VDC: Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF
Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) run by Vanguard. This fund owns shares of about 100 US companies that make or sell everyday goods, like food, drinks, and household products. It charges 0.09% a year. From January 2004 to October 2026 it returned about 9.5% a year, and its worst drop was −34.2%.
Written by the Tactfolio research team. Fund facts checked October 17, 2026. Prices through October 16, 2026.
- Yearly fee
- 0.09%
- about $9 on $10,000
- Return per year
- 9.5%
- since January 2004
- Worst drop
- −34.2%
- since 2004
- Started trading
- Jan 2004
- Vanguard
Key points
- Expense ratio: 0.09% a year (about $9 on $10,000).
- Started trading on January 26, 2004.
- Worst drop since 2004: −34.2%.
- No Tactfolio classic strategies hold it.
What does VDC hold?#
This fund owns shares of about 100 US companies that make or sell everyday goods, like food, drinks, and household products. People keep buying these things in good times and bad. Still, a few big companies make up much of the fund.
It tracks the MSCI US Investable Market Consumer Staples 25/50 Index. It had 103 holdings as of September 30, 2026, according to Vanguard.
| Fact | VDC |
|---|---|
| Full name | Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF |
| Issuer | Vanguard |
| Expense ratio | 0.09% a year |
| Started trading | January 26, 2004 |
| Tracks | MSCI US Investable Market Consumer Staples 25/50 Index |
| Type | US stocks, ETF |
| Holdings | 103 holdings as of September 30, 2026 |
| Facts checked | October 17, 2026 on the Vanguard fund page |
What is the VDC expense ratio?#
VDC charges 0.09% a year. An expense ratio is the yearly fee a fund takes to run itself. On $10,000, a 0.09% fee comes to about $9 a year.
You never get a bill for it. The fund takes the fee out of its own value a little each day.
How has VDC done since 2004?#
From January 2004 to October 2026, VDC returned about 9.5% a year. Say you put in $10,000 at the start. It would have been worth about $78,893 at the end, with every dividend reinvested.
| Measure | VDC |
|---|---|
| Total return | 688.9% |
| Return per year (CAGR) | 9.5% |
| Worst drop from a high | −34.2% |
| Volatility (how much it swings) | 14.1% |
| Last 12 months | 13.0% |
| Last 3 years, per year | 12.6% |
| Last 5 years, per year | 7.8% |
| Last 10 years, per year | 8.5% |
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.
VDC returns by year#
| Year | VDC return |
|---|---|
| 2026 (part of the year) | 14.2% |
| 2025 | 2.2% |
| 2024 | 13.3% |
| 2023 | 2.4% |
| 2022 | −1.8% |
| 2021 | 17.6% |
| 2020 | 10.9% |
| 2019 | 26.1% |
| 2018 | −7.8% |
| 2017 | 11.8% |
| 2016 | 6.3% |
| 2015 | 5.8% |
| 2014 | 16.0% |
| 2013 | 28.0% |
| 2012 | 11.0% |
| 2011 | 13.6% |
| 2010 | 14.6% |
| 2009 | 16.6% |
| 2008 | −16.6% |
| 2007 | 12.7% |
| 2006 | 15.9% |
| 2005 | 3.8% |
| 2004 (part of the year) | 9.9% |
What was VDC’s worst drop?#
A drawdown is how far a fund falls from its last high point. VDC’s worst fall was −34.2%, from December 10, 2007 to March 9, 2009. It got back to that high on March 17, 2010.
The chart shows how far below its last high the fund was on each day. Big drops are normal for some funds. They matter because selling during a drop locks in the loss.
Which Tactfolio strategies hold VDC?#
No classic strategy holds VDC yet. You can add it to your own rules in the builder and see how they would have done.
How does VDC compare with similar ETFs?#
Funds that can stand in for VDC:
- XLP: State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF, 0.08% a year
- XLU: State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF, 0.08% a year
- VPU: Vanguard Utilities ETF, 0.09% a year
- XLV: State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF, 0.08% a year
See all 7 VDC alternatives, compared on the same dates as VDC.
Test VDC 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 VDC, 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 VDC. 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.
Fund facts come from Vanguard. We checked them on October 17, 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 VDC?#
VDC charges 0.09% a year, according to Vanguard as of October 17, 2026. That is about $9 a year for every $10,000 you hold.
When did VDC start trading?#
VDC started trading on January 26, 2004. It is run by Vanguard.
What does VDC track?#
VDC tracks the MSCI US Investable Market Consumer Staples 25/50 Index. This fund owns shares of about 100 US companies that make or sell everyday goods, like food, drinks, and household products.
How much has VDC returned per year?#
From January 2004 to October 2026, VDC returned about 9.5% a year with dividends reinvested. Its worst drop was −34.2%. Past returns do not tell you what it will do next.
Which strategies use VDC?#
None of Tactfolio’s classic strategies hold VDC yet. You can test it in your own rules in the builder.