Best Total Stock Market ETFs (2026)

Which fund gives the broadest single-fund US equity exposure — 3 funds ranked on cost, yield, return, risk and ETFValuer's overall grade.

Updated July 25, 2026

Every figure on this page is recalculated from market data each day, so the ranking reflects current conditions rather than whenever this page was written. Educational content — not financial advice.

Top Picks Right Now

#1
VTI
Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF Shares
B+ 75.1/100
  • cheapest in the group at 0.03%
  • best risk-adjusted return (Sharpe 1.02)
  • largest and most liquid at $2.30T
#2
ITOT
iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF
B 74.0/100
  • scores 74.0 on the overall model (grade B)
#3
SCHB
Schwab U.S. Broad Market ETF
B 73.2/100
  • highest yield here at 1.04%

Ranked by ETFValuer's overall score. Recalculated every day from live market data — these positions change as the underlying numbers move.

At a Glance

Cheapest
VTI
0.03%
Highest yield
SCHB
1.04%
Best risk-adjusted
VTI
Sharpe 1.02
Largest
VTI
$2.30T
Shallowest drawdown
VTI
-19.3%

Each superlative is measured within this group of 3 funds, not across the whole market.

All 3 Funds Ranked

FundCategoryCostYield1Y3YVolatilityMax DDSharpeAUMScoreGrade
1 VTIVanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF SharesUS Large Cap Blend0.03%0.77%+18.1%+66.2%12.9%-19.3%1.02$2.30T75.1B+
2 ITOTiShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETFUS Large Cap Blend0.03%0.77%+18.0%+66.1%12.9%-19.4%1.00$94.1B74.0B
3 SCHBSchwab U.S. Broad Market ETFUS Large Cap Blend0.03%1.04%+18.0%+66.2%12.9%-19.3%1.01$43.2B73.2B

Max DD is the deepest peak-to-trough fall over the measurement window. Sharpe ratio measures return per unit of volatility — higher is better. Every figure is recalculated daily.

What Makes a Good Fund Here

Total-market funds hold large, mid and small caps in one wrapper, so they need no companion small-cap fund. The differences between them are fee, index provider and how deeply each reaches into micro caps.

The ETFValuer score blends trailing return, risk-adjusted return, expense ratio, maximum drawdown, fund size and volatility, each percentile-ranked against the full tracked universe, into a single 0-100 figure graded A+ to F. It is a systematic summary of past data, not a forecast — read it alongside the individual columns rather than instead of them.

Head-to-Head Comparisons

Full metric-by-metric breakdowns for the closest calls in this group.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best total stock market ETF?

VTI leads ETFValuer's ranking of the 3 total-market funds tracked, with a score of 75.1 (B+). VTI charges the least at 0.03%.

Is a total market ETF better than an S&P 500 ETF?

A total-market fund adds mid- and small-cap companies the S&P 500 leaves out, which historically raises both expected return and volatility slightly. In practice the two track each other very closely, because large caps dominate both by weight.

Compare any of these funds directly

Side-by-side metrics, holdings overlap and return correlation for any pair.

Other Rankings