VNQ vs VUG: how much do they really overlap?
VNQ (Vanguard Real Estate ETF, tracking the MSCI US IMI Real Estate 25/50) and VUG (Vanguard Growth ETF, tracking the CRSP US Large Cap Growth) overlap by roughly 1% by weight. 2 of VNQ's top 10 holdings also appear in VUG. A 50/50 blend of the two behaves like about 39 equally-weighted bets (diversification grade B). In short, the two funds hold almost none of the same securities — they are complementary, not redundant.
The same companies, in both funds
These 2 holdings appear in both VNQ and VUG. The weight columns show how much of each fund each name represents.
| Holding | in VNQ | in VUG |
|---|---|---|
| WELL Welltower Inc. | 7.68% | 0.40% |
| EQIX Equinix Inc. | 5.65% | 0.30% |
Only in VNQ
Vanguard Real Estate ETF — US real estate. Its biggest holdings that VUG doesn’t have:
| VRTPX Vanguard Real Estate II Index Fund Institutional Plus Shares | 14.54% |
| PLD Prologis Inc. | 7.17% |
| AMT American Tower Corp. | 4.67% |
| SPG Simon Property Group Inc. | 3.57% |
| DLR Digital Realty Trust Inc. | 3.50% |
| O Realty Income Corp. | 3.04% |
| PSA Public Storage | 2.57% |
| VTR Ventas Inc. | 2.15% |
Only in VUG
Vanguard Growth ETF — US large-cap growth. Its biggest holdings that VNQ doesn’t have:
| NVDA NVIDIA Corp. | 13.10% |
| AAPL Apple Inc. | 12.32% |
| MSFT Microsoft Corp. | 8.99% |
| GOOGL Alphabet Inc. Class A | 5.95% |
| AVGO Broadcom Inc. | 5.17% |
| AMZN Amazon.com Inc. | 4.85% |
| GOOG Alphabet Inc. Class C | 4.68% |
| META Facebook Inc. Class A | 3.73% |
So — essentially different. Should you hold both?
VNQ and VUG hold almost none of the same securities — they are complementary, not redundant. Held together they genuinely broaden your exposure — a 50/50 blend reaches ~39 effective positions (grade B), because they hold largely different securities.
Holdings as of — VNQ: May 31, 2026 (Vanguard); VUG: May 31, 2026 (Vanguard). Refreshed monthly. Overlap is measured across each fund’s largest holdings (top 50); the diffuse long tail barely moves the math.
See this for YOUR whole portfolio, free →VNQ vs VUG — FAQ
- How much do VNQ and VUG overlap?
- VNQ and VUG overlap by approximately 1% measured by portfolio weight — that is the share of the smaller fund's holdings (by weight) that also sit inside the other. 2 of VNQ's 10 largest holdings are also held by VUG. They share 2 of their listed top holdings in total.
- Is it redundant to hold both VNQ and VUG?
- Because they hold almost none of the same securities — they are complementary, not redundant, holding both is not redundant — each fund covers largely different holdings, so together they broaden your exposure. A 50/50 blend has an effective 39 positions and a B diversification grade.
- What does VUG hold that VNQ doesn't?
- VUG's largest holdings that VNQ doesn't hold include NVDA, AAPL, MSFT, GOOGL, AVGO. Its category is US large-cap growth, versus VNQ's US real estate.
- Which is more concentrated, VNQ or VUG?
- VNQ's top 10 holdings are 62% of its listed weight; VUG's are 73%. The more concentrated fund leans harder on its largest names.