GBTC vs VTI: Performance, Holdings, Fees & Risk
GBTC and VTI are ETFs, but they can differ materially in exposure, yield, fees and risk. GBTC is Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF, while VTI is Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF. VTI has the lower expense ratio. Current AlgovestIQ evidence has VTI ahead on AIQ Score, 60 versus 59.
| Metric | GBTC | VTI |
|---|---|---|
| Fund | ||
| Expense ratio | 1.5% | 0.03% |
| Holdings | 1 | 3,524 |
| Average volume | 1,785,034 | 3,096,956 |
| Performance | ||
| 1Y return | -24.9% | +15.8% |
| YTD return | -6.8% | +12.5% |
| Risk | ||
| Annualized volatility | 45% | 13% |
| Max drawdown (1Y) | -48.9% | -9.2% |
| Beta | 1.76 | 1.02 |
| Sharpe ratio | -0.47 | 0.86 |
| Sortino ratio | -0.73 | 1.32 |
| AlgovestIQ | ||
| AIQ Score | 59/100 | 60/100 |
| AIQ Edge Score | 7/10 | 8/10 |
| Momentum | 56/100 | 51/100 |
| Risk Resilience | 52/100 | 86/100 |
AlgovestIQ AIQ Comparison
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF vs Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF
VTI leads
VTI leads by 1 AIQ points, primarily on Risk Resilience and Quality, having only recently taken the lead back from GBTC.
Fragile: 1 of 3 evidence groups support VTI, the lead recently changed hands, and its current signal state is conflicted.
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF
Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF
The Algovestiq AIQ Score currently favors VTI over GBTC, 60 versus 59 as of Oct 22, 2026. VTI's advantage is driven primarily by stronger risk resilience and quality, while GBTC holds the stronger momentum profile. VTI also shows the weaker technical structure relative to its 50-day moving average. 1 of 3 covered evidence groups favor VTI today, and the comparison is rated Fragile on stability: the AIQ gap is narrow at 1 points. VTI lead: Reversed — GBTC led by 2 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; VTI now leads by 1.
Compare Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF and Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF across performance, expense ratio, dividend yield, drawdown, volatility and the Algovestiq AIQ Score.
GBTC vs VTI: which fits what
Each row is settled by a single measure. Where the gap is too small to matter it reads Similar, and no row decides the comparison as a whole.
| If you want | GBTC | VTI | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower costExpense ratio | 1.5% | 0.03% | VTI |
| Smaller drawdownsMax drawdown, 1 year | -48.9% | -9.2% | VTI |
| Lower volatilityAnnualized volatility, 1 year | 45% | 13% | VTI |
Similar means the gap is within 0.01 percentage points of expense ratio, 25% more holdings, 3 points of top-10 weight, 0.2 points of yield, 2 points of drawdown or 1 point of volatility. Past drawdowns and volatility describe the funds’ history, not their future.
Performance over time
Total return with distributions reinvested, from daily closes for both ETFs.
Total return comparison
Growth of $10,000, distributions reinvested
Split-adjusted closes; each distribution is reinvested at the close on its ex-dividend date. Taxes and trading costs are not modeled.
Compare GBTC and VTI against another ticker
Open a multi-ticker workspace without changing this focused pair page.
AIQ Factor Divergence
Where the two separate, on the four dimensions behind the AIQ Score. Bars read outward from a shared zero: further from the centre is a wider gap.
- Risk Resilience52 vs 86VTI +34
- Quality65 vs 74VTI +9
- Momentum56 vs 51GBTC +5
1 of 3 evidence groups favor VTI. VTI’s edge is concentrated in risk resilience and quality; GBTC keeps a meaningful momentum edge.
What changed since the last close
Latest scored session 2026-10-20, compared against the prior scored session 2026-10-19.
Largest factor move: Momentum +3
No signal started or stopped since the prior session; its 5 active signals are unchanged.
Largest factor move: Momentum +4
No signal started or stopped since the prior session; its 5 active signals are unchanged.
VTI's lead was unchanged in the latest session.
Deeper signal detail for each name lives on its own signals page — GBTC and VTI both carry a full feed there.
The central trade-off
VTI (Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF): the stronger current systematic profile, led by risk resilience and quality.
GBTC (Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF): the counter-case, on momentum, technicals — but at materially higher volatility, 21.4% against 9.8%.
Fund facts, side by side
Two funds tracking overlapping universes are separated by cost and risk far more than by holdings. Those lead here.
| Measure | GBTC | VTI | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 1.5% | 0.03% | Lower is better — it compounds against you every year you hold. |
| Holdings | 1 | 3,524 | More holdings means broader diversification, not better returns. |
| Average volume | 1,785,034 | 3,096,956 | Liquidity — matters most if you trade size. |
| Annualized volatility | 45% | 13% | Lower is a steadier ride for the same exposure. |
| Max drawdown (1Y) | -48.9% | -9.2% | The worst peak-to-trough loss over the past year. |
| Sharpe ratio | -0.47 | 0.86 | Return per unit of risk. Higher is better. |
| Beta | 1.76 | 1.02 | Sensitivity to the broad market. Neither direction is better — it depends on the role in your portfolio. |
GBTC vs VTI: five-year payout growth
VTI grew its split-adjusted payout at 6.28% a year over 2020-2025. GBTC has no 2020-2025 growth rate to compare.
| Dividend metric | GBTC | VTI |
|---|---|---|
| Peer rank | not ranked | #81 of 138 |
Split-adjusted annual distributions, 2020–2025. Research as of Sep 19, 2026. Yield and expense ratio above are current values, not part of this window.
AIQ Agreement Matrix
1 of 3 covered evidence groups favor VTI. A wide gap backed by one group is a weaker case than a narrow gap backed by five.
| Evidence group | Favors | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| AIQ Score | Even | 59 vs 60 |
| Fundamentals | Not covered | Not covered |
| Valuation | Not covered | Not covered |
| Technicals | GBTC | Price vs 50-day 3.8% vs -0.5%; vs 200-day 11.3% vs 5.3% |
| Risk Resilience | VTI | Risk Resilience 52 vs 86 |
| Analyst expectations | Not covered | Not covered |
✓ agrees with the overall verdict · ✕ points the other way. Groups marked “not covered” lack data on one or both of GBTC and VTI and are excluded from the count.
AIQ Decision Stability
The conclusion is sensitive to small changes. Treat the lead as provisional and watch the flip conditions below.
- The AIQ gap is narrow at 1 points. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
- Only 1 of 3 covered evidence groups agree. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
- The lead has already changed hands inside the comparison window. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
- The leader is throwing conflicting signals. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
Stability combines the score gap, how broadly the evidence agrees, how steady the lead has been across daily snapshots, the current signal state on both names, and analyst dispersion on VTI.
How the comparison changed
120 daily snapshots · Jun 21 – Oct 20VTI lead: Reversed — GBTC led by 2 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; VTI now leads by 1.
- Today
- VTI +1
- 59 vs 60
- 7 sessions ago
- VTI +3
- 56 vs 59
- 30 sessions ago
- GBTC +2
- 62 vs 60
- 90 sessions ago
- VTI +6
- 60 vs 66
The lead changed hands 5 times in this window, most recently on Oct 2 when VTI moved ahead of GBTC.
AIQ Signal Divergence
Only the signals that bear on the head-to-head. A conflicted name is carrying bullish and bearish rules at the same time — the technical evidence is not pointing one way.
3 bullish / 1 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted
Only GBTC
- Bollinger Band Squeeze — neutral, volatility, short horizon
- EMA Ribbon Expansion Bullish — bullish, trend, medium horizon
- Uptrend Structure Active — bullish, trend, long horizon
2 bullish / 1 bearish / 2 neutral, conflicted
Only VTI
- ATR Contraction - Coiling — neutral, volatility, short horizon (0.96%)
- EMA Ribbon Compression — neutral, trend, medium horizon
- 52-Week High Proximity — bullish, risk, long horizon (1.7%)
Both carry 2 more signals that do not separate them: Golden Cross Active, MACD Bearish Crossover.
VTI leads the comparison while carrying a conflicted signal state, which is one reason the stability rating is not higher.
Price vs model alignment
Whether the latest session's price move confirms what the model did over the same session, or contradicts it.
Price is down while the AIQ Score moved up 1 points over the same session — price and model disagree (price -3.31%, AIQ +1 points).
Price is down while the AIQ Score moved up 1 points over the same session — price and model disagree (price -0.71%, AIQ +1 points).
What would flip this result
A state, not a forecast. These are the specific, observable changes that would reverse the verdict — not a price prediction.
- 1GBTC closes the Risk Resilience gap — currently 34 points behind, the largest single contributor to VTI's edge.
- 2GBTC's Bollinger Band Squeeze turns directional — it is neutral today and would confirm a change in trend.
- 3VTI's conflicting signal state resolves bearish — it currently carries 2 bullish and 1 bearish rules at once.
- 4A regime shift changes factor weighting — Quality and Value carry the heaviest weights in the composite, so a rotation toward either would move the result most.
The full evidence
Every number behind the verdict. The leader is called above each group so you are not left to solve it from the table.
Fundamentals
Split| Metric | GBTC | VTI |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth (YoY) | 0% | — |
| EPS growth (YoY) | 0% | — |
| Gross margin | 0% | — |
| Operating margin | 0% | — |
| Return on equity (TTM) | 0% | — |
| Debt to equity | 0 | — |
Performance
Split across windows| Metric | GBTC | VTI |
|---|---|---|
| 1 week (5 sessions) | -0.9% | -1.1% |
| 1 month (20 sessions) | -4.4% | -1.1% |
| 3 months (63 sessions) | 24.7% | 2.2% |
| 6 months (126 sessions) | 9.2% | 8.4% |
| Year to date | -6.8% | 12.5% |
| 1 year (252 sessions) | -24.9% | 15.8% |
Technicals
GBTC has the stronger structure| Metric | GBTC | VTI |
|---|---|---|
| RSI (14) | 45.4 | 55.2 |
| ADX (14) | 22 | 13.4 |
| Price vs 50-day | 3.8% | -0.5% |
| Price vs 200-day | 11.3% | 5.3% |
| Volatility (1M, annualized) | 21.4% | 9.8% |
Risk
VTI is the more resilient| Metric | GBTC | VTI |
|---|---|---|
| Beta | 1.76 | 1.02 |
| Sharpe ratio | -0.47 | 0.86 |
| Sortino ratio | -0.73 | 1.32 |
| Max drawdown | -48.9% | -9.2% |
| Current drawdown | -28.4% | -1.9% |
| Annualized volatility | 45% | 13% |
| Value at risk (95%) | -4% | -1.4% |
Straight answers
Short answers to the questions fund investors ask about this pair, from the figures above.
Which has the lower expense ratio?
VTI has the lower expense ratio, 0.03% a year against 1.5% for GBTC.
Which ETF has been more volatile?
GBTC has been more volatile over the past year, at 45% annualized against 13% for VTI.
Which ETF has had the smaller drawdown?
VTI fell less from peak to trough over the past year: -9.2% against -48.9% for GBTC.
Compare GBTC and VTI with others
Continue your research
This page answers which of the two. These answer the questions on either side of it.
How this comparison is scored
The Algovestiq AIQ Score composites four factors — Quality, Value, Momentum and Risk, each carrying a fixed weight. Sentiment is reported separately as SentimentPulse and is not folded into the composite. Scores refresh every trading day, and this page regenerates from the latest snapshot rather than being written once.
The verdict names a leader, states how broadly six independent evidence groups agree, and rates how durable that conclusion is given the score gap, its recent trajectory and the current signal state on both names.
How to use side-by-side comparison →This comparison is informational and educational, not investment advice. AIQ scores update daily; re-check after earnings, guidance or macro data that materially changes either name’s factor profile.