VXX vs. SPXL

Last updated Apr 2, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) and Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares (SPXL).

VXX and SPXL are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. VXX is a passively managed fund by Barclays Capital that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Index Total Return. It was launched on Jan 19, 2018. SPXL is a passively managed fund by Direxion that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Index (300%). It was launched on Nov 5, 2008. Both VXX and SPXL are passive ETFs, meaning that they are not actively managed but aim to replicate the performance of the underlying index as closely as possible.

Performance

VXX vs. SPXL - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) and Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares (SPXL). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

VXX vs. SPXL - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
VXX iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN	31.21%	-42.21%	-26.22%	-72.52%	-23.80%	-72.41%	11.04%	-67.75%	67.91%	-72.64%
SPXL Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares	-14.06%	31.94%	63.61%	69.49%	-56.55%	98.75%	9.64%	102.80%	-25.11%	71.03%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, VXX achieves a 31.21% return, which is significantly higher than SPXL's -14.06% return. Over the past 10 years, VXX has underperformed SPXL with an annualized return of -46.34%, while SPXL has yielded a comparatively higher 25.61% annualized return.

VXX

• 1D: -2.72%
• 1M: 18.69%
• YTD: 31.21%
• 6M: 5.34%
• 1Y: -32.54%
• 3Y*: -42.18%
• 5Y*: -45.27%
• 10Y*: -46.34%

SPXL

• 1D: 2.30%
• 1M: -13.75%
• YTD: -14.06%
• 6M: -11.40%
• 1Y: 34.55%
• 3Y*: 38.52%
• 5Y*: 17.51%
• 10Y*: 25.61%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

VXX vs. SPXL - Expense Ratio Comparison

VXX has a 0.89% expense ratio, which is lower than SPXL's 1.02% expense ratio.

SPXL

Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares

VXX

iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN

Return for Risk

VXX vs. SPXL — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

VXX

VXX Risk / Return Rank: 6
VXX Sharpe Ratio Rank: 5
VXX Sortino Ratio Rank: 6
VXX Omega Ratio Rank: 7
VXX Calmar Ratio Rank: 5
VXX Martin Ratio Rank: 7

SPXL

SPXL Risk / Return Rank: 40
SPXL Sharpe Ratio Rank: 32
SPXL Sortino Ratio Rank: 41
SPXL Omega Ratio Rank: 45
SPXL Calmar Ratio Rank: 40
SPXL Martin Ratio Rank: 44

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

VXX vs. SPXL - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) and Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares (SPXL). 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.

	VXX	SPXL	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	-0.44	0.64	-1.08
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	-0.25	1.22	-1.46
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	0.97	1.18	-0.21
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	-0.47	1.07	-1.54
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	-0.59	4.25	-4.85
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

VXX vs. SPXL - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current VXX Sharpe Ratio is -0.44, which is lower than the SPXL Sharpe Ratio of 0.64. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of VXX and SPXL, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	VXX	SPXL	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	-0.44	0.64	-1.08
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	-0.66	0.35	-1.01
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	-0.65	0.48	-1.13
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	-0.75	0.48	-1.23

Correlation

The correlation between VXX and SPXL is -0.78. This indicates that the assets' prices tend to move in opposite directions. Negative correlation can be particularly beneficial for diversification and risk management, as one asset may offset the losses of the other during market fluctuations.

Dividends

VXX vs. SPXL - Dividend Comparison

VXX has not paid dividends to shareholders, while SPXL's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 0.78%.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
VXX iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
SPXL Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares	0.78%	0.69%	0.74%	0.98%	0.32%	0.11%	0.22%	0.84%	1.02%	3.88%

Drawdowns

VXX vs. SPXL - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum VXX drawdown since its inception was -100.00%, which is greater than SPXL's maximum drawdown of -76.86%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for VXX and SPXL.

Drawdown Indicators

	VXX	SPXL	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-100.00%	-76.86%	-23.14%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-69.85%	-33.42%	-36.43%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-96.67%	-63.80%	-32.87%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-99.87%	-76.86%	-23.01%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-100.00%	-18.62%	-81.38%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-95.03%	-15.85%	-79.18%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	54.84%	8.42%	+46.42%

Volatility

VXX vs. SPXL - Volatility Comparison

iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) has a higher volatility of 28.80% compared to Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3X Shares (SPXL) at 16.04%. This indicates that VXX's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than SPXL based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	VXX	SPXL	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	28.80%	16.04%	+12.76%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	46.98%	28.52%	+18.46%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	74.80%	54.32%	+20.48%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	69.04%	50.26%	+18.78%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	71.15%	53.36%	+17.79%