VOO vs VUG: Which ETF Is Better in 2026?
A metric-by-metric comparison of Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) and Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VUG) — both US Large Cap Blend / US Large Cap Growth funds — using ETFValuer's daily-updated rankings.
Educational content — not financial advice. Data as of July 25, 2026. ~5 minute read.
The Verdict
VOO (US Large Cap Blend) and VUG (US Large Cap Growth) sit in different corners of the market, so this is less a head-to-head than a question of what role each would play. They can be complements rather than alternatives — the metrics below show how differently the two have actually behaved.
On ETFValuer's overall model — which blends return, risk-adjusted performance, cost, drawdown, size and volatility — VOO scores higher: 76.0 (Grade B+) versus 62.5 for VUG. That doesn't make VUG a bad fund; it means VOO currently edges it out on this specific mix of factors. Read the metric-by-metric breakdown below before deciding which matters more for your own portfolio.
Head-to-Head: Every Metric
| VOO | VUG | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | US Large Cap Blend | US Large Cap Growth |
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.03% |
| Fund size (AUM) | $1.67T | $379.2B |
| Dividend yield | 0.80% | 1.84% |
| 1-year return | +17.89% | +11.69% |
| 3-year return | +67.91% | +73.86% |
| Volatility | 12.62% | 17.46% |
| Max drawdown | -18.69% | -22.85% |
| Sharpe ratio | 1.02 | 0.38 |
| ETFValuer score | 76.0 | 62.5 |
| Grade | B+ | C |
| Overall rank | #39 | #201 |
Bold marks the better value in each row. "Better" is directional only (e.g. lower cost, higher return) — it isn't a recommendation by itself. See the full methodology.
Cost
On cost, the two are essentially tied — VOO charges 0.03% a year versus VUG's 0.03%. A difference this small (about $0.00 a year on a $10,000 position) isn't a reason to choose one fund over the other.
What VOO's Fees Cost You
VOO charges an expense ratio of 0.03% a year, deducted automatically from the fund's value. Small percentages compound into real money — adjust the figures below to see the impact on your own numbers.
Assumes a constant gross return and no additional contributions — a simplification, but it isolates exactly what the expense ratio costs. Try the full fee calculator to model contributions and compare any two funds.
Performance & Risk
Over the trailing 3 years, VUG returned +73.86% versus +67.91% for VOO — a gap of about 6.0 percentage points. On risk, VOO has held up better historically, with a shallower max drawdown (-18.69% vs. -22.85%). VOO currently has the better risk-adjusted return (Sharpe ratio of 1.02 vs. 0.38), meaning it delivered more return per unit of volatility taken on.
How Closely Do They Track Each Other?
Over the last 3.0 years of daily returns (752 shared trading days), VOO and VUG show a high correlation of 0.959 — closely related, but not identical. Holding both would add very little diversification: when one falls, the other almost always falls with it. Treat these as alternatives to each other, not as complements in the same portfolio.
| Measure | Value | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Daily return correlation | 0.959 | High — closely related, but not identical |
| R-squared | 92.0% | 92.0% of VOO's daily moves are explained by VUG's |
| Tracking error (annualised) | 6.87% | Typical yearly spread between the two funds' returns |
| Annualised return over 3.0y | VOO +19.14% · VUG +20.75% | VUG ahead by 1.61 points a year |
Correlation alone understates how far these can drift. Across every rolling 12-month window in the period, VOO finished as much as +6.2 points ahead of VUG at the best extreme and -11.4 points at the worst — a 17.7-point spread between the best and worst year of relative performance. Two funds can correlate tightly day to day and still deliver very different outcomes over any single year you happen to hold them.
Calculated from daily total returns over the trailing 3-year window, recomputed every day this site refreshes. Correlation of 1.00 means the two funds moved in lockstep; 0.00 means their daily moves were unrelated.
Holdings Overlap
VOO and VUG hold 8 of the same companies among their top 10 positions. Those shared names make up 34.9% of VOO and 61.3% of VUG. That's heavy duplication — owning both largely doubles down on the same companies rather than spreading risk. Most investors should pick one.
| Shared Holding | VOO Weight | VUG Weight |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA Corp | 7.58% | 13.31% |
| Apple Inc | 6.66% | 12.32% |
| Alphabet Inc | 5.39% | 9.93% |
| Microsoft Corp | 4.91% | 9.09% |
| Amazon.com Inc | 3.64% | 4.59% |
| Broadcom Inc | 2.62% | 4.40% |
| Meta Platforms Inc | 2.24% | 4.15% |
| Tesla Inc | 1.87% | 3.47% |
Compares the top 10 reported holdings from each fund's most recent SEC N-PORT-P filing, so it understates total overlap — funds tracking similar indexes overlap far more deeply than the top 10 alone can show. Search any company across all tracked funds with the Stock Overlap tool.
Which One Should You Pick?
Lean VOO if…
- It has been the calmer ride (12.6% volatility vs 17.5%) with a shallower worst-case fall (-18.7% vs -22.9%)
- You care about return per unit of risk — its Sharpe ratio of 1.02 beats 0.38
- You want the deeper, more liquid market ($1671B in assets vs $379B) and the tighter spread (0.065% vs 0.120%)
Lean VUG if…
- Current income matters to you — it yields 1.84% against 0.80%
- You weight recent results heavily — it returned 73.9% over 3 years against 67.9%
These two are not really substitutes, so "both, in some proportion" is often the right answer rather than picking one. Model the blend with the Portfolio Blender.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is VOO or VUG better?
On ETFValuer's overall model — which blends return, risk-adjusted performance, cost, drawdown, size and volatility — VOO scores higher: 76.0 (Grade B+) versus 62.5 for VUG. That doesn't make VUG a bad fund; it means VOO currently edges it out on this specific mix of factors. Read the metric-by-metric breakdown below before deciding which matters more for your own portfolio.
Which has the lower expense ratio, VOO or VUG?
VUG currently has the lower expense ratio (0.03% vs. 0.03%).
Can I hold both VOO and VUG?
You can, though the benefit is limited. At a correlation of 0.96, VOO and VUG fall together far more often than not, so owning both adds complexity and a second expense ratio without much real diversification. Most investors are better served picking one.
Go deeper on either fund
Full daily-updated metrics, holdings context, and category peers.