VUG vs SPMO: which ETF won each year?

Yearly returns side by side, one winner per year — dividends included, priced as you'd actually buy them.

VUG tracks the CRSP US Large Cap Growth IndexSPMO tracks the S&P 500 Momentum 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.

VUG turned it into
$49,942
+17.45% per year on average · 20162025
SPMO turned it into
$51,975
+17.92% per year on average · 20162025
Difference
−$2,033
SPMO made more of the same money

VUG vs SPMO, 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.

Years compared
12
where both funds were trading
VUG won
5
years
SPMO won
7
years
YearVUGSPMOWinner
2026 (so far)+6.18%+35.98%SPMO
2025+19.40%+26.58%SPMO
2024+32.69%+45.82%SPMO
2023+46.83%+17.56%VUG
2022-33.16%-10.45%SPMO
2021+27.35%+22.51%VUG
2020+40.25%+27.80%VUG
2019+37.03%+25.93%VUG
2018-3.32%-0.92%SPMO
2017+27.72%+27.76%SPMO
2016+6.27%+7.18%SPMO
2015+3.24%+2.78%VUG
2014+13.61%
2013+32.48%
2012+17.01%
2011+1.82%
2010+17.22%
2009+36.14%
2008-38.02%
2007+12.52%
2006+9.19%
2005+5.02%
2004+4.99%

VUG vs SPMO in plain words

VUG tracks the CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index while SPMO follows the S&P 500 Momentum Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. VUG charges 0.03% a year in running costs and SPMO charges 0.13% — VUG is the cheaper fund to hold.

Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically. Across the 12 calendar years both funds were trading, VUG finished the year ahead 5 times and SPMO 7 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $49,942 in VUG versus $51,975 in SPMO by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested.

Fund facts: VUG vs SPMO

FactVUGSPMO
FundVanguard Growth ETFInvesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF
TracksCRSP US Large Cap Growth IndexS&P 500 Momentum Index
Yearly cost (TER)0.03%0.13%
DividendsDistributing — dividends paid outDistributing — dividends paid out
Launched26 Jan 20049 Oct 2015

Frequently asked

Is VUG or SPMO better?

Across the 12 calendar years both funds were trading, VUG finished the year ahead 5 times and SPMO 7 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $49,942 in VUG versus $51,975 in SPMO 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 VUG and SPMO?

VUG tracks the CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index while SPMO follows the S&P 500 Momentum Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. VUG charges 0.03% a year in running costs and SPMO charges 0.13% — VUG 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 VUG have become?

$10,000 invested in VUG at the start of 2016 grew to $49,942 by the end of 2025, with dividends reinvested — an average of 17.4% per year.

Related comparisons

More head-to-heads featuring VUG or SPMO.