026 · 581 weekly returnsVTEB returned more: +26.3% to −9.4%. VTEB swung less: 6.7% to 13.7%. VTEB fell less at its worst: −14.8% to −47.8%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | TLT | VTEB | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | −9.4% | +26.3% | VTEB | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | −0.9% | +2.1% | VTEB | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −33.7% | −2.9% | VTEB | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 13.7% | 6.7% | VTEB | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 10.1% | 4.6% | VTEB | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −47.8% | −14.8% | VTEB | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | −0.16 | 0.00 | VTEB | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | −0.22 | 0.01 | VTEB | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | −0.02 | 0.14 | VTEB | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 581 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, TLT and VTEB hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
TLT and VTEB on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
TLT and VTEB do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. TLT follows ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index and VTEB follows S&P National AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 TLT returned −7.9% and VTEB −0.4% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 7.5 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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TLT
TLT tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −7.9% with distributions reinvested, against −7.8% for its benchmark, the ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. It sat 42.6% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Oct 28, 2026.
VTEB
VTEB tracks an index of Tax-Exempt Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −0.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, TLT or VTEB?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, TLT returned −7.9% and VTEB −0.4%.
- Which is cheaper, TLT or VTEB?
- VTEB is cheaper, by 0.12 percentage points a year. That is about $12 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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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, TLT against VTEB, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/tlt-vs-vteb
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). TLT against VTEB. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/tlt-vs-vteb
[TLT against VTEB (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/tlt-vs-vteb)
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