Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
VUG vs XLC: how they differ
VUG and XLC hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and VUG returned more over the year.
Vanguard Growth Index Fund and State Street(R) Communication Services Select Sector SPDR(R) ETF.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, VUG and XLC hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in VUG | Only in XLC |
|---|---|
| NVIDIA Corp 12.63% | META PLATFORMS INC CLASS A 18.92% |
| Apple Inc 11.67% | ALPHABET INC CL A 10.12% |
| Microsoft Corp 7.62% | ALPHABET INC CL C 8.10% |
| Alphabet Inc 5.76% | AT+T INC 5.19% |
| Alphabet Inc 4.54% | VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC 5.03% |
| Amazon.com Inc 4.47% | WALT DISNEY CO/THE 4.76% |
| Broadcom Inc 4.29% | WARNER BROS DISCOVERY INC 4.61% |
| Meta Platforms Inc 3.41% | COMCAST CORP CLASS A 4.61% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Sep 10, 2026.
| VUG Vanguard Growth Index Fund | XLC State Street(R) Communication Services Select Sector SPDR(R) ETF | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | Vanguard | State Street |
| What it is | US growth | Communication services |
| Total return, 1 year | +12.9% | −2.0% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | −4.6 pts | −19.5 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.08% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 97.4% | 100.0% |
| Holdings | 147 | 26 |
VUG in plain words
VUG is an index equity fund tracking the US growth. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +12.9% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 147 positions, with the top ten at 60.5%.
XLC in plain words
XLC is an index equity fund tracking the Communication services. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned −2.0% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings filed for Sep 10, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 26 positions, with the top ten at 70.4%. It sat 5.7% below its high of Jan 30, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, VUG or XLC?
- In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VUG returned +12.9% and XLC returned −2.0%, so VUG returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, VUG or XLC?
- VUG charges 0.03% a year and XLC charges 0.08%, so VUG is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do VUG and XLC overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 97% of VUG and 100% of XLC by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.
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Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, VUG against XLC, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vug-vs-xlc Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
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