Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
VFH vs XLF: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, VFH returned +7.5% to XLF's +7.6%; 85% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $12.7bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Financials ETF, and $51.6bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLF costs 0.01 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.1 points; XLF is 4.0 times larger.
| Measure | VFH | XLF |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +7.5% | +7.6% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.4%, high on Sep 3, 2026 | 3.8%, high on Sep 3, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Financials 25/50 | Financial Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $12.7bn | $51.0bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 85% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 48.2% | 57.4% |
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 returnsVFH returned more: +334.6% to +268.2%. VFH swung slightly less: 24.8% to 26.1%. VFH fell slightly less at its worst: −78.6% to −82.7%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | VFH | XLF | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +334.6% | +268.2% | VFH | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +6.7% | +5.9% | VFH | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +169.5% | +89.6% | VFH | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 24.8% | 26.1% | VFH (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 17.1% | 17.9% | VFH (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −78.6% | −82.7% | VFH (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.31 | 0.28 | VFH | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.45 | 0.41 | VFH (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.08 | 0.07 | VFH | 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, VFH and XLF hold 85% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
85% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
VFH and XLF on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
VFH and XLF are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. VFH follows MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Financials 25/50 and XLF follows Financial Select Sector Index.
- Number of holdings. VFH holds 425 positions and XLF holds 77.
- Size. VFH has $12.7bn in net assets and XLF $51.0bn (net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026); XLF is 4.0 times larger.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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VFH
VFH tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +7.5% with distributions reinvested, against +7.6% for its benchmark, the MSCI US Investable Market Index (IMI)/Financials 25/50. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 83% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 425 positions, with the top ten at 48.2%. It sat 4.4% below its high of Sep 3, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
XLF
XLF tracks an index of Financials. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +7.6% 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 77 positions, with the top ten at 57.4%. It sat 3.8% below its high of Sep 3, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, VFH or XLF?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VFH returned +7.5% and XLF +7.6%.
- Which is cheaper, VFH or XLF?
- XLF 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, VFH against XLF, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vfh-vs-xlf
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). VFH against XLF. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vfh-vs-xlf
[VFH against XLF (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vfh-vs-xlf)
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