Investing

9 Vanguard ETFs With The Lowest Expense Ratios

The Vanguard Group of Valley Forge, Pa., is beloved for its low-cost, index investment strategy. The firm offers nearly two dozen exchange-traded funds (ETFs) with expense ratios of only 0.03%. Here is a selection of nine of the most popular.…

By Carl Sullivan

Published February 1, 2026, 9:28am ET · 3 min read

text on word vanguard from gray wooden letters on a black background — © Butus / Shutterstock.com

No. 9: Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets Index Fund ETF (VEA)

This international index fund seeks to match the performance of the FTSE Developed All Cap ex U.S. Index. It invests in companies of all sizes from Canada and the major markets of Europe and the Pacific region.

VEA is up 6.31% year to date, as of Jan. 29. It has net assets of $268.97 billion, a PE ratio of 19.22, and a yield of 3.22%.

No. 8: Vanguard Long-Term Bond Fund (BLV)

A real estate play, VMBS tracks the performance of the Bloomberg U.S. MBS Float Adjusted Index. That includes U.S. agency mortgage-backed pass-through securities.

The ETF is up 0.5% YTD, with net assets of $16.62 billion. It offers a yield of 4.21%.

No. 6: Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO)

This one tracks the performance of the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Total Return Unhedged USD Index. The intermediate-duration portfolio aims to provide current income with high credit quality.

VTC provides broad, diversified exposure to the investment-grade U.S. corporate bond market, seeking to track the Bloomberg U.S. Corporate Bond Index.

The ETF’s performance year to date is up 0.4%. The fund has net assets of $1.51 billion and has a 4.77% yield.

No. 3: Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund ETF (VTI)

This one uses a benchmark index that measures the investment-grade segment of the U.S. municipal bond market. The goal is to invest at least 80% of the fund’s assets in securities whose income will be exempt from federal income taxes and the federal alternative minimum tax.

The ETF is up 0.65% YTD, with net assets of $45.15 billion. VTEB offers a yield of 3.29%.

No. 1: Vanguard Short-Term Bond Index Fund ETF (BSV)

Other Vanguard ETFs with this super low expense ratio cover intermediate-term bonds, Treasuries and corporate bonds. Find a complete list here.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

Carl Sullivan

Carl Sullivan has been a Flywheel Publishing contributor since 2020, focusing mostly on personal finance, investing and technology. He started his journalism career covering mutual funds, banking and business regulation.

Besides his freelance writing, Carl is a long-time manager of editorial teams covering a variety of topics including news, business and politics. He’s currently the North America Managing Editor for Flipboard and worked previously for Microsoft News and Newsweek.

Carl loves exploring the world and lived in India for several years. Today, he resides in New York City’s Queens borough, where you can hear hundreds of different languages just by riding the subway.

All articles →