Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
VTI vs YMAX: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, VTI returned +13.5% to YMAX's −4.0%, and VTI charges 0.03% to YMAX's 1.33%.
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Net assets: $689.2bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF, and $352m on Oct 27, 2026 for YieldMax Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs.
Pair scorecard
VTI costs 1.30 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 17.5 points.
| Measure | VTI | YMAX |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +13.5% | −4.0% |
| Price change, 1 year | rose 12.2% | fell 42.4% |
| Latest payout, annualized | 39.9% | |
| Return of capital, issuer estimate | 35% of the Oct 29, 2026 payment | |
| Against its benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Morningstar US Total Market Index | Benchmark: its own holdings |
| Against its benchmark, same days | behind by 14.9 pts | |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 1.33% |
| Net assets, VTI as of Sep 30, 2026 and YMAX as of Oct 27, 2026 | $689.2bn | $352m |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 88% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 34.7% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 28, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jan 26, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026 · 143 weekly returnsVTI returned more: +59.4% to +38.1%. VTI swung less: 14.3% to 21.8%. VTI fell less at its worst: −17.4% to −24.1%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | VTI | YMAX | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +59.4% | +38.1% | VTI | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +18.5% | +12.5% | VTI | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +54.1% | −64.9% | VTI | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 14.3% | 21.8% | VTI | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 9.4% | 15.1% | VTI | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −17.4% | −24.1% | VTI | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.95 | 0.45 | VTI | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.45 | 0.65 | VTI | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 1.06 | 0.52 | VTI | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 143 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, VTI and YMAX hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 28, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
VTI and YMAX on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ. Cash paid: distributions over the window, as a share of the starting price.
VTI and YMAX do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. VTI follows Morningstar US Total Market Index and YMAX is measured against its own holdings.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 28, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 VTI returned +13.5% and YMAX −4.0% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 17.5 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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VTI
VTI tracks an index of US total market. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 88% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 3,521 positions, with the top ten at 34.7%.
YMAX's own holdings, without the options (from its filed holdings, rebalanced at each filing; latest Oct 26, 2026) returned +10.9% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 14.9 pts.
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, YMAX paid 36.1% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 42.4%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned −4.0%. At its price on Oct 28, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 39.9%, paid weekly. YieldMax estimates that 35% of the distribution paid Oct 29, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.
Questions people ask
- Are VTI and YMAX in the same category?
- VTI is a stock ETF and YMAX is an option-income ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
- Which returned more over the last year, VTI or YMAX?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VTI returned +13.5% and YMAX −4.0%.
- Which is cheaper, VTI or YMAX?
- VTI is cheaper, by 1.30 percentage points a year. That is about $130 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.
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ETFIQ, VTI against YMAX, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vti-vs-ymax
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). VTI against YMAX. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vti-vs-ymax
[VTI against YMAX (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vti-vs-ymax)
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