VXX vs. SPXU

Last updated Apr 2, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) and ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500 (SPXU).

VXX and SPXU 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. SPXU is a passively managed fund by ProShares that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Index (-300%). It was launched on Jun 25, 2009. Both VXX and SPXU 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. SPXU - 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 ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500 (SPXU). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

VXX vs. SPXU - 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%
SPXU ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500	12.37%	-41.73%	-43.31%	-46.02%	36.05%	-57.94%	-70.39%	-56.27%	3.97%	-44.23%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, VXX achieves a 31.21% return, which is significantly higher than SPXU's 12.37% return. Over the past 10 years, VXX has underperformed SPXU with an annualized return of -46.34%, while SPXU has yielded a comparatively higher -39.88% 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%

SPXU

• 1D: -2.31%
• 1M: 13.37%
• YTD: 12.37%
• 6M: 6.54%
• 1Y: -42.28%
• 3Y*: -37.11%
• 5Y*: -31.74%
• 10Y*: -39.88%

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

VXX vs. SPXU - Expense Ratio Comparison

VXX has a 0.89% expense ratio, which is lower than SPXU's 0.93% expense ratio.

SPXU

ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500

VXX

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

Return for Risk

VXX vs. SPXU — 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

SPXU

SPXU Risk / Return Rank: 3
SPXU Sharpe Ratio Rank: 1
SPXU Sortino Ratio Rank: 2
SPXU Omega Ratio Rank: 1
SPXU Calmar Ratio Rank: 2
SPXU Martin Ratio Rank: 6

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. SPXU - 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 ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500 (SPXU). 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	SPXU	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	-0.44	-0.78	+0.34
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	-0.25	-0.98	+0.73
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	0.97	0.86	+0.11
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	-0.47	-0.66	+0.19
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	-0.59	-0.77	+0.17
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. SPXU - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current VXX Sharpe Ratio is -0.44, which is higher than the SPXU Sharpe Ratio of -0.78. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of VXX and SPXU, 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	SPXU	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	-0.44	-0.78	+0.34
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	-0.66	-0.63	-0.03
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	-0.65	-0.75	+0.10
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	-0.75	-0.82	+0.06

Correlation

The correlation between VXX and SPXU is 0.78, which is considered to be high. That indicates a strong positive relationship between their price movements. Having highly-correlated positions in a portfolio may signal a lack of diversification, potentially leading to increased risk during market downturns.

Dividends

VXX vs. SPXU - Dividend Comparison

VXX has not paid dividends to shareholders, while SPXU's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 5.22%.

	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%
SPXU ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500	5.22%	7.02%	9.53%	7.06%	0.39%	0.00%	0.70%	2.14%	1.41%	0.10%

Drawdowns

VXX vs. SPXU - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum VXX drawdown since its inception was -100.00%, roughly equal to the maximum SPXU drawdown of -99.99%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for VXX and SPXU.

Drawdown Indicators

	VXX	SPXU	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-100.00%	-99.99%	-0.01%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-69.85%	-65.13%	-4.72%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-96.67%	-87.51%	-9.16%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-99.87%	-99.51%	-0.36%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-100.00%	-99.99%	-0.01%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-95.03%	-93.26%	-1.77%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	54.84%	55.82%	-0.98%

Volatility

VXX vs. SPXU - Volatility Comparison

iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX) has a higher volatility of 28.80% compared to ProShares UltraPro Short S&P500 (SPXU) at 16.20%. This indicates that VXX's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than SPXU based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	VXX	SPXU	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	28.80%	16.20%	+12.60%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	46.98%	28.27%	+18.71%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	74.80%	54.50%	+20.30%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	69.04%	50.34%	+18.70%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	71.15%	53.33%	+17.82%