Head-to-Head
iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF and Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF have returned almost the same
Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF
$70.33+0.08 (+0.11%)
- 0.03%
- $398.9B
- −1.9%
- 4.18%
- 9M sh
- $70.21
- low $69.65high $75.23
The ETF.net BND Grade
A
Score 85 out of 100
- 4 of 117
Score 85 of 100 falls in the A band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.
Cost
The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.A95 out of 100Rank 3 of 117Mission
Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.A100 out of 100Rank 1 of 101Risk
How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.C50 out of 100Rank 39 of 116Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.A80 out of 100Rank 11 of 117Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.A77 out of 100Rank 18 of 116Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A97 out of 100Rank 1 of 117
Our read on BND
AThe whole taxable US investment-grade bond market in one ticker for three basis points. Vanguard's core bond workhorse since 2007, now a $100B-plus fund and the thing most people picture when they say 'bond fund.'
The fund seeks to track a broad U.S. investment-grade bond benchmark. It uses passive sampling to provide diversified exposure to taxable, U.S. dollar-denominated bonds.
Why people hold it
- Charges 0.03%, roughly a tenth of the typical core bond ETF's fee. Nothing in the category charges less; SPAB and SCHZ tie it, and even Vanguard's own VCRB on the same benchmark costs more.
- Tracks the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Float Adjusted Index about as tightly as the data allows, and trades heavily enough that spreads rarely become the story.
- Pays monthly, runs over $100B, and has been operating since 2007. One of the most durable implementations in the core bond group.
Worth knowing
- This is a bond index fund, not a cash sleeve. Prices move opposite interest rates, and the broad Aggregate carries real duration risk.
- Taxable, US dollar, investment grade only. No high yield, no municipals, no non-US bonds, so income comes from the safer end of the credit ladder.
- It samples the index rather than owning every bond in it, so holdings track the benchmark's shape instead of replicating it line for line.
BND Holdings
- Bonds
- 16,242
- 5%
- Mktliq 12/31/2049
Geography
- United States93.28%
- Supranational1.41%
- Canada1.08%
- United Kingdom0.94%
- Japan0.54%
- Germany0.35%
- Mexico0.35%
- Australia0.17%
- 1.88%
BND Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
BND$9,813
Returns run to the Oct 12, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
| Period | BND |
|---|---|
| Year to date | −2.2% |
| 1 month | −1.0% |
| 3 months | −2.4% |
| 1 year | −1.9% |
| 3 years | +4.4% |
| 5 years | −0.5% |
| 10 years | +1.2% |
Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.
| Year | Return bar | BND |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | −2.2% | |
| 2025 | +7.1% | |
| 2024 | +1.4% | |
| 2023 | +5.7% | |
| 2022 | −13.3% | |
| 2021 | −1.9% | |
| 2020 | +7.7% |
BND in the news
BND Dividends
- 4.18%
- $2.94
- $0.25 per share
- Monthly
Distribution history
BND Risk
- 5.5%
How it’s calculated: standard deviation
The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.
Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.
- −0.07
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio
Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.
Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.
Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.
- −17.5%
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown
The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.
Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.
- 0.99
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
BND Cost
0.03%
BND0.03%
- The middle half of US Aggregate Bond funds
- Median 0.34%
No US Aggregate Bond fund charges less.
Other funds in US Aggregate Bond
- ASPABState Street SPDR Portfolio Aggregate Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.03%1 year return −2.0%
- ASCHZSchwab U.S. Aggregate Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.03%1 year return −1.9%
- AIUSBiShares Core Universal USD Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.06%1 year return −1.5%
- ABKAGBNY Mellon Core Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.00%1 year return −1.9%
- AIAGGiShares Core International Aggregate Bond ETFExpense ratio 0.07%1 year return +0.4%