Inflation-Adjusted Growth ETF (VUG)

The Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG) tracks the CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index, providing exposure to large-capitalization US stocks that exhibit growth characteristics.

Nominal investment returns are an incomplete measure of performance because they don't account for inflation's impact on purchasing power. To provide a more accurate analysis, this page adjusts the historical price of VUG using the US Consumer Price Index to reveal its real performance over time.

Nominal prices are adjusted for stock splits and assume reinvestment of any dividends to reflect total return. Inflation-adjusted prices use September 2025 as the baseline (latest available CPI).

The current value of the Vanguard Growth ETF is 491.86 (as of the close of Dec 4, 2025), 2.46% lower than the all-time high of 504.26 (Oct 29, 2025).

Since January 30, 2004, the inflation-adjusted total return for the ETF has been 550.76%, which is equivalent to an annual growth rate of 8.95%.

In nominal values, the total return since this date has been 1,041%, or an annualized rate of 11.79%.

Inflation-Adjusted Values by Month

This data presents the ETF's end-of-month closing levels over time. Inflation-adjusted figures show what past levels would be worth using roughly today's purchasing power (based on the latest CPI data). The latest entry in the table will have equal nominal and adjusted values until the next CPI figures are released.

Date	Inflation-Adjusted	Nominal value
Dec 2025	491.86	491.86
Nov 2025	490.84	490.84
Oct 2025	498.85	498.85
Sep 2025	479.61	479.61
Aug 2025	459.3	458.13
Jul 2025	457.16	454.7
Jun 2025	440.97	437.93
May 2025	416.5	412.22
Apr 2025	382.16	377.45
Mar 2025	375.78	370
Feb 2025	411.55	404.3
Jan 2025	426.23	416.88
Dec 2024	420.91	409
Nov 2024	419.18	407.17
Oct 2024	392.12	381.09
Sep 2024	393.6	382.09
Aug 2024	385.17	373.31
Jul 2024	377.02	365.11
Jun 2024	384.35	371.78
May 2024	360.06	348.17
Apr 2024	339.21	327.46
Mar 2024	355.37	341.73
Feb 2024	352.86	337.14
Jan 2024	331.62	314.89
Dec 2023	326.38	308.24
Nov 2023	312.55	295.47
Oct 2023	279.47	264.73
Sep 2023	284.38	269.48
Aug 2023	302.44	285.89
Jul 2023	307.1	289.03
Jun 2023	297.69	279.64
May 2023	279.35	261.57
Apr 2023	266.28	248.71
Mar 2023	264.88	246.15
Feb 2023	246.62	228.42
Jan 2023	251.58	231.72
Dec 2022	229.73	209.92
Nov 2022	249.93	229.09
Oct 2022	238.64	218.96
Sep 2022	230.15	210.32
Aug 2022	257.55	234.85
Jul 2022	271.01	247.21
Jun 2022	239.72	218.69
May 2022	265.46	238.89
Apr 2022	275.8	245.49
Mar 2022	318.33	281.77
Feb 2022	310.76	271.46
Jan 2022	328.67	284.5
Dec 2021	365.88	314.07
Nov 2021	361.32	309.2
Oct 2021	360.53	307.01
Sep 2021	335.77	283.58
Aug 2021	355.62	299.53
Jul 2021	343.73	288.92
Jun 2021	334.73	280
May 2021	318.65	264.1
Apr 2021	325.87	267.93
Mar 2021	307.3	250.61
Feb 2021	304.02	246.19
Jan 2021	303.12	244.13
Dec 2020	307.53	246.63
Nov 2020	295.53	236.78
Oct 2020	267.59	214.53
Sep 2020	276	221.17
Aug 2020	290.05	232.11
Jul 2020	264.29	210.83
Jun 2020	246.95	196.01
May 2020	236.7	186.85
Apr 2020	221.1	174.53
Mar 2020	190.84	151.66
Feb 2020	212.99	169.63
Jan 2020	228.34	181.36
Dec 2019	222.27	175.85
Nov 2019	215.65	170.77
Oct 2019	207.26	164.22
Sep 2019	202.49	160.07
Aug 2019	202.06	159.61
Jul 2019	203.22	160.53
Jun 2019	198.99	156.93
May 2019	186.39	146.96
Apr 2019	199.42	156.9
Mar 2019	191.47	149.85
Feb 2019	186.71	145.31
Jan 2019	180.83	140.14
Dec 2018	165.91	128.33
Nov 2018	180.58	140.13
Oct 2018	178.95	139.33
Sep 2018	197.14	153.22
Aug 2018	196.43	152.49
Jul 2018	187.78	145.69
Jun 2018	183.19	142.13
May 2018	181.39	140.51
Apr 2018	174.49	134.6
Mar 2018	174.71	134.23
Feb 2018	179.58	137.66
Jan 2018	185.82	141.81
Dec 2017	174.89	132.75
Nov 2017	173.28	131.6
Oct 2017	169.18	128.48
Sep 2017	164.32	124.87
Aug 2017	163.5	123.59
Jul 2017	162.09	122.16
Jun 2017	157.96	119.13
May 2017	158.78	119.64
Apr 2017	154.58	116.37
Mar 2017	151.59	113.78
Feb 2017	149.76	112.32
Jan 2017	143.92	107.6
Dec 2016	139.83	103.94
Nov 2016	138.26	102.74
Oct 2016	136.39	101.5
Sep 2016	140.19	104.21
Aug 2016	139.67	103.57
Jul 2016	140.23	103.89
Jun 2016	133.61	99.15
May 2016	134.94	99.81
Apr 2016	132.2	97.38
Mar 2016	133.88	98.16
Feb 2016	125.43	91.56
Jan 2016	126.03	91.93
Dec 2015	134.31	97.81
Nov 2015	137.18	100.24
Oct 2015	136.69	100.09
Sep 2015	125.37	91.85
Aug 2015	128.87	94.55
Jul 2015	137.33	100.91
Jun 2015	132.99	97.71
May 2015	135.7	99.35
Apr 2015	134.4	97.9
Mar 2015	130.99	95.23
Feb 2015	137.16	99.12
Jan 2015	129.66	93.3
Dec 2014	131.05	94.74
Nov 2014	131.56	95.65
Oct 2014	126.97	92.81
Sep 2014	122.96	90.11
Aug 2014	125.35	91.79
Jul 2014	119.63	87.76
Jun 2014	121.48	89.14
May 2014	118.86	87.06
Apr 2014	115.17	84.06
Mar 2014	115.5	84.02
Feb 2014	118.12	85.38
Jan 2014	112.26	80.85
Dec 2013	116.22	83.39
Nov 2013	112.37	80.63
Oct 2013	109.53	78.76
Sep 2013	104.79	75.54
Aug 2013	100.09	72.07
Jul 2013	102.1	73.43
Jun 2013	96.74	69.55
May 2013	99.1	71.08
Apr 2013	97.58	69.86
Mar 2013	95.94	68.75
Feb 2013	92.71	66.27
Jan 2013	92.7	65.72
Dec 2012	89.05	62.95
Nov 2012	88.75	62.91
Oct 2012	86.58	61.66
Sep 2012	89.35	63.66
Aug 2012	87.94	62.37
Jul 2012	85.52	60.32
Jun 2012	84.35	59.6
May 2012	81.87	57.93
Apr 2012	87.26	61.81
Mar 2012	87.78	62
Feb 2012	85.48	59.92
Jan 2012	81.94	57.18
Dec 2011	77.44	53.8
Nov 2011	77.92	54.27
Oct 2011	78.01	54.38
Sep 2011	69.76	48.73
Aug 2011	75.65	52.77
Jul 2011	80.42	55.94
Jun 2011	81.08	56.35
May 2011	82.39	57.32
Apr 2011	83.38	57.74
Mar 2011	81.4	56
Feb 2011	82.19	56
Jan 2011	80.37	54.5
Dec 2010	79.27	53.49
Nov 2010	75.49	50.85
Oct 2010	74.78	50.35
Sep 2010	71.18	47.87
Aug 2010	64.53	43.38
Jul 2010	67.83	45.53
Jun 2010	63.12	42.36
May 2010	67.06	45.05
Apr 2010	73.16	49.1
Mar 2010	72.19	48.37
Feb 2010	68.61	45.78
Jan 2010	66.07	44.08
Dec 2009	69.49	46.2
Nov 2009	67.36	44.87
Oct 2009	63.62	42.34
Sep 2009	64.53	42.91
Aug 2009	62.06	41.24
Jul 2009	60.99	40.44
Jun 2009	56.85	37.75
May 2009	56.83	37.42
Apr 2009	54.47	35.76
Mar 2009	49.66	32.52
Feb 2009	46.33	30.27
Jan 2009	50.32	32.71
Dec 2008	53.14	34.39
Nov 2008	52.16	34.11
Oct 2008	56.01	37.35
Sep 2008	67.47	45.44
Aug 2008	76.03	51.28
Jul 2008	74.82	50.67
Jun 2008	76.47	51.52
May 2008	82.98	55.34
Apr 2008	80.85	53.47
Mar 2008	76.71	50.43
Feb 2008	78.29	51.03
Jan 2008	79.43	51.62
Dec 2007	86.78	56.12
Nov 2007	86.88	56.22
Oct 2007	90.3	58.09
Sep 2007	87.89	56.42
Aug 2007	84.54	54.12
Jul 2007	82.79	53.09
Jun 2007	84.58	54.26
May 2007	85.82	54.94
Apr 2007	83.41	53.08
Mar 2007	80.42	50.84
Feb 2007	80.9	50.68
Jan 2007	82.87	51.64
Dec 2006	81.03	50.35
Nov 2006	81.34	50.46
Oct 2006	79.33	49.29
Sep 2006	76.37	47.71
Aug 2006	73.98	46.44
Jul 2006	71.92	45.06
Jun 2006	73.77	46.09
May 2006	74.36	46.36
Apr 2006	77.37	48
Mar 2006	78.03	48
Feb 2006	77.53	47.43
Jan 2006	77.9	47.56
Dec 2005	76.81	46.54
Nov 2005	77.07	46.89
Oct 2005	73.4	45.02
Sep 2005	74.18	45.4
Aug 2005	74.86	45.27
Jul 2005	76.32	45.91
Jun 2005	73.46	43.99
May 2005	73.84	44.2
Apr 2005	69.99	41.94
Mar 2005	72.23	42.99
Feb 2005	74.37	43.92
Jan 2005	73.76	43.31
Dec 2004	76.31	44.71
Nov 2004	73.96	43.49
Oct 2004	71.03	41.74
Sep 2004	70.4	41.16
Aug 2004	69.39	40.48
Jul 2004	70.08	40.86
Jun 2004	74.21	43.34
May 2004	73.74	42.93
Apr 2004	73.2	42.37
Mar 2004	74.11	42.76
Feb 2004	75.9	43.51
Jan 2004	75.58	43.1

Returns from Investing in the Vanguard Growth ETF

How much did an investment in the VUG ETF really grow each year after accounting for inflation? The following chart contains the inflation-adjusted real annual percentage returns.

Detailed Annual Returns (Adjusted vs. Nominal)

The table below shows the returns for the Vanguard Growth ETF by year, both inflation-adjusted and nominal. You can sort any column by clicking on the header.

Observe how inflation erodes nominal gains, sometimes resulting in a negative real return even when the ETF nominally increased, as in 2011.

Year	Inflation-Adjusted Return	Nominal Return
2024	28.96%	32.69%
2023	42.07%	46.83%
2022	-37.21%	-33.16%
2021	18.97%	27.35%
2020	38.36%	40.24%
2019	33.97%	37.03%
2018	-5.14%	-3.32%
2017	25.08%	27.72%
2016	4.11%	6.27%
2015	2.49%	3.23%
2014	12.76%	13.61%
2013	30.51%	32.47%
2012	15%	17%
2011	-2.32%	0.58%
2010	14.08%	15.78%
2009	30.77%	34.33%
2008	-38.77%	-38.71%
2007	7.09%	11.46%
2006	5.49%	8.17%
2005	0.67%	4.1%

Vanguard Growth Etf: Average Annualized Returns

Annualized returns show the average rate of growth per year, making it easier to compare performance across different time periods. While nominal returns indicate the headline growth, adjusting for inflation reveals the actual change in purchasing power.

This table presents both nominal and inflation-adjusted average annual returns for the Vanguard Growth over various trailing periods ending September 30, 2025, offering a clearer view of long-term, real investment performance.

Period	Avg. Annual Return (Inflation-Adjusted)	Avg. Annual Return (Nominal)
Last 1 year	21.85%	25.52%
Last 3 years	27.73%	31.62%
Last 5 years	11.69%	16.74%
Last 10 years	14.36%	17.97%
Last 20 years	9.78%	12.51%

Real Returns of Investing in the Vanguard Growth

The chart and table below show the nominal and inflation-adjusted value of a hypothetical $100 investment over various long-term historical periods, ending in September 2025.

The inflation-adjusted line, in green, represents the real increase in purchasing power for the initial investment. Observe the gap between both lines, which illustrates the cumulative effect of inflation over time.

Even over just five years, inflation takes a noticeable bite out of investments. Investing $100 in the Vanguard Growth five years ago yielded an 182.74% nominal gain, but the real return (the actual increase in buying power) was 125.18%.

As investment periods get longer, the difference between reported nominal returns and the inflation-adjusted gains usually becomes much greater due to the compounding effect of inflation over time.

Investment Period	What $100 Grew To (Nominal)	Total Nominal Return (%)	Total Inflation-Adjusted Return (%)
Last 5 years Feb 2020 - Sep 2025	$282.74	182.74%	125.18%
Last 10 years Feb 2015 - Sep 2025	$483.85	383.85%	249.66%

About the Vanguard Growth ETF

The Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG) is an exchange-traded fund that seeks to track the performance of the CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index. Launched in January 2004, VUG focuses on large-cap US companies that are expected to grow at an above-average rate compared to other companies. The fund emphasizes stocks with strong earnings growth potential and typically includes companies from sectors like technology, healthcare, and consumer discretionary. VUG offers investors a cost-effective way to gain concentrated exposure to growth-oriented large-cap US equities through a single diversified investment vehicle.

Last Close Dec 4, 2025	491.86
Highest Oct 29, 2025	504.26
Highest, Inflation-Adjusted Oct 29, 2025	504.26
Annualized return Since Jan 30, 2004	11.79%
Annualized return, Inflation-Adjusted Since Jan 30, 2004	8.95%