Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO)
$701.61−1.10%close of Oct 16, 2026
Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) run by Vanguard. This fund owns shares of about 500 of the biggest companies in the United States. It charges 0.03% a year. From September 2010 to October 2026 it returned about 14.8% a year, and its worst drop was −34.0%.
Written by the Tactfolio research team. Fund facts checked October 16, 2026. Prices through October 16, 2026.
- Yearly fee
- 0.03%
- about $3 on $10,000
- 1-year return
- 16.8%
- to Oct 16, 2026
- Return per year
- 14.8%
- since September 2010
- Worst drop
- −34.0%
- since 2010
- Below its high
- −2.0%
- now
- Volatility
- 16.9%
- yearly swings
- Issuer
- Vanguard
- Tracks
- S&P 500 Index
- Started trading
- September 7, 2010
- Type
- US stocks, ETF
- Holdings
- 505 holdings as of September 30, 2026
- Expense ratio
- 0.03% a year
How has VOO done since 2010?#
From September 2010 to October 2026, VOO returned about 14.8% a year. The S&P 500 returned about 14.8% a year over the same dates. Say you put in $10,000 at the start. It would have been worth about $92,175 at the end, with every dividend reinvested.
| Period | VOO | S&P 500 (SPY) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 month | 1.5% | 1.5% |
| 3 months | 1.9% | 1.9% |
| 6 months | 9.4% | 9.3% |
| Year to date | 12.8% | 12.8% |
| 1 year | 16.8% | 16.8% |
| 3 years per year | 22.1% | 22.0% |
| 5 years per year | 12.9% | 12.8% |
| 10 years per year | 15.5% | 15.4% |
| Since 2010 per year | 14.8% | 14.8% |
Periods longer than a year show the return per year (CAGR). Prices through October 16, 2026. Figures use daily closing prices adjusted for splits, with dividends reinvested. They do not include taxes or the cost of buying and selling. Past results do not tell you what will happen next.
VOO returns by month and year#
VOO rose in 132 of its 194 months (68%). Its best month was April 2020, at 12.8%. Its worst was March 2020, at −12.4%.
| Year | Total | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 12.8% | 1.5 | −0.8 | −5.0 | 10.6 | 5.3 | −1.0 | 0.0 | 2.7 | −0.3 | 0.1 | ||
| 2025 | 17.8% | 2.7 | −1.3 | −5.6 | −0.8 | 6.3 | 5.2 | 2.3 | 2.1 | 3.6 | 2.4 | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| 2024 | 25.0% | 1.6 | 5.2 | 3.3 | −4.0 | 5.0 | 3.6 | 1.2 | 2.4 | 2.2 | −0.9 | 5.9 | −2.3 |
| 2023 | 26.3% | 6.3 | −2.5 | 3.7 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 6.5 | 3.3 | −1.6 | −4.7 | −2.2 | 9.2 | 4.6 |
| 2022 | −18.2% | −5.2 | −3.0 | 3.8 | −8.8 | 0.3 | −8.3 | 9.2 | −4.1 | −9.2 | 8.1 | 5.5 | −5.7 |
| 2021 | 28.8% | −1.0 | 2.8 | 4.6 | 5.3 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 2.5 | 3.0 | −4.7 | 7.0 | −0.7 | 4.6 |
| 2020 | 18.3% | 0.0 | −8.1 | −12.4 | 12.8 | 4.7 | 1.8 | 5.9 | 7.0 | −3.8 | −2.5 | 11.0 | 3.7 |
| 2019 | 31.4% | 7.9 | 3.3 | 1.9 | 4.0 | −6.3 | 7.0 | 1.5 | −1.6 | 2.0 | 2.2 | 3.6 | 3.0 |
| 2018 | −4.5% | 5.6 | −3.7 | −2.5 | 0.4 | 2.4 | 0.8 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 0.6 | −6.8 | 1.9 | −8.8 |
| 2017 | 21.8% | 1.8 | 3.9 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 0.6 | 2.1 | 0.3 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 3.1 | 1.3 |
| 2016 | 12.2% | −4.9 | −0.2 | 6.9 | 0.4 | 1.8 | 0.3 | 3.7 | 0.1 | 0.0 | −1.8 | 3.7 | 2.1 |
| 2015 | 1.3% | −2.9 | 5.6 | −1.6 | 1.0 | 1.3 | −1.9 | 2.2 | −6.1 | −2.5 | 8.5 | 0.4 | −1.7 |
| 2014 | 12.9% | −3.5 | 4.6 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 2.1 | −1.4 | 4.0 | −1.4 | 2.4 | 2.8 | −0.9 |
| 2013 | 32.4% | 5.2 | 1.3 | 3.6 | 2.1 | 2.3 | −1.5 | 5.3 | −3.1 | 3.4 | 4.5 | 3.0 | 2.6 |
| 2012 | 16.0% | 4.5 | 4.3 | 3.3 | −0.6 | −6.0 | 4.1 | 1.2 | 2.5 | 2.6 | −2.0 | 0.6 | 1.0 |
| 2011 | 1.9% | 2.2 | 3.5 | 0.0 | 2.9 | −1.2 | −1.7 | −2.1 | −5.5 | −6.8 | 10.7 | −0.3 | 1.1 |
| 2010 | 14.8% | 3.6 | 3.8 | −0.1 | 6.9 |
Each month runs from the last close of the month before. The first month counts from the first close.
How risky is VOO compared with the S&P 500?#
Measured from October 2021 to October 2026, on the days both traded.
- Beta 0.98. When the S&P 500 moved 1% in a day, VOO tended to move about 0.98%.
- Correlation 1.00. VOO mostly moved with the S&P 500.
- Up and down months. In months the S&P 500 rose, VOO rose 100% as much on average. In months it fell, VOO fell 100% as much.
| Measure | VOO | S&P 500 (SPY) |
|---|---|---|
| Return per year | 12.9% | 12.8% |
| Volatility | 16.9% | 17.1% |
| Worst drop | −24.5% | −24.5% |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.80 | 0.79 |
| Sortino ratio | 1.16 | 1.15 |
| Calmar ratio | 0.52 | 0.52 |
Volatility is how much the price swings in a year. The Sharpe ratio is return per unit of volatility, the Sortino ratio counts only the falls, and the Calmar ratio is the return per year over the worst drop. Higher ratios mean more return for the risk taken.
Is VOO above its 200-day average?#
VOO closed 5.8% above its 200-day average on October 16, 2026. A rule that holds VOO only above that average would hold it today.
- vs 200-day average
- +5.8%
- above it
- 50-day vs 200-day
- +6.3%
- trend rising
- vs 52-week high
- −2.0%
- high of $716.20
A moving average is the average close over the last so many days. Trend rules such as the 10-month moving average strategy hold a fund only while it is above one. You can build that rule for VOO and backtest it in a minute.
What was VOO’s worst drop?#
A drawdown is how far a fund falls from its last high point. VOO’s worst fall was −34.0%, from February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020. It got back to that high on August 10, 2020. On October 16, 2026 it was 2.0% below its highest close.
| Drop | From the high | To the bottom | Back to the high |
|---|---|---|---|
| −34.0% | Feb 19, 2020 | Mar 23, 202033 days | Aug 10, 20205 months |
| −24.5% | Jan 3, 2022 | Oct 12, 20229 months | Dec 13, 202314 months |
| −19.5% | Sep 20, 2018 | Dec 24, 20183 months | Apr 12, 20194 months |
| −18.8% | Apr 29, 2011 | Oct 3, 20115 months | Feb 3, 20124 months |
| −18.7% | Feb 19, 2025 | Apr 8, 20252 months | Jun 26, 20253 months |
Big drops are normal for some funds. They matter because selling during a drop locks in the loss.
What does VOO hold?#
This fund owns shares of about 500 of the biggest companies in the United States. It follows the S&P 500 index, so its value goes up and down with that group of companies. A handful of very large companies make up a big part of the fund.
It tracks the S&P 500 Index. It had 505 holdings as of September 30, 2026, according to Vanguard.
What is the VOO expense ratio?#
VOO charges 0.03% a year. An expense ratio is the yearly fee a fund takes to run itself. On $10,000, a 0.03% fee comes to about $3 a year. Of the 162 ETFs on Tactfolio, 85% charge more.
You never get a bill for it. The fund takes the fee out of its own value a little each day.
Which Tactfolio strategies hold VOO?#
No classic strategy holds VOO yet. You can add it to your own rules in the builder and see how they would have done.
How does VOO compare with similar ETFs?#
Side-by-side pages measure both funds over the same dates:
- VOO vs VTI: the S&P 500 against the whole US stock market.
- SPY vs VOO: two S&P 500 funds with different fees and structures.
- QQQ vs VOO: the Nasdaq-100 against the S&P 500.
- IVV vs VOO: two low-cost S&P 500 funds from iShares and Vanguard.
- VOO vs VOOG: the whole S&P 500 against its growth half.
- VOO vs VUG: the S&P 500 against large US growth companies.
Funds that can stand in for VOO:
- SPYM: State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF, 0.02% a year
- IVV: iShares Core S&P 500 ETF, 0.03% a year
- SPY: State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, 0.0945% a year
- ITOT: iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF, 0.03% a year
See all 8 VOO alternatives, compared on the same dates as VOO.
Test VOO in your own rules#
Tactfolio is a platform where you build rules-based investing strategies, backtest them on decades of real prices, share them, and run them automatically in your own Alpaca account. Open the builder, add VOO, and see how a rule such as “hold it only above its 200-day average” would have done. Strategies run on daily prices and hold US stocks and ETFs only.
The details#
Prices come from Tactfolio’s stored daily prices for VOO and SPY. Each close is adjusted for splits, and dividends are reinvested on the day the fund pays them out. CAGR is the steady yearly return that turns the starting value into the ending value. Volatility is the yearly standard deviation of daily returns. Beta and correlation compare daily returns with the S&P 500 over the same dates.
Fund facts come from Vanguard. We checked them on October 16, 2026. Read what a backtest simulates and how to read drawdown and CAGR for more on these measures.
Common questions#
What is the expense ratio of VOO?#
VOO charges 0.03% a year, according to Vanguard as of October 16, 2026. That is about $3 a year for every $10,000 you hold.
When did VOO start trading?#
VOO started trading on September 7, 2010. It is run by Vanguard.
What does VOO track?#
VOO tracks the S&P 500 Index. This fund owns shares of about 500 of the biggest companies in the United States.
How much has VOO returned per year?#
From September 2010 to October 2026, VOO returned about 14.8% a year with dividends reinvested. Its worst drop was −34.0%. Past returns do not tell you what it will do next.
Is VOO above its 200-day moving average?#
On October 16, 2026, VOO closed 5.8% above its 200-day moving average. This page updates after each US market close.
Which strategies use VOO?#
None of Tactfolio’s classic strategies hold VOO yet. You can test it in your own rules in the builder.