Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
VYM vs XLV: how they differ
VYM and XLV hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and XLV returned more over the year.
Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index Fund and State Street(R) Health Care Select Sector SPDR(R) ETF.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, VYM and XLV hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in VYM | Only in XLV |
|---|---|
| Broadcom Inc 8.07% | ELI LILLY + CO 14.87% |
| JPMorgan Chase & Co 3.36% | JOHNSON + JOHNSON 10.73% |
| Exxon Mobil Corp 2.73% | ABBVIE INC 7.54% |
| Johnson & Johnson 2.31% | MERCK + CO. INC. 5.98% |
| Caterpillar Inc 1.73% | UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INC 5.90% |
| AbbVie Inc 1.57% | THERMO FISHER SCIENTIFIC INC 3.75% |
| Cisco Systems Inc 1.52% | AMGEN INC 3.46% |
| Chevron Corp 1.51% | ABBOTT LABORATORIES 3.01% |
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 Apr 30, 2026 and Sep 10, 2026.
| VYM Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index Fund | XLV State Street(R) Health Care Select Sector SPDR(R) ETF | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | Vanguard | State Street |
| What it is | US high dividend | Health care |
| Total return, 1 year | +17.6% | +20.4% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | +0.1 pts | +2.9 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.04% | 0.08% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 92.2% | 100.0% |
| Holdings | 608 | 63 |
VYM in plain words
VYM is an index equity fund tracking the US high dividend. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +17.6% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.04% a year. By its holdings filed for Apr 30, 2026, 92% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 608 positions, with the top ten at 25.7%.
XLV in plain words
XLV is an index equity fund tracking the Health care. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +20.4% 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 63 positions, with the top ten at 60.9%. It sat 5.9% below its high of Aug 19, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, VYM or XLV?
- In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VYM returned +17.6% and XLV returned +20.4%, so XLV returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, VYM or XLV?
- VYM charges 0.04% a year and XLV charges 0.08%, so VYM is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do VYM and XLV overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 92% of VYM and 100% of XLV 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, VYM against XLV, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vym-vs-xlv Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources