ETF Versus

BND vs VB

Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund vs Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares

Last updated: 2026-04-02

BND Vanguard

Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund (BND) is an exchange-traded fund issued by Vanguard that provides exposure to the broad U.S. investment-grade bond market. It charges a very low expense ratio of 0.03%. The fund offers an attractive dividend yield of 3.93%. Launched in 2007, the fund has a 19-year track record.

AUM: $150.4B ER: 0.03% Yield: 3.93% Since: Apr 3, 2007
VB Vanguard

Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund ETF Shares (VB) is an exchange-traded fund issued by Vanguard that provides exposure to small-cap U.S. equities with higher growth potential and volatility. It charges a very low expense ratio of 0.03%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.33%. Launched in 2004, the fund has a 22-year track record.

AUM: $69.1B ER: 0.03% Yield: 1.33% Since: Jan 26, 2004

Quick Verdict

Over the past year, VB has significantly outperformed with a 18.4% return vs -0.0%. Income investors may prefer BND for its higher yield (3.9% vs 1.3%).

Key Metrics

Metric BND VB
Expense Ratio 0.03% 0.03%
Dividend Yield 3.9% 1.3%
Fund Family Vanguard Vanguard
Category US Aggregate Bond US Small Cap

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

75 86 97 108 119 130 2021-04 2022-06 2023-09 2024-12 2026-04
BND -13.3%
VB +20.7%

Performance Comparison

Period BND VB Difference
1 Month -1.63% -5.50% +3.87%
3 Months -0.84% +0.71% -1.55%
6 Months -1.20% +2.15% -3.35%
YTD -0.84% +0.71% -1.55%
1 Year -0.03% +18.40% -18.43%
3 Years -0.73% +39.02% -39.75%
5 Years -13.29% +20.71% -34.00%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period BND Fees VB Fees You Save
$10.000 10 years $60 $60 $0
$10.000 20 years $258 $258 $0
$10.000 30 years $835 $835 $0
$50.000 10 years $299 $299 $0
$50.000 30 years $4.176 $4.176 $0
$100.000 30 years $8.352 $8.352 $0

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric BND VB
Annualized Volatility 6.0% 20.8%
Max Drawdown -21.7% -28.8%
Sharpe Ratio -1.19 0.07

Dividend Comparison

Metric BND VB
Annual Dividend (per share) $2.88 $3.50
Dividend Yield 3.92% 1.33%
Distribution Frequency Monthly Quarterly

Top Holdings

VB Top Holdings

NameWeight
Sandisk CorporationSNDK1.21%
Comfort Systems USA, Inc.FIX0.65%
Lumentum Holdings Inc.LITE0.64%
Ciena CorporationCIEN0.64%
Coherent Corp.COHR0.53%
Rocket Lab CorporationRKLB0.48%
NRG Energy, Inc.NRG0.44%
Bloom Energy CorporationBE0.43%
EMCOR Group, Inc.EME0.42%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose VB if...

recent performance momentum matters to your strategy. Note that past performance doesn't guarantee future results.

Choose BND if...

you prioritize dividend income and want higher regular distributions from your portfolio.

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