VIGI vs XYLD: Performance, Holdings, Fees & Risk

VIGI and XYLD are ETFs, but they can differ materially in exposure, yield, fees and risk. VIGI is Vanguard International Dividend Appreciation ETF, while XYLD is Global X - S&P 500 Covered Call ETF. XYLD is broader by holdings count, with 507 positions versus 367 for VIGI. VIGI has the lower expense ratio. Current AlgovestIQ evidence has VIGI ahead on AIQ Score, 63 versus 48.

Market data as of Oct 21, 2026 market close· Fund characteristics as of Oct 21, 2026
VIGI
Vanguard
vs
XYLD
Global X
VIGI
Vanguard International Dividend Appreciation ETF
Issuer
Vanguard
Inception
2016-02-25
XYLD
Global X - S&P 500 Covered Call ETF
Issuer
Global X
Inception
2013-06-21

What is the main difference between VIGI and XYLD?

VIGI and XYLD have little in common: 0% of their weight is in the same securities.

Expense ratio
VIGI
0.07%
XYLD
0.6%
Lower annual fund costVIGI
Holdings
VIGI
367
XYLD
507
Broader reported basketXYLD
1Y return
VIGI
+7.8%
XYLD
+4.9%
Trailing performanceVIGI
Annualized volatility
VIGI
13.3%
XYLD
7.5%
Lower realized volatilityXYLD
MetricVIGIXYLD
Fund
Expense ratio0.07%0.6%
Holdings367507
Top-10 concentration35.2%38%
Distribution yieldTrailing 12 months2.14%10.24%
Average volume263,825625,833
Performance
1Y return+7.8%+4.9%
YTD return+6.5%+1.9%
5Y annualized returnTotal return, distributions reinvested+4.9%+7.4%
Risk
Annualized volatility13.3%7.5%
Max drawdown (1Y)-11.2%-6.6%
Max drawdown (5Y)Total return, distributions reinvested-27.7%-18.7%
Beta0.730.47
Sharpe ratio0.310.05
Sortino ratio0.500.06
AlgovestIQ
AIQ Score63/10048/100
AIQ Edge Score9/103/10
Momentum80/10044/100
Risk Resilience76/10074/100

AlgovestIQ AIQ Comparison

Vanguard International Dividend Appreciation ETF vs Global X - S&P 500 Covered Call ETF

Data as of Oct 21, 2026· market close· Dividend & Income· Coverage 64/66 fields· High confidence
AIQ VerdictFragileAIQ Comparison Conviction 6/10

VIGI leads

VIGI leads by 15 AIQ points, primarily on Momentum and Value, having only recently taken the lead back from XYLD.

Fragile: 3 of 4 evidence groups support VIGI, the lead recently changed hands, and its current signal state is conflicted.

Evidence agreement: 3 of 4Comparison trend: Reversed
VIGI

Vanguard International Dividend Appreciation ETF

Leads
AIQ Score
63/100
AIQ Edge Score
9/10
XYLD

Global X - S&P 500 Covered Call ETF

AIQ Score
48/100
AIQ Edge Score
3/10

The Algovestiq AIQ Score currently favors VIGI over XYLD, 63 versus 48 as of Oct 21, 2026. VIGI's advantage is driven primarily by stronger momentum and value. VIGI also shows the stronger technical structure relative to its 50-day moving average. 3 of 4 covered evidence groups favor VIGI today, and the comparison is rated Fragile on stability: the lead has already changed hands inside the comparison window. VIGI lead: Reversed — XYLD led by 2 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; VIGI now leads by 15.

Compare Vanguard International Dividend Appreciation ETF and Global X - S&P 500 Covered Call ETF across performance, expense ratio, dividend yield, drawdown, volatility and the Algovestiq AIQ Score.

VIGI vs XYLD: 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 wantVIGIXYLDFits
Lower costExpense ratio0.07%0.6%VIGI
Broader diversificationNumber of holdings367507XYLD
Lower concentrationWeight of the 10 largest holdings35.2%38%Similar
Higher incomeTrailing 12-month distribution yield2.14%10.24%XYLD
Smaller drawdownsMax drawdown, 5 years-27.7%-18.7%XYLD
Lower volatilityAnnualized volatility, 1 year13.3%7.5%XYLD

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.

Currently unavailable

Performance over time

Total return with distributions reinvested, from daily closes for both ETFs.

VIGI
+26.8%
XYLD
+43.0%

Total return comparison

Growth of $10,000, distributions reinvested

VIGI $12,682 · XYLD $14,295

Split-adjusted closes; each distribution is reinvested at the close on its ex-dividend date. Taxes and trading costs are not modeled.

Compare VIGI and XYLD against another ticker

Open a multi-ticker workspace without changing this focused pair page.

Basic: 2 symbols·Explorer: 3 symbols·Pro and Premium: 5 symbols·Your limit: 2

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.

VIGI advantage
0
XYLD advantage
  • Momentum80 vs 44
    VIGI +36
  • Value51 vs 35
    VIGI +16
  • Risk Resilience76 vs 74
    Even
  • Quality53 vs 52
    Even

3 of 4 evidence groups favor VIGI. VIGI’s edge is concentrated in momentum and value.

What changed since the last close

Latest scored session 2026-10-20, compared against the prior scored session 2026-10-19.

VIGI+6 AIQ

Largest factor move: Momentum +21

New signals

  • BB Upper Band Breach — bearish, volatility, short horizon
  • Keltner Channel Breakout — bullish, volatility, short horizon
  • RSI Overbought — bearish, momentum, short horizon
XYLD0 AIQ

Largest factor move: Momentum +2, not enough on its own to move the overall score.

No signal started or stopped since the prior session; its 5 active signals are unchanged.

VIGI's lead widened by 6 AIQ points in the latest session.

Deeper signal detail for each name lives on its own signals page — VIGI and XYLD both carry a full feed there.

Fund facts, side by side

Two funds tracking overlapping universes are separated by cost and risk far more than by holdings. Those lead here.

MeasureVIGIXYLDWhy it matters
Expense ratio0.07%0.6%Lower is better — it compounds against you every year you hold.
Holdings367507More holdings means broader diversification, not better returns.
Average volume263,825625,833Liquidity — matters most if you trade size.
Annualized volatility13.3%7.5%Lower is a steadier ride for the same exposure.
Max drawdown (1Y)-11.2%-6.6%The worst peak-to-trough loss over the past year.
Sharpe ratio0.310.05Return per unit of risk. Higher is better.
Beta0.730.47Sensitivity to the broad market. Neither direction is better — it depends on the role in your portfolio.

Where the exposure actually sits

Sector exposure for each fund, ordered by the size of the difference.

Technology13.8% vs 40.5%
Financial Services29.6% vs 11.2%
Industrials16.9% vs 7.5%
Communication Services1.5% vs 9.9%
Consumer Cyclical2.6% vs 8.8%
Consumer Defensive9.2% vs 4.3%
Healthcare14.0% vs 9.3%
Utilities4.7% vs 1.9%
VIGIXYLD

How much of the same holdings they own

VIGI and XYLD share 0% of their weighted exposure across 0 common holdings.

337 holdings are unique to VIGI, and 504 holdings are unique to XYLD. Owning both is genuinely additive — most of the capital sits in different securities.

XYLD is the more concentrated of the two: its ten largest positions are 38% of the fund, against 35.17% for VIGI (507 holdings vs 367). Concentration cuts both ways — it is what drives outperformance when the top names work, and what makes the drawdown deeper when they do not.

What VIGI adds that XYLD doesn’t

HoldingVIGIXYLD
8306.TMitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc4.59%Not held
RY.TORoyal Bank of Canada4.58%Not held
SAP.DESAP SE3.81%Not held
NESN.SWNestle SA3.5%Not held
TD.TOToronto-Dominion Bank/The3.43%Not held
ROP.SWRoche Holding AG3.37%Not held

What XYLD adds that VIGI doesn’t

HoldingXYLDVIGI
NVDANVIDIA CORP7.97%Not held
AAPLAPPLE INC7.36%Not held
MSFTMICROSOFT CORP5.55%Not held
AMZNAMAZON.COM INC3.79%Not held
GOOGLALPHABET INC-CL A2.99%Not held
AVGOBROADCOM INC2.58%Not held

Each list is a fund’s largest positions by weight that the other fund does not hold, or holds at less than half the weight.

VIGI vs XYLD: five-year payout growth

VIGI grew its split-adjusted payout faster over 2020-2025 — 13.31% a year against XYLD's 3.02%. VIGI: The 2020 payout was 20.5% below 2019, so the growth rate measures a recovery from a weak starting year. VIGI: The payout jumped 471.4% in 2021, a single step rather than steady compounding - often an index or mandate change.

Dividend metricVIGIXYLD
5Y payout CAGR13.31%3.02%
2020 annual payout$1.049$3.681
2025 annual payout$1.960$4.271
Calendar-year declines12
Peer rank#2 of 33#2 of 3

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

3 of 4 covered evidence groups favor VIGI. A wide gap backed by one group is a weaker case than a narrow gap backed by five.

Evidence groupFavorsReading
AIQ ScoreVIGI63 vs 48
FundamentalsNot coveredNot covered
ValuationVIGIValue 51 vs 35
TechnicalsVIGIPrice vs 50-day 1.1% vs -0.2%; vs 200-day 3.5% vs 1.5%
Risk ResilienceEvenRisk Resilience 76 vs 74
Analyst expectationsNot coveredNot covered

✓ agrees with the overall verdict · ✕ points the other way. Groups marked “not covered” lack data on one or both of VIGI and XYLD and are excluded from the count.

AIQ Decision Stability

Fragile

The conclusion is sensitive to small changes. Treat the lead as provisional and watch the flip conditions below.

  • The AIQ gap is wide at 15 points. (supports the conclusion holding)
  • 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 VIGI.

How the comparison changed

41 daily snapshots · Sep 8 – Oct 20

VIGI lead: Reversed — XYLD led by 2 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; VIGI now leads by 15.

Sep 8VIGI leads above the line · XYLD leads belowOct 20
Today
VIGI +15
63 vs 48
7 sessions ago
XYLD +1
56 vs 57
30 sessions ago
XYLD +2
52 vs 54
90 sessions ago
Not covered

The lead changed hands 2 times in this window, most recently on Oct 19 when VIGI moved ahead of XYLD.

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.

VIGIConflicted

5 bullish / 2 bearish / 3 neutral, conflicted

Only VIGI

  • Bollinger Band Squeeze — neutral, volatility, short horizon
  • BB Upper Band Breach — bearish, volatility, short horizon
  • Keltner Channel Breakout — bullish, volatility, short horizon
  • RSI Overbought — bearish, momentum, short horizon
  • EMA Ribbon Compression — neutral, trend, medium horizon
  • Uptrend Structure Active — bullish, trend, long horizon
  • MACD Bullish Crossover — bullish, momentum, short horizon
XYLDConflicted

3 bullish / 1 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted

Only XYLD

  • EMA Ribbon Expansion Bullish — bullish, trend, medium horizon
  • MACD Bearish Crossover — bearish, momentum, short horizon

Both carry 3 more signals that do not separate them: Golden Cross Active, ATR Contraction - Coiling, 52-Week High Proximity.

VIGI 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.

VIGIConfirmed strength

Price and the AIQ Score both moved up over the latest session (price +0.57%, AIQ +6 points).

XYLDNo material change

Neither the price nor the AIQ Score moved enough in the latest session to confirm or contradict the other (price +0.34%, AIQ 0 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.

  1. 1XYLD closes the Momentum gap — currently 36 points behind, the largest single contributor to VIGI's edge.
  2. 2XYLD generates a confirmed bullish trend signal it does not currently carry, such as MACD Bullish Crossover or Uptrend Structure Active.
  3. 3VIGI's conflicting signal state resolves bearish — it currently carries 5 bullish and 2 bearish rules at once.
  4. 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.

Performance

VIGI leads 6 of 6 windows
MetricVIGIXYLD
1 week (5 sessions)2.3%-1.3%
1 month (20 sessions)0.7%-0.6%
3 months (63 sessions)2.7%1.1%
6 months (126 sessions)6.4%4.2%
Year to date6.5%1.9%
1 year (252 sessions)7.8%4.9%

Technicals

VIGI has the stronger structure
MetricVIGIXYLD
RSI (14)70.345.2
ADX (14)20.314.6
Price vs 50-day1.1%-0.2%
Price vs 200-day3.5%1.5%
Volatility (1M, annualized)11.7%4.9%

Risk

Split
MetricVIGIXYLD
Beta0.730.47
Sharpe ratio0.310.05
Sortino ratio0.50.06
Max drawdown-11.2%-6.6%
Current drawdown-2.4%-1.4%
Annualized volatility13.3%7.5%
Value at risk (95%)-1.4%-0.9%

Straight answers

Short answers to the questions fund investors ask about this pair, from the figures above.

What is the difference between VIGI and XYLD?

VIGI and XYLD have little in common: 0% of their weight is in the same securities.

How much do VIGI and XYLD overlap?

VIGI and XYLD share 0% of their weighted exposure across 0 common holdings. 337 holdings are unique to VIGI, and 504 holdings are unique to XYLD. Owning both is genuinely additive — most of the capital sits in different securities.

Which ETF is more diversified, VIGI or XYLD?

XYLD holds more positions: 507 versus 367 for VIGI.

Which has the lower expense ratio?

VIGI has the lower expense ratio, 0.07% a year against 0.6% for XYLD.

Which ETF has the higher distribution yield?

XYLD, with a trailing 12-month distribution yield of 10.24% against 2.14% for VIGI.

Which ETF has been more volatile?

VIGI has been more volatile over the past year, at 13.3% annualized against 7.5% for XYLD.

Which ETF has had the smaller drawdown?

XYLD fell less from peak to trough over the past five years: -18.7% against -27.7% for VIGI.

Compare VIGI and XYLD 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.