VTI vs SPHQ: which ETF won each year?
Yearly returns side by side, one winner per year — dividends included, priced as you'd actually buy them.
VTItracks the CRSP US Total Market Index
SPHQtracks the S&P 500 Quality Index
VTI tracks the CRSP US Total Market IndexSPHQ tracks the S&P 500 Quality Index
What did the last 10 years do to $10,000?
You invest $10,000 at the start of the window and touch nothing — dividends reinvested, the running year not counted.
VTI vs SPHQ, year by year
Calendar-year total returns (dividends included) side by side, and who took the crown each year. A dash means the fund did not exist yet.
| Year | VTI | SPHQ | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | +11.04% | +20.79% | SPHQ |
| 2025 | +17.10% | +13.25% | VTI |
| 2024 | +23.81% | +25.44% | SPHQ |
| 2023 | +26.05% | +24.83% | VTI |
| 2022 | -19.52% | -15.76% | SPHQ |
| 2021 | +25.68% | +27.59% | SPHQ |
| 2020 | +21.08% | +16.93% | VTI |
| 2019 | +30.67% | +33.63% | SPHQ |
| 2018 | -5.23% | -7.09% | VTI |
| 2017 | +21.21% | +19.10% | VTI |
| 2016 | +12.82% | +14.30% | SPHQ |
| 2015 | +0.36% | +1.64% | SPHQ |
| 2014 | +12.55% | +16.08% | SPHQ |
| 2013 | +33.45% | +32.73% | VTI |
| 2012 | +16.45% | +14.32% | VTI |
| 2011 | +0.97% | +6.28% | SPHQ |
| 2010 | +17.43% | +20.50% | SPHQ |
| 2009 | +28.90% | +12.59% | VTI |
| 2008 | -36.99% | -46.35% | VTI |
| 2007 | +5.37% | +16.77% | SPHQ |
| 2006 | +15.70% | +4.58% | VTI |
| 2005 | +6.30% | -2.05% | VTI |
| 2004 | +12.78% | — | — |
| 2003 | +30.74% | — | — |
| 2002 | -20.48% | — | — |
| 2001 | -4.40% | — | — |
VTI vs SPHQ in plain words
VTI tracks the CRSP US Total Market Index while SPHQ follows the S&P 500 Quality Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. VTI charges 0.03% a year in running costs and SPHQ charges 0.15% — VTI is the cheaper fund to hold.
Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically. Across the 22 calendar years both funds were trading, VTI finished the year ahead 11 times and SPHQ 11 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $37,896 in VTI versus $37,666 in SPHQ by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested.
Fund facts: VTI vs SPHQ
| Fact | VTI | SPHQ |
|---|---|---|
| Fund | Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF | Invesco S&P 500 Quality ETF |
| Tracks | CRSP US Total Market Index | S&P 500 Quality Index |
| Yearly cost (TER) | 0.03% | 0.15% |
| Dividends | Distributing — dividends paid out | Distributing — dividends paid out |
| Launched | 24 May 2001 | 6 Dec 2005 |
Frequently asked
Is VTI or SPHQ better?
Across the 22 calendar years both funds were trading, VTI finished the year ahead 11 times and SPHQ 11 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $37,896 in VTI versus $37,666 in SPHQ by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested. Past returns don't promise future ones — but this is what actually happened.
What is the difference between VTI and SPHQ?
VTI tracks the CRSP US Total Market Index while SPHQ follows the S&P 500 Quality Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. VTI charges 0.03% a year in running costs and SPHQ charges 0.15% — VTI is the cheaper fund to hold. Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically.
What would $10,000 in VTI have become?
$10,000 invested in VTI at the start of 2016 grew to $37,896 by the end of 2025, with dividends reinvested — an average of 14.3% per year.