Over the trailing five-year window, VTSAX and VTI moved almost in lockstep (daily-return correlation 1.00), so holding both adds little diversification.
VTI delivered the higher five-year annualized total return (6.1% vs 5.7% for VTSAX), though it is only one window and says nothing about the future.
On cost, VTI is cheaper — 0.03% versus 0.04% for VTSAX.
The numbers, side by side
Per-fund metrics. Returns are total return (dividends reinvested, net of fees); volatility, drawdown and correlation are computed from daily closing prices over the trailing five-year window ending Sep 25, 2026.
| Metric | VTSAX | VTI |
|---|---|---|
| 5-yr annualized returntotal return, incl. dividends & fees | 5.7% | 6.1% |
| 5-yr annualized volatilitystandard deviation of daily returns | 17.5% | 17.6% |
| Max drawdown (5-yr window)worst peak-to-trough decline | -26.2% | -26.2% |
| Return per unit of riskSharpe-style, 4.7% risk-free | 0.06 | 0.08 |
| Expense ratioannual fund cost | 0.04% | 0.03% |
How similar are they?
| Relationship metric | VTSAX & VTI |
|---|---|
| Correlation of daily returns5-yr; 1.00 = moves identically | 1.00 |
| Sector overlapΣ min(weight) across sectors | 56.0% |
Where each fund is concentrated
VTSAX — top sectors
- Technology36.37%
- Financial Services12.38%
- Healthcare10.06%
VTI — top sectors
- Miscellaneous36.03%
- Healthcare15.63%
- Financial Services11.49%
Go deeper
For the full write-up, read VTI vs VOO vs VXUS: Building a Simple Three-Fund Portfolio.
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Get your free analysisFigures computed by MinMaxDoc from historical market data as of Sep 25, 2026; they will drift as markets move.