# VHT ETF: fees, returns, drawdowns and holdings

> What VHT holds, its 0.09% yearly fee, returns by year, its worst drop, and which Tactfolio strategies hold it. Updated daily.

Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) run by Vanguard. This fund owns shares of about 410 US health care companies, such as drug makers. It charges 0.09% a year. From January 2004 to October 2026 it returned about 10.1% a year, and its worst drop was −39.1%.

Written by [the Tactfolio research team](https://tactfolio.com/about/editorial-policy). Fund facts checked October 17, 2026. Prices through October 16, 2026.

## Key points

- Expense ratio: 0.09% a year (about $9 on $10,000).
- Started trading on January 26, 2004.
- Worst drop since 2004: −39.1%.
- No Tactfolio classic strategies hold it.

## What does VHT hold?

This fund owns shares of about 410 US health care companies, such as drug makers. It holds only one part of the stock market. A few big drug companies make up a large share, so news about medicines can move its value.

It tracks the MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index. It had 412 holdings as of September 30, 2026, according to Vanguard.

| Fact | VHT |
| --- | --- |
| Full name | Vanguard Health Care ETF |
| Issuer | Vanguard |
| Expense ratio | 0.09% a year |
| Started trading | January 26, 2004 |
| Tracks | MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index |
| Type | US stocks, ETF |
| Holdings | 412 holdings as of September 30, 2026 |
| Facts checked | October 17, 2026 on the [Vanguard fund page](https://investor.vanguard.com/investment-products/etfs/profile/vht) |

## What is the VHT expense ratio?

VHT 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 VHT done since 2004?

From January 2004 to October 2026, VHT returned about 10.1% a year. Say you put in $10,000 at the start. It would have been worth about $89,110 at the end, with every dividend reinvested.

| Measure | VHT |
| --- | --- |
| Total return | 791.1% |
| Return per year (CAGR) | 10.1% |
| Worst drop from a high | −39.1% |
| Volatility (how much it swings) | 16.9% |
| Last 12 months | 24.9% |
| Last 3 years, per year | 12.9% |
| Last 5 years, per year | 7.2% |
| Last 10 years, per year | 11.5% |

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.

## VHT returns by year

| Year | VHT return |
| --- | --- |
| 2026 (part of the year) | 14.8% |
| 2025 | 15.5% |
| 2024 | 2.7% |
| 2023 | 2.5% |
| 2022 | −5.6% |
| 2021 | 20.6% |
| 2020 | 18.3% |
| 2019 | 21.9% |
| 2018 | 5.6% |
| 2017 | 23.3% |
| 2016 | −3.2% |
| 2015 | 7.1% |
| 2014 | 24.2% |
| 2013 | 42.7% |
| 2012 | 19.0% |
| 2011 | 10.7% |
| 2010 | 5.6% |
| 2009 | 21.8% |
| 2008 | −23.3% |
| 2007 | 7.9% |
| 2006 | 6.5% |
| 2005 | 8.2% |
| 2004 (part of the year) | 0.7% |

## What was VHT's worst drop?

A drawdown is how far a fund falls from its last high point. VHT's worst fall was −39.1%, from December 10, 2007 to March 5, 2009. It got back to that high on March 3, 2011.

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 VHT?

No classic strategy holds VHT yet. You can add it to your own rules in the [builder](https://tactfolio.com/builder) and see how they would have done.

## How does VHT compare with similar ETFs?

Funds that can stand in for VHT:

- [XLV](https://tactfolio.com/etf/xlv.md): State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF, 0.08% a year
- [XLP](https://tactfolio.com/etf/xlp.md): State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF, 0.08% a year
- [VDC](https://tactfolio.com/etf/vdc.md): Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF, 0.09% a year
- [QUAL](https://tactfolio.com/etf/qual.md): iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF, 0.15% a year

See [all 5 VHT alternatives](https://tactfolio.com/alternatives/vht.md), compared on the same dates as VHT.

## Test VHT 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](https://tactfolio.com/builder), add VHT, 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 VHT. 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](https://tactfolio.com/docs/backtests.md) and [how to read drawdown and CAGR](https://tactfolio.com/docs/concepts/reading-a-backtest.md) for more on these measures.

## Research and test it

- [S&P 500 index](https://tactfolio.com/learn/sp500-index): The S&P 500 tracks about 500 large US companies. Learn how stocks get in, how the index is weighted, how to invest in it, and how far it has fallen before.
- [What is an ETF](https://tactfolio.com/learn/what-is-an-etf): An ETF is a fund that trades like a stock. Learn how ETFs work, what they cost, the main types, and the risks, with SEC sources.
- [ETF screener](https://tactfolio.com/screener.md): A free ETF screener for 162 US-listed funds. Filter by type, issuer and fee, sort by returns or worst drop, and compare funds side by side.
- [ETF expense ratio](https://tactfolio.com/learn/etf-expense-ratio): What an ETF expense ratio is, how the fund charges it, and how 0.03% vs 1% adds up over 10 and 30 years, with real fund examples.
- [Backtest a portfolio](https://tactfolio.com/trading-tools/backtest-portfolio): Backtest a portfolio of US stocks and ETFs. Enter tickers and shares, pick when to rebalance, and get the results with a link to share.
- [Backtesting](https://tactfolio.com/backtesting): Free backtesting software for stocks, ETFs, and crypto perps.

## Common questions

### What is the expense ratio of VHT?

VHT 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 VHT start trading?

VHT started trading on January 26, 2004. It is run by Vanguard.

### What does VHT track?

VHT tracks the MSCI US Investable Market Health Care 25/50 Index. This fund owns shares of about 410 US health care companies, such as drug makers.

### How much has VHT returned per year?

From January 2004 to October 2026, VHT returned about 10.1% a year with dividends reinvested. Its worst drop was −39.1%. Past returns do not tell you what it will do next.

### Which strategies use VHT?

None of Tactfolio's classic strategies hold VHT yet. You can test it in your own rules in the builder.

## Sources

- [Vanguard: Vanguard Health Care ETF fund page](https://investor.vanguard.com/investment-products/etfs/profile/vht)

> Not financial advice. Tactfolio is a research and automation tool. It is not a broker or a financial adviser. This page is for education only. Backtests are hypothetical. They show how rules would have done on past prices, not how they will do. All investing involves risk, including losing the money you put in.