Vanguard Canadian Aggregate Bond Index ETF (VAB)
Important Information
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- Investment focus:Canadian investment-grade government and corporate bonds
- Category:Canadian diversified bonds
- Management style:Index (passive)
- Managed by:Vanguard
- Market data as of:October 30, 2026
With C$7.76 billion in assets, VAB is the 3rd largest of the 42 bond ETFs WOWA tracks. Its management expense ratio (MER) is 0.08%, and over the past 12 months it paid out 3.42% of its unit price in distributions.
Jump to section: Overview • Index • Performance • Distributions • Risks • Fit • Ranking • Compare
AUM
C$7.76B
as of Oct 30, 2026
MER
0.08%
annual cost
Trailing yield
3.42%
past 12 months
5-year return
0.66%
annualized
About VAB
Vanguard Canadian Aggregate Bond Index ETF (VAB) is a bond ETF from Vanguard, launched on November 30, 2011. It tracks a Bloomberg index of the Canadian investment-grade bond market, rebalanced monthly.
What VAB tracks
| Fund detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Index | Bloomberg Global Aggregate Canadian Float Adjusted Index |
| Rebalancing | Monthly, following the index |
Bloomberg builds this index from the investment-grade Canadian bond market: bonds from Ottawa, the provinces, cities and companies, all paid in Canadian dollars. Bigger issues get bigger weights. “Aggregate” is Bloomberg’s word for the whole investment-grade market. “Float adjusted” takes out the bonds held by the Bank of Canada and other official holders, since ordinary investors can’t buy them.
VAB fund facts
ETF data as of October 30, 2026
Updated weekly| Fund detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Fund basics | |
| Ticker | VAB |
| Provider | Vanguard |
| Inception date | November 30, 2011 |
| Legal structure | Mutual fund trust |
| Management style | Index (passive) |
| Portfolio | |
| Bond market | Canada |
| Bond sector | Aggregate |
| Maturity segment | Broad |
| Credit mandate | Investment grade |
| Currency treatment | Canadian-dollar bonds |
| Number of holdings | 1,307 (as of July 31, 2026) |
| Costs and distributions | |
| Management fee | 0.08% |
| MER | 0.08% |
| Distribution frequency | Monthly |
| Trailing distribution yield | 3.42% |
| Risk rating (issuer) | Low |
| Size and trading | |
| Assets under management | C$7.76 billion (as of October 30, 2026) |
| Average daily volume | 137,803 units a day (listing exchange) |
VAB performance
ETF data as of October 30, 2026
Updated weekly| Period | VAB | Canadian diversified median |
|---|---|---|
| 1 year | -0.48% | -0.41% |
| 3 years, annualized | 4.91% | 4.86% |
| 5 years, annualized | 0.66% | 0.70% |
| 10 years, annualized | 1.39% | 1.44% |
Total returns with distributions reinvested, in CAD, as of October 30, 2026. Category median: the middle value among the funds in the Canadian diversified group with a return for that period (14 funds for one year, 13 for three and five years, 8 for ten years). N/A: no complete return record for the period. Past performance does not predict future results.
$10,000 invested in VAB ten years ago would be worth about $11,500 as of October 30, 2026, with distributions reinvested and before taxes and trading costs.
Risk and return measures
ETF data as of October 30, 2026
Updated weekly| Measure | 3 years | 5 years | 10 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Volatility | 5.21% | 6.29% | 5.52% |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.32 | -0.36 | -0.09 |
Volatility shows how much monthly returns have swung, as a yearly percentage. The Sharpe ratio compares the return above 3-month Government of Canada T-bills with that volatility. Higher means more return for each unit of risk, and below 0 means the fund earned less than T-bills.
VAB distributions
VAB pays distributions monthly. Over the 12 months to October 30, 2026, it paid 3.42% of its unit price, its trailing distribution yield. Amounts can change from one payment to the next.
What VAB’s 2025 distributions were made of
| Component | Share of total |
|---|---|
| Total distribution per unit | $0.7645 |
| Interest and other income | 97.30% |
| Foreign income | 2.70% |
- Interest and other income is taxed like employment income in a non-registered account.
- Foreign income is also taxed as regular income. For funds that hold foreign bonds, it is mostly interest from those bonds.
Inside a TFSA or RRSP, the type of income does not change your tax. Our guide to registered and non-registered accounts explains the trade-offs.
2025 tax-year breakdown reported for the fund. Shares of the total distribution per unit.
Risks to know
Vanguard rates VAB’s risk as low on the standard Canadian fund scale, which runs from low to high. The rating reflects how much the fund’s returns have varied, not the chance that a borrower defaults.
Prices fall when interest rates rise. It is dominated by government debt, so it offers little credit risk but meaningful rate risk.
- Credit: It holds mostly government and investment-grade company debt, so default risk is low.
Is VAB a good fit?
| Good fit if you | Think twice if you |
|---|---|
| want one core holding that covers the Canadian investment-grade bond market. | may need the money within a year or two: its price can fall noticeably when yields rise. |
| want a low-cost fund: its 0.08% MER is below the Canadian diversified median of 0.10%. | need a set amount back on a set date: a bond ETF has no maturity date, unlike a GIC. |
General pointers based on the fund’s category, structure and costs, not personal advice.
How VAB ranks
By assets
3rd
of 42 bond ETFs
By lowest MER
1st (tied)
of 42 bond ETFs
By 5-year return
8th
of 13 Canadian diversified bond ETFs
VAB ranks 3rd by assets among the 42 bond ETFs WOWA monitors, 1st (tied) by lowest MER, and 8th of 13 by five-year return in the Canadian diversified group, as of October 30, 2026. See the full list of Canadian bond ETFs.
Compare VAB with similar bond ETFs
VAB is in the Canadian diversified group on our Best Canadian Bond ETFs page. These are the largest other funds in that group.
ETF data as of October 30, 2026
Updated weekly| Ticker | Exposure and strategy | 5-year return | MER | Trailing yield | AUM (CAD B) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VAB | Canadian investment-grade government and corporate bonds | 0.66% | 0.08% | 3.42% | 7.76 |
| ZAG | Canadian investment-grade government and corporate bonds | 0.64% | 0.09% | 3.45% | 13.24 |
| XBB | Canadian investment-grade government and corporate bonds | 0.70% | 0.10% | 3.52% | 10.94 |
| FCCB | Canadian investment-grade bonds with a corporate tilt | 1.01% | 0.28% | 3.73% | 4.93 |
| XSB | Short-term Canadian investment-grade bonds | 2.32% | 0.10% | 3.11% | 4.54 |
See all 14 funds in this group.
Other bond ETFs from Vanguard
| Fund | Investment focus | AUM |
|---|---|---|
| Vanguard U.S. Aggregate Bond Index ETF (CAD-hedged) (VBU) | US investment-grade bonds, hedged to CAD | C$1.96B |
| Vanguard Canadian Short-Term Bond Index ETF (VSB) | Short-term Canadian investment-grade bonds | C$1.84B |
| Vanguard Canadian Short-Term Corporate Bond Index ETF (VSC) | Canadian-dollar corporate bonds with 1 to 5 years to maturity | C$1.75B |
| Vanguard Global ex-U.S. Aggregate Bond Index ETF (CAD-hedged) (VBG) | Non-US investment-grade bonds, hedged to CAD | C$1.62B |
How to buy VAB
You can buy VAB through any Canadian brokerage account, including a TFSA, RRSP or FHSA, by searching for its ticker. When comparing Canadian trading platforms, look at commissions, account fees and currency-conversion costs.
Before you place the order, check the bid-ask spread and consider a limit order, which caps the price you pay but may not fill. If this is your first account, our brokerage account guide walks you through opening one. Buying inside a TFSA? Our guide to the best TFSA investment options covers the other choices for that account.
If you’re from Vanguard and would like to add or update information on this page, please contact us.
Returns, volatility, Sharpe ratios, trailing yield and trading volume: WOWA calculations from Yahoo Finance prices adjusted for distributions, as of October 30, 2026. Assets under management: as of October 30, 2026. Fees, risk rating and inception date: Vanguard fund documents. Distribution breakdown: 2025 tax year. Fund page: Vanguard Canadian Aggregate Bond Index ETF.
Disclaimer: This page is for general information only and is not investment advice. WOWA does not recommend any specific fund. Figures come from issuer and third-party sources, may contain errors and can change after publication, so check the fund’s own documents before you invest.