Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
VTIP vs XLP: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, VTIP returned +2.2% to XLP's +13.8%; 0% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $20.9bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund ETF Shares, and $14.6bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
VTIP costs 0.05 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 11.6 points; VTIP is 1.6 times larger.
| Measure | VTIP | XLP |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +2.2% | +13.8% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 3.5%, high on Oct 22, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) 0-5 Years Index | Consumer Staples Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $20.9bn | $13.4bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 100% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 62.9% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 26, 2012 to Oct 23, 2026 · 730 weekly returnsXLP returned more: +262.9% to +35.7%. VTIP swung less: 2.3% to 13.4%. VTIP fell less at its worst: −5.5% to −22.2%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | VTIP | XLP | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +35.7% | +262.9% | XLP | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +2.2% | +9.6% | XLP | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −2.1% | +149.7% | XLP | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 2.3% | 13.4% | VTIP | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 1.7% | 9.6% | VTIP | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −5.5% | −22.2% | VTIP | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.17 | 0.62 | XLP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.22 | 0.86 | XLP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.40 | 0.43 | XLP (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 730 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, VTIP and XLP hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
VTIP and XLP on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
VTIP and XLP do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. VTIP follows Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) 0-5 Years Index and XLP follows Consumer Staples Select Sector Index.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 VTIP returned +2.2% and XLP +13.8% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 11.6 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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VTIP
VTIP tracks an index of Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.2% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.
XLP
XLP tracks an index of Consumer staples. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.8% 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 36 positions, with the top ten at 62.9%. It sat 3.5% below its high of Oct 22, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, VTIP or XLP?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VTIP returned +2.2% and XLP +13.8%.
- Which is cheaper, VTIP or XLP?
- VTIP is cheaper, by 0.05 percentage points a year. That is about $5 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, VTIP against XLP, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vtip-vs-xlp
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). VTIP against XLP. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vtip-vs-xlp
[VTIP against XLP (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vtip-vs-xlp)
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