Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio
The Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio is the extension of the Bogleheads Three-fund Portfolio with the addition of international bonds. It uses four fundamental asset classes: a U.S total stock market fund, a total international stock market fund, a total bond market fund, and a total international bond market. The portfolio could be replicated using four low-cost ETFs.
Asset Allocation
| Position | Category/Sector | Target Weight |
|---|---|---|
BND Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF | Total Bond Market | 15% |
BNDX Vanguard Total International Bond ETF | Total Bond Market | 5% |
VEA Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF | Foreign Large Cap Equities | 30% |
VTI Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF | Large Cap Growth Equities | 50% |
Performance
Performance Chart
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The earliest data available for this chart is Jun 4, 2013, corresponding to the inception date of BNDX
Returns By Period
As of May 31, 2025, the Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio returned 5.65% Year-To-Date and 8.47% of annualized return in the last 10 years.
| YTD | 1M | 6M | 1Y | 5Y* | 10Y* | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
^GSPC S&P 500 | 0.51% | 6.15% | -2.00% | 12.92% | 14.19% | 10.85% |
| Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio | 5.65% | 4.56% | 2.64% | 12.64% | 11.00% | 8.47% |
| Portfolio components: | ||||||
VTI Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF | 0.38% | 6.25% | -2.68% | 13.67% | 15.23% | 12.13% |
BND Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF | 2.49% | -0.67% | 0.77% | 5.82% | -1.00% | 1.54% |
VEA Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF | 16.76% | 5.13% | 12.67% | 14.08% | 11.40% | 6.14% |
BNDX Vanguard Total International Bond ETF | 1.66% | 0.01% | 0.88% | 6.64% | 0.05% | 2.09% |
Monthly Returns
The table below presents the monthly returns of Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio, with color gradation from worst to best to easily spot seasonal factors. Returns are adjusted for dividends.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2.95% | 0.11% | -2.90% | 0.97% | 4.56% | 5.65% | |||||||
| 2024 | 0.18% | 3.25% | 2.93% | -3.63% | 4.03% | 1.21% | 2.31% | 2.18% | 1.60% | -2.31% | 3.77% | -2.85% | 13.01% |
| 2023 | 6.78% | -2.72% | 2.68% | 1.43% | -1.08% | 4.69% | 2.75% | -2.25% | -4.01% | -2.57% | 8.19% | 5.03% | 19.57% |
| 2022 | -4.56% | -2.26% | 1.26% | -7.34% | 0.47% | -7.16% | 6.77% | -4.21% | -8.35% | 5.72% | 7.05% | -3.84% | -16.72% |
| 2021 | -0.54% | 1.99% | 2.49% | 3.56% | 1.32% | 1.12% | 1.27% | 1.78% | -3.47% | 4.29% | -2.05% | 3.10% | 15.59% |
| 2020 | -0.54% | -5.97% | -11.59% | 9.17% | 4.55% | 2.33% | 3.94% | 4.99% | -2.37% | -2.10% | 10.35% | 4.12% | 15.72% |
| 2019 | 6.73% | 2.52% | 1.25% | 2.82% | -4.50% | 5.53% | 0.18% | -1.09% | 1.70% | 2.04% | 2.28% | 2.47% | 23.71% |
| 2018 | 3.82% | -3.59% | -0.95% | 0.47% | 1.02% | -0.10% | 2.35% | 1.31% | 0.21% | -6.41% | 1.28% | -5.85% | -6.78% |
| 2017 | 2.01% | 2.30% | 0.95% | 1.34% | 1.68% | 0.65% | 1.87% | 0.25% | 1.89% | 1.65% | 1.78% | 1.18% | 18.99% |
| 2016 | -4.26% | -0.71% | 5.77% | 1.07% | 0.81% | -0.08% | 3.37% | 0.19% | 0.61% | -2.02% | 1.35% | 1.81% | 7.82% |
| 2015 | -0.70% | 4.47% | -0.84% | 1.36% | 0.53% | -1.95% | 1.49% | -5.29% | -2.45% | 6.03% | 0.03% | -1.75% | 0.42% |
| 2014 | -2.84% | 4.27% | 0.14% | 0.65% | 1.78% | 1.67% | -1.73% | 2.39% | -2.37% | 1.40% | 1.42% | -1.05% | 5.63% |
Expense Ratio
Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio has an expense ratio of 0.04%, which is considered low. Below, you can find the expense ratios of the portfolio's funds side by side and easily compare their relative costs.
Risk-Adjusted Performance
Risk-Adjusted Performance Rank
The current rank of Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio is 60, indicating average performance compared to other portfolios on our website. Here’s a breakdown of how it compares using common performance measures.
Risk-Adjusted Performance Indicators
This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for positions. Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.
| Sharpe ratio | Sortino ratio | Omega ratio | Calmar ratio | Martin ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
VTI Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF | 0.68 | 0.98 | 1.14 | 0.63 | 2.36 |
BND Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF | 1.10 | 1.60 | 1.19 | 0.47 | 2.79 |
VEA Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF | 0.83 | 1.18 | 1.16 | 0.98 | 2.96 |
BNDX Vanguard Total International Bond ETF | 1.80 | 2.49 | 1.31 | 0.74 | 7.84 |
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Dividends
Dividend yield
Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio provided a 2.26% dividend yield over the last twelve months.
| TTM | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio | 2.26% | 2.40% | 2.35% | 2.17% | 2.04% | 1.71% | 2.38% | 2.60% | 2.18% | 2.35% | 2.33% | 2.48% |
| Portfolio components: | ||||||||||||
VTI Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF | 1.29% | 1.27% | 1.44% | 1.67% | 1.21% | 1.42% | 1.78% | 2.04% | 1.71% | 1.92% | 1.98% | 1.76% |
BND Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF | 3.74% | 3.67% | 3.09% | 2.60% | 1.97% | 2.22% | 2.72% | 2.81% | 2.54% | 2.51% | 2.57% | 2.79% |
VEA Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF | 2.81% | 3.36% | 3.16% | 2.91% | 3.16% | 2.04% | 3.04% | 3.35% | 2.77% | 3.05% | 2.92% | 3.68% |
BNDX Vanguard Total International Bond ETF | 4.26% | 4.18% | 4.42% | 1.52% | 3.74% | 1.11% | 3.40% | 3.01% | 2.23% | 1.89% | 1.63% | 1.54% |
Drawdowns
Drawdowns Chart
The Drawdowns chart displays portfolio losses from any high point along the way. Drawdowns are calculated considering price movements and all distributions paid, if any.
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Worst Drawdowns
The table below displays the maximum drawdowns of the Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio. A maximum drawdown is a measure of risk, indicating the largest reduction in portfolio value due to a series of losing trades.
The maximum drawdown for the Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio was 28.24%, occurring on Mar 23, 2020. Recovery took 99 trading sessions.
The current Bogleheads Four-fund Portfolio drawdown is 0.23%.
Depth | Start | To Bottom | Bottom | To Recover | End | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -28.24% | Feb 13, 2020 | 27 | Mar 23, 2020 | 99 | Aug 12, 2020 | 126 |
| -24.38% | Nov 9, 2021 | 233 | Oct 12, 2022 | 327 | Feb 1, 2024 | 560 |
| -15.13% | Jan 29, 2018 | 229 | Dec 24, 2018 | 75 | Apr 12, 2019 | 304 |
| -13.8% | May 22, 2015 | 183 | Feb 11, 2016 | 117 | Jul 29, 2016 | 300 |
| -13.02% | Feb 19, 2025 | 35 | Apr 8, 2025 | 26 | May 15, 2025 | 61 |
Volatility
Volatility Chart
The chart below shows the rolling one-month volatility.
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Diversification
Diversification Metrics
Number of Effective Assets
The portfolio contains 4 assets, with an effective number of assets of 2.74, reflecting the diversification based on asset allocation. This number of effective assets suggests a highly concentrated portfolio, where a few assets dominate the allocation, potentially increasing the portfolio's risk due to lack of diversification.
Asset Correlations Table
| ^GSPC | BNDX | BND | VEA | VTI | Portfolio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ^GSPC | 1.00 | -0.01 | -0.03 | 0.81 | 0.99 | 0.96 |
| BNDX | -0.01 | 1.00 | 0.72 | 0.01 | -0.01 | 0.05 |
| BND | -0.03 | 0.72 | 1.00 | 0.02 | -0.02 | 0.06 |
| VEA | 0.81 | 0.01 | 0.02 | 1.00 | 0.81 | 0.92 |
| VTI | 0.99 | -0.01 | -0.02 | 0.81 | 1.00 | 0.97 |
| Portfolio | 0.96 | 0.05 | 0.06 | 0.92 | 0.97 | 1.00 |
AI Insight on Diversification
The portfolio is moderately diversified with a mix of positions that both complement and somewhat overlap each other. The correlation matrix shows that BNDX (an international bond fund) and BND (a U.S. bond fund) have a relatively high correlation of 0.72, indicating these fixed income holdings move somewhat in tandem, which could reduce diversification benefits within the bond allocation. In contrast, VEA (an international equity fund) and VTI (a U.S. total stock market fund) have a strong positive correlation of 0.81, reflecting the common equity market exposure, though this is expected given their similar asset class focus.
Notably, the correlations between bonds (BNDX, BND) and equities (VEA, VTI) are very low or even slightly negative (ranging from -0.02 to 0.05), which is beneficial for diversification as it suggests bonds and stocks in the portfolio tend to move independently or in opposite directions at times. This low cross-asset correlation helps reduce overall portfolio volatility.
The portfolio’s correlation with individual positions reveals that it is most closely aligned with VTI (0.97) and VEA (0.92), indicating that the equity components dominate the portfolio’s behavior. The bond funds have much lower correlations with the portfolio (around 0.05), suggesting they contribute less to the portfolio’s overall movement but provide diversification benefits.
In summary, while the portfolio is well diversified across asset classes—combining U.S. and international equities with U.S. and international bonds—the relatively high correlations within bonds and within equities imply some concentration within those asset classes. The portfolio is equity-heavy, with the stock funds driving most of its performance and risk profile, but the inclusion of bonds with low correlations to equities helps mitigate overall portfolio volatility.