Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
VAW vs XLB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, VAW returned +14.0% to XLB's +18.5%; 68% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $3.1bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Materials ETF, and $8.1bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLB costs 0.01 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 4.5 points; XLB is 2.5 times larger.
| Measure | VAW | XLB |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +14.0% | +18.5% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 5.8%, high on Feb 27, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Materials 25/50 | Materials Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $3.1bn | $7.8bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 68% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 57.9% | 58.5% |
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 returnsVAW returned slightly more: +589.0% to +551.3%. XLB swung slightly less: 21.8% to 22.8%. XLB fell slightly less at its worst: −59.0% to −61.8%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | VAW | XLB | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +589.0% | +551.3% | VAW (slight) | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +8.8% | +8.6% | VAW (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +350.3% | +296.1% | VAW | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 22.8% | 21.8% | XLB (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 15.9% | 15.2% | XLB (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −61.8% | −59.0% | XLB (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.41 | 0.40 | Tie | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.58 | 0.58 | Tie | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.14 | 0.15 | Tie | 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, VAW and XLB hold 68% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
68% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
VAW and XLB on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
VAW and XLB are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. VAW follows MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Materials 25/50 and XLB follows Materials Select Sector Index.
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 VAW returned +14.0% and XLB +18.5% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 4.5 points.
- Number of holdings. VAW holds 112 positions and XLB holds 25.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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VAW
VAW tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +14.0% with distributions reinvested, against +13.9% for its benchmark, the MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Materials 25/50. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 75% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 112 positions, with the top ten at 57.9%. It sat 5.8% below its high of Feb 27, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
XLB
XLB tracks an index of Materials. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +18.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% 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 25 positions, with the top ten at 58.5%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, VAW or XLB?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VAW returned +14.0% and XLB +18.5%.
- Which is cheaper, VAW or XLB?
- XLB is cheaper, by 0.01 percentage points a year. That is about $1 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, VAW against XLB, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vaw-vs-xlb
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). VAW against XLB. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vaw-vs-xlb
[VAW against XLB (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vaw-vs-xlb)
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