TAFI vs VSDM: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

AB Tax-Aware Short Duration Municipal ETF

TAFIBNYSE Arca

Vanguard Short Duration Tax-Exempt Bond ETF

VSDMACboe

Overlap

No data

Expense ratio

VSDM −0.15pt a year

TAFI0.27%VSDM0.12%

Avg volume · 30D

TAFI 2.3×the volume

TAFI647KVSDM280K

TAFI vs VSDM Performance

Nov 7, 2025 – Nov 9, 2026

+2.3%TAFI+2.6%VSDM

Expense ratio: TAFI 0.27%; VSDM 0.12%, better
Fund size: TAFI $1.54B; VSDM $1.2B
1Y total return: TAFI +2.3%; VSDM +2.6%, better
Yield (12M): TAFI 3.12%, better; VSDM 3.10%
Holdings: TAFI 711; VSDM 3315
Avg volume (30D): TAFI 647K sh, better; VSDM 280K sh
NAV per share: TAFI $25.02; VSDM $76.00
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for TAFI, VSDM, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	TAFI	VSDM
Cost30% weight	F24	A85Higher
Mission25% weight	A100	A100
Risk15% weight	C50Higher	C46
Tradability15% weight	A84Higher	A78
Holdings10% weight	B55	A75Higher
Durability5% weight	B67Higher	B61

Rank among Short-Duration Municipal Bonds funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. TAFI and VSDM are both graded against the same 27 Short-Duration Municipal Bonds funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Short-Duration Municipal Bonds⁠

Category · 27 funds

See all 27 ›

VSDM ranks 3rd and TAFI 14th of 27 funds in the Short-Duration Municipal Bonds Category.

Rank 1ASUBiShares Short-Term National Muni Bond ETFScore 80
Rank 1AVTESVanguard Short-Term Tax-Exempt Bond ETFScore 80
Rank 3AVSDMVanguard Short Duration Tax-Exempt Bond ETFScore 79
Rank 4ATAXSNorthern Trust Short-Term Tax-Exempt Bond ETFScore 77
Rank 14BFTMSFranklin Short-Term Municipal Income ETFScore 61
Rank 14BTAFIAB Tax-Aware Short Duration Municipal ETFScore 61
Rank 17BAUSMAllspring Ultra Short Municipal ETFScore 60

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

TAFIBAB Tax-Aware Short Duration Municipal ETF

VSDMAVanguard Short Duration Tax-Exempt Bond ETF

In short

TAFI Most muni funds own munis and nothing else. TAFI is an actively run short-duration muni portfolio with an escape hatch: up to 20% can sit in taxable bonds when those pay more on an after-tax basis.

VSDM No data

Stated mandate

TAFI The Fund seeks relative stability of principal together with a moderate after-tax return and income.

VSDM No data

Why people hold it

TAFI The taxable sleeve is the point. Up to 20% can move into taxable bonds when they beat comparable munis after tax, a lever a pure muni index fund does not have.alliancebernstein.com
Duration is targeted at one to three years, keeping rate-driven price swings modest next to intermediate and long muni funds.alliancebernstein.com
A 0.27% fee undercuts the typical muni ETF even with a live team picking bonds. Active management here costs less than the cohort median.
A multi-billion-dollar book spread across roughly 700 bonds, paying monthly, and among the smoother muni ETFs to trade in size.

VSDM No data

Worth knowing

TAFI The mandate is deliberately loose: "relative stability of principal together with a moderate after-tax return and income." No index to hold it to, so outcomes ride on manager calls.
Plain-vanilla index munis are far cheaper. VTEB and SCMB run 0.03%, so you are paying roughly nine times that for the active seat and the taxable sleeve.
Income from the taxable portion is not federally tax-exempt, so the tax profile shifts with how the managers use that flexibility.alliancebernstein.com

VSDM No data

Full TAFI profile⁠

Full VSDM profile⁠

TAFI vs VSDM Holdings

How TAFI and VSDM differ

No overlap figure

Two bond funds rarely hold the same issues.

Level by level

Sector4 Sectors96.8%
Countryby domicile97.8%
Asset classBonds100%

Sector

Sector weights in TAFI and VSDM, widest gap first
Sector	Gap	TAFI	VSDM
Municipal	VSDM +3.2 points	96.8%	100.0%
Government	TAFI +1.8 points	1.8%	0.0%
Securitized	TAFI +1.1 points	1.1%	0.0%
Corporate	TAFI +0.2 points	0.2%	0.0%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in TAFI and VSDM, widest gap first
Country	More in TAFIMore in VSDM	Gap	TAFI	VSDM
United States		VSDM +2.2 points	96.9%	99.1%
Puerto Rico		TAFI +2.2 points	3.1%	0.9%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

TAFI13.4%
VSDM5.4%

Securities held

TAFI679
VSDM2,951

Asset class

TAFI: Bonds
VSDM: Bonds

Holdings

Two bond funds rarely hold the same issues, so this page lists no shared Holdings. TAFI holds 679 securities, VSDM 2,951.

All 681 TAFI holdings⁠All 3,313 VSDM 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.

TAFI vs VSDM Cost

Overpaying TAFI vs VSDM

$3,037

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

TAFI 0.27%
$5,557
VSDM 0.12%
$2,520

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

TAFI 0.27%
VSDM 0.12%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	TAFI	VSDM	Overpaying
10	$491	$220	$271
20	$1,907	$859	$1,048
30	$5,557	$2,520	$3,037

Expense ratio

0.27%TAFI
0.12%VSDM, cheaper

VSDM0.12%TAFI0.27%

0.05%0.55%

Middle half of Short-Duration Municipal Bonds funds
Median 0.21%

VSDM 5th cheapest of 27 funds

TAFI 20th cheapest of 27 funds

TAFI vs VSDM Dividends

Last 12 months to Nov 9, 2026

Yield (12M): TAFI 3.12%, better; VSDM 3.10%
Payout (12M): TAFI $0.78; VSDM $2.36
Last payment: TAFI $0.06; VSDM $0.19
Ex-dividend: TAFI Nov 2, 2026; VSDM Nov 2, 2026
Paid on: TAFI Nov 5, 2026; VSDM Nov 4, 2026
Frequency: TAFI Monthly; VSDM Monthly

Distribution history

Per share, 2023 to 2026, same scale for both

TAFIMonthly · 46 paymentsAll TAFI payments⁠

VSDMMonthly · 23 paymentsAll VSDM payments⁠

TAFI vs VSDM Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

This chart needs five years of history for both funds.

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: TAFI 2.5%VSDM 2.9%since Dec 2024
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: TAFI −0.22VSDM −0.26since Dec 2024
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: TAFI −2.4%since Sep 2022VSDM −2.8%since Nov 2024
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: TAFI 0.35VSDM 0.09; Market = 1

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