Best ETFs
Schwab's dividend ETF returned 22.8% in a year. Its income rate still trails a one-month bill.
Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF
$159.11−0.13 (−0.08%)
- 0.04%
- $100.8B
- +18.7%
- 2.31%
- 1.2M sh
- $159.25
- low $138.27high $167.61
The ETF.net VYM Grade
A
Score 81 out of 100
- 2 of 99
Score 81 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.A99 out of 100Rank 1 of 99Mission
Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.A81 out of 100Rank 43 of 86Risk
How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.A84 out of 100Rank 6 of 97Tradability
How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.B61 out of 100Rank 28 of 99Holdings
How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.C53 out of 100Rank 54 of 98Durability
Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.A95 out of 100Rank 1 of 99
Our read on VYM
AThe no-frills dividend workhorse. VYM buys the higher-yielding end of the US market, roughly 600 names, for four basis points: no quality screen, no dividend-growth-streak test, just yield, at scale since 2006.
The Fund seeks to track a benchmark index measuring the investment return of common stocks from companies characterized by high dividend yields.
Why people hold it
- Four basis points a year, against a peer-group median near 0.32%. Cheaper than cohort neighbors VONV (0.06%) and FNDX (0.25%).
- Running since 2006 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund that trades actively, so ordinary orders tend to fill at tight spreads.
- Simple mandate: track the FTSE High Dividend Yield Index of US common stocks screened on yield. No manager discretion, no options overlay, plain 1940-Act fund.fund-docs.vanguard.com
- Pays quarterly, and among 100-plus value and multifactor rivals it stands as one of the strongest overall packages in the group.
Worth knowing
- The screen is yield, not payout growth or dividend quality, so a company can qualify simply because its share price fell.
- This is a value slice by design, tilted to established payers, so it behaves differently from a total US market fund.
- Roughly 600 holdings, but weight leans toward the largest payers, so the top of the roster does more of the work than the count suggests.
VYM Holdings
- Stocks
- 609
- 26%
- AVGO
Sectors
- Financials21.7%
- Technology17.0%
- Health Care13.6%
- Industrials11.6%
- Energy10.0%
- Consumer Staples8.1%
- Consumer Discretionary6.3%
- Utilities5.1%
- Communication3.4%
- Materials3.3%
- Real Estate0.0%
Geography
- United States100.00%
VYM Performance
Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.
VYM$11,868
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 | VYM |
|---|---|
| Year to date | +12.9% |
| 1 month | −1.7% |
| 3 months | −0.6% |
| 1 year | +18.7% |
| 3 years | +19.1% |
| 5 years | +11.9% |
| 10 years | +11.7% |
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 | VYM |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | +12.9% | |
| 2025 | +15.4% | |
| 2024 | +17.6% | |
| 2023 | +6.6% | |
| 2022 | −0.5% | |
| 2021 | +26.2% | |
| 2020 | +1.1% |
VYM in the news
Category Review
US multifactor funds ran 30 points apart
Behind the Index
The S&P 500 fell on chips. The average stock in it rose
VYM Dividends
- 2.31%
- $3.68
- $0.89 per share
- Quarterly
Distribution history
VYM Risk
- 11.2%
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.
- 1.12
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.
- −15.9%
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.
- 0.75
How it’s calculated: beta
The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.
VYM Cost
0.04%
VYM0.04%
- The middle half of US Multifactor funds
- Median 0.30%
No US Multifactor fund charges less.
Other funds in US Multifactor
- AVONVVanguard Russell 1000 Value ETFExpense ratio 0.06%1 year return +29.8%
- AILCViShares Morningstar Value ETFExpense ratio 0.04%1 year return +25.2%
- AIUSGiShares Core S&P U.S. Growth ETFExpense ratio 0.04%1 year return +22.8%
- ALRGFiShares U.S. Equity Factor ETFExpense ratio 0.08%1 year return +19.5%
- AFNDXSchwab Fundamental U.S. Large Company ETFExpense ratio 0.25%1 year return +27.8%