Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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VLUE vs VUG: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, VLUE returned +54.7% to VUG's +6.6%; 1% of their weight is in the same names.

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Net assets: $9.4bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares MSCI USA Value Factor ETF, and $232.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF.

At a glance
+54.7%
VLUE total return, 1 year
+6.6%
VUG total return, 1 year
0.15%
VLUE expense ratio
0.03%
VUG expense ratio

Pair scorecard

VUG costs 0.12 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 48.1 points; VUG is far larger, $232.9bn against $9.4bn.

VLUE vs VUG: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureVLUEVUG
Return
Total return, 1 year+54.7%+6.6%
Drawdown
Below its high4.1%, high on Oct 6, 2026
Benchmark
What it tracksMSCI USA Enhanced Value IndexMorningstar US Large Cap Growth Index
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.15%0.03%
Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026$9.4bn$232.9bn
Holdings
Holdings in common1%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund42.8%63.1%

Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method

Risk and return

Apr 26, 2013 to Oct 23, 2026 · 704 weekly returns
VLUE VUG
Return
Total return edge VUG +429.0% +659.0%
Annualized edge VUG +13.1% +16.1%
Price return edge VUG +280.4% +570.0%
Risk
Volatility edge Tie 18.3% 18.6%
Max drawdown edge VUG (slight) −37.5% −35.6%
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe edge VUG 0.66 0.80
Sortino edge VUG 0.95 1.19
Calmar edge VUG 0.35 0.45
Reading

VUG returned more: +659.0% to +429.0%. VLUE and VUG swung about the same: 18.3% and 18.6%. VUG fell slightly less at its worst: −35.6% to −37.5%.

Full scorecard

9 measures, with how each is measured
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Risk and return: VLUE vs VUG: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureVLUEVUGEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+429.0%+659.0%VUGPrice change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized+13.1%+16.1%VUGTotal return as a yearly rate.
Price return+280.4%+570.0%VUGPrice change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility18.3%18.6%TieSpread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation12.7%12.5%TieLike volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown−37.5%−35.6%VUG (slight)Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe0.660.80VUGReturn above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino0.951.19VUGReturn above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Calmar0.350.45VUGAnnualized return divided by the max drawdown.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 704 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

1%

By the books each fund has filed, VLUE and VUG hold 1% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

1% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first VLUE VUG
DELL TECHNOLOGIES INC CLASS C 1.72% 0.23%
WORKDAY CLASS A 0.27% 0.12%
SUPER MICRO COMPUTER INC 0.19% 0.09%
FLEX LTD 0.24% 0.08%
FIRST SOLAR 0.33% 0.05%
Only in one fund ↓
Only in VLUE
MICRON TECHNOLOGY 20.94%
CISCO SYSTEMS INC 4.37%
GENERAL MOTORS 3.54%
VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC 2.72%
AT&T 2.24%
HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE 1.95%
PFIZER 1.86%
BANK OF AMERICA 1.77%
Only in VUG
NVIDIA Corp 13.49%
Apple Inc 12.51%
Microsoft Corp 9.74%
Alphabet Inc 5.16%
Broadcom Inc 4.34%
Amazon.com Inc 4.26%
Meta Platforms Inc 4.23%
Alphabet Inc 4.09%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

VLUE iShares MSCI USA Value Factor ETF VUG Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF
Where it sits Stock ETF Stock ETF
What it is Tracks the MSCI USA Value Factor Tracks an index of US growth
Total return, 1 year +54.7% +6.6%
Its benchmark over the same days +13.6% (MLRG) not measured
Gap to its benchmark +41.1 pts vs MLRG not measured
Expense ratio 0.15% 0.03%
Already in the S&P 500 96.6% 97.3%
Holdings 148 137
Net assets, VLUE as of Oct 28, 2026 and VUG as of Sep 30, 2026 $9.4bn $232.9bn

VLUE and VUG on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-D1B12F5F95

VLUE and VUG do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?

  1. What each follows. VLUE follows MSCI USA Enhanced Value Index and VUG follows Morningstar US Large Cap Growth Index.
  2. Holdings in common. 1% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Sep 30, 2026).
  3. One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 VLUE returned +54.7% and VUG +6.6% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 48.1 points.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund
VLUE

VLUE tracks the MSCI USA Value Factor. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +54.7% with distributions reinvested, against +13.6% for its benchmark, the MSCI USA Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 148 positions, with the top ten at 42.8%.

VUG

VUG tracks an index of US growth. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +6.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 137 positions, with the top ten at 63.1%. It sat 4.1% below its high of Oct 6, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, VLUE or VUG?
In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VLUE returned +54.7% and VUG +6.6%.
Which is cheaper, VLUE or VUG?
VUG 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.
How much do VLUE and VUG overlap with the S&P 500?
By their latest filed holdings, 97% of VLUE and 97% of VUG by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds.
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ETFIQ, VLUE against VUG, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vlue-vs-vug

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