Vanguard ETF Tops iShares Peer in Yield and Cost Efficiency

John Ballard, The Motley Fool

Mon, June 22, 2026 astatine 12:17 PM CDT 4 min read

The Vanguard Intermediate-Term Treasury ETF (NASDAQ:VGIT) and the iShares 3-7 Year Treasury Bond ETF (NASDAQ:IEI) Both connection high-quality authorities enslaved exposure, but VGIT carries a little outgo and somewhat longer maturity profile.

Investors seeking a haven often crook to intermediate U.S. Treasuries to equilibrium output and involvement complaint risk. By focusing connected the mediate of the output curve, these ETFs purpose to supply higher returns than cash-like instruments portion avoiding the volatility of semipermanent Treasury bonds. While some funds clasp government-backed debt, IEI targets a tighter three- to seven-year window, whereas VGIT extends its scope to 10 years.

Snapshot (cost & size)

Beta measures terms volatility comparative to the S&P 500; beta is calculated from five-year monthly returns. The 1-yr instrumentality represents full instrumentality implicit the trailing 12 months. Dividend output is the trailing-12-month organisation yield.

The Vanguard money is the wide person successful outgo efficiency, charging an disbursal ratio of 0.03%, which is 0.12 percent points little than its iShares peer. Additionally, the Vanguard money offers a higher payout, with a trailing-12-month organisation output of 3.90% compared to 3.60% for the iShares fund.

Performance & hazard examination

What's wrong

The iShares 3-7 Year Treasury Bond ETF (NASDAQ:IEI) It is simply a fixed-income money holding 82 U.S. Treasury securities with remaining maturities betwixt 3 and 7 years. Its portfolio is constructed to reflector the returns of government-backed indebtedness wrong this circumstantial duration window. Its largest positions see assorted Treasury notes, specified arsenic the Treasury Note 4.38% 11/30/2030, Treasury Note 4.00% 02/28/2030, and Treasury Note 1.38% 11/15/2031. This money was launched successful 2007 and has a trailing-12-month dividend of $4.26 per share.

The Vanguard Intermediate-Term Treasury ETF (NASDAQ:VGIT) It is simply a fixed-income money that tracks a somewhat broader three- to ten-year maturity range, which whitethorn summation its sensitivity to involvement complaint changes. It holds 76 securities, and its largest positions see the United States Treasury Note/Bond 4.63% 02/15/2035, United States Treasury Note/Bond 4.38% 05/15/2034, and United States Treasury Note/Bond 4.25% 08/15/2035. Launched successful 2009, the Vanguard money has a trailing-12-month dividend of $2.27 per share.