FTCA vs VCRM: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Franklin California Municipal Income ETF

FTCACNYSE Arca

Vanguard Core Tax-Exempt Bond E

VCRMACboe

Overlap

No data

Expense ratio

VCRM −0.23pt a year

FTCA0.35%VCRM0.12%

Avg volume · 30D

VCRM 1.04×the volume

FTCA703KVCRM730K

FTCA vs VCRM Performance

Nov 7, 2025 – Nov 9, 2026

+1.1%FTCA+2.3%VCRM

Expense ratio: FTCA 0.35%; VCRM 0.12%, better
Fund size: FTCA $769M; VCRM $2.2B
1Y total return: FTCA +1.1%; VCRM +2.3%, better
Yield (12M): FTCA No data; VCRM 3.75%
Holdings: FTCA 333; VCRM 2595
Avg volume (30D): FTCA 703K sh; VCRM 730K sh, better
NAV per share: FTCA $7.13; VCRM $74.68
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for FTCA, VCRM, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	FTCA	VCRM
Cost30% weight	D35	A89Higher
Mission25% weight	A86	A100Higher
Risk15% weight	C49	A72Higher
Tradability15% weight	B56	A82Higher
Holdings10% weight	D31	A81Higher
Durability5% weight	A70	A74Higher

Rank among Other Municipal Bond funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. FTCA and VCRM are both graded against the same 63 Other Municipal Bond funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Other Municipal Bond⁠

Category · 63 funds

See all 63 ›

VCRM ranks 2nd and FTCA 41st of 63 funds in the Other Municipal Bond Category.

Rank 1AVTEBVanguard Tax-Exempt Bond ETFScore 89
Rank 2AVCRMVanguard Core Tax-Exempt Bond EScore 86
Rank 3AMUBiShares National Muni Bond ETFScore 85
Rank 39BMUNXAMG GW&K Muni Income ETFScore 55
Rank 41CFTCAFranklin California Municipal Income ETFScore 54
Rank 41CFTMNFranklin Minnesota Municipal Income ETFScore 54

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

FTCACFranklin California Municipal Income ETF

VCRMAVanguard Core Tax-Exempt Bond E

In short

FTCA Roots back to 1983 and one job since: California muni income the fund seeks to keep exempt from both the federal and the state tax bill. About 300 investment-grade bonds, maturities of three years and up.

VCRM Vanguard's active answer in a mostly-index category: managers working the whole muni curve for 0.12% a year, under half the muni ETF median fee. Monthly income, exempt from federal personal income taxes.

Stated mandate

FTCA The fund seeks high current income exempt from federal and California personal income taxes while preserving capital. It primarily invests in investment-grade municipal bonds with maturities of at least three years.

VCRM The fund seeks total return through current income exempt from federal personal income taxes and capital appreciation.

Why people hold it

FTCA Goes for the double exemption: income the fund targets as free from federal and California personal income taxes, not just the federal side.
The strategy's inception dates to 1983, decades before most of today's muni ETF shelf existed.
Spread across roughly 300 investment-grade municipal bonds with maturities of at least three years, so no single issuer carries the portfolio.
Run by Franklin Templeton and benchmarked to the Bloomberg Municipal Bond Index, so its results are measured against the broad muni market rather than a niche yardstick.

VCRM Active management priced at 0.12% a year, less than half the 0.30% median for muni ETFs.
Run by Vanguard's Fixed Income Group, with all-curve exposure to primarily high-quality investment-grade munis spread across sectors, states and credit tiers.prnewswire.com
Pays monthly, with income the fund seeks to keep exempt from federal personal income taxes.vanguard.com
Sticks tightly to its stated mandate and grades among the strongest implementations in its muni peer group.

Worth knowing

FTCA The 0.35% fee sits above the muni-ETF norm, and broad index rivals like VTEB (0.03%) and MUB (0.05%) charge a fraction of it. Single-state coverage costs more.
One state, one credit story. California budgets and issuers drive it, without the geographic spread of a national muni fund.
Current income is the stated goal, but the fund doesn't lock in a payout frequency, so distribution timing isn't on a fixed calendar.

VCRM You pay up for the manager: index peers VTEB and SCMB run at 0.03%, a quarter of VCRM's 0.12%.
Launched in November 2024, so there is only a short record to judge the active mandate on.
All-curve exposure puts longer maturities in the mix, so prices move with rates. And the exemption is federal: state treatment of a national muni fund depends on where you live.prnewswire.com

Full FTCA profile⁠

Full VCRM profile⁠

FTCA vs VCRM Holdings

How FTCA and VCRM differ

No overlap figure

Two bond funds rarely hold the same issues.

Level by level

Asset classBonds100%
Countryby domicile99.9%
Sector2 Sectors99.7%

Sector

Sector weights in FTCA and VCRM, widest gap first
Sector	More in FTCAMore in VCRM	Gap	FTCA	VCRM
Municipal		FTCA +0.3 points	100.0%	99.7%
Securitized		VCRM +0.3 points	0.0%	0.3%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in FTCA and VCRM, widest gap first
Country	More in FTCAMore in VCRM	Gap	FTCA	VCRM
United States		VCRM +0.1 points	99.7%	99.8%
Puerto Rico		FTCA +0.1 points	0.3%	0.2%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

FTCA25.8%
VCRM8.8%

Securities held

FTCA328
VCRM2,433

Asset class

FTCA: Bonds
VCRM: Bonds

Holdings

Two bond funds rarely hold the same issues, so this page lists no shared Holdings. FTCA holds 328 securities, VCRM 2,433.

All 301 FTCA holdings⁠All 2,586 VCRM holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

FTCA vs VCRM Cost

Overpaying FTCA vs VCRM

$4,606

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

FTCA 0.35%
$7,126
VCRM 0.12%
$2,520

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

FTCA 0.35%
VCRM 0.12%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	FTCA	VCRM	Overpaying
10	$634	$220	$414
20	$2,454	$859	$1,595
30	$7,126	$2,520	$4,606

Expense ratio

0.35%FTCA
0.12%VCRM, cheaper

VCRM0.12%FTCA0.35%

0.03%4.59%

Middle half of Other Municipal Bond funds
Median 0.30%

VCRM 8th cheapest of 63 funds

FTCA 37th cheapest of 63 funds

FTCA vs VCRM Dividends

Last 12 months to Nov 9, 2026

Yield (12M): FTCA No data; VCRM 3.75%
Payout (12M): FTCA No data; VCRM $2.80
Last payment: FTCA $0.02; VCRM $0.21
Ex-dividend: FTCA Nov 2, 2026; VCRM Nov 2, 2026
Paid on: FTCA Nov 5, 2026; VCRM Nov 4, 2026
Frequency: FTCA Monthly; VCRM Monthly

Distribution history

Per share, 2024 to 2026, same scale for both

FTCAMonthly · 12 paymentsAll FTCA payments⁠

VCRMMonthly · 23 paymentsAll VCRM payments⁠

FTCA vs VCRM Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: FTCA 7.4%since Nov 2025VCRM 5.6%since Dec 2024
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: FTCA −0.49since Nov 2025VCRM −0.32since Dec 2024
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: FTCA −8.1%since Oct 2025VCRM −6.3%since Nov 2024
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: FTCA 0.15VCRM 0.17; Market = 1

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