What Is VTHR? Vanguard Russell 3000 Index Fund ETF Shares
Last updated September 2026
Short answer
VTHR is Vanguard Russell 3000 Index Fund ETF Shares, an ETF that tracks the Russell 3000 Index at a 0.06% expense ratio. VTHR tracks the Russell 3000, which covers the great majority of the investable US stock market by value. The name suggests broad spread, and the weights say something else: the ten largest positions come to 32% of the fund. Alphabet accounts for 5.2% of that across two share classes listed separately, 2.9% in Class A and 2.3% in Class C. NVIDIA leads at 6.4% and Apple follows at 5.8%. Technology is 36% of assets. Vanguard charges 0.06%, the fund launched in 2010 and holds $6.1 billion.
VTHR is issued by Vanguard and tracks the Russell 3000 Index. It charges a 0.06% expense ratio, holds approximately $6.1B in assets under management, yields about 1.03%, and launched in 2010.
Three thousand companies, ten of them mattering
The number in the name refers to the count of holdings, not to how the money is spread. Because the index is capitalisation weighted, the largest companies take the largest share, and at present that concentration is pronounced. NVIDIA at 6.4%, Apple at 5.8%, Microsoft at 3.8%, Amazon at 3.2%, Alphabet at 2.9% and 2.3% across two lines, Broadcom at 2.4%, Micron at 1.8%, Meta at 1.7% and Tesla at 1.7% together account for 32% of assets.
The remaining roughly 2,990 companies share the other 68%. The smallest few thousand of them contribute so little individually that whether they are held at all makes almost no difference to the fund's behaviour. This is a property of every cap-weighted total-market fund, and it explains why funds tracking the 500 largest companies and funds tracking 3,000 tend to move closely together.
Alphabet's appearance twice is a listing artefact rather than a duplicate position. Class A and Class C are different share classes of one company, and cap-weighted indices include both. Anyone counting the top ten as ten distinct businesses is really looking at nine, with Alphabet at a combined 5.2%.
Russell 3000 or total market, and why the fee decides it
Vanguard offers US total-market exposure through more than one index. The Russell 3000 and the broader total-market indices differ in construction details, in how frequently they reconstitute and in how many of the smallest companies they include. Those differences are real but modest, and over long periods the two approaches produce similar exposure to similar businesses.
The fee, by contrast, is fixed and certain. VTHR charges 0.06%. Vanguard's broadest US equity index fund charges less than that for a portfolio that covers the same market. When two funds hold materially the same thing, the cheaper one keeps more of the return, and this is the sort of comparison worth making before buying rather than after.
VTHR's role is therefore mostly institutional. Investors and plans that benchmark to the Russell 3000 specifically need a fund that tracks it, and $6.1 billion of assets reflects that demand. For an individual choosing US market exposure without a benchmark constraint, the index choice is a detail and the fee is not.
What the sector mix tells you
Technology at 36% dominates, with financials at 12% and consumer discretionary, industrials and healthcare each at 10%. That is the shape of the current US market rather than a decision made by the fund, and it is the honest answer to anyone asking whether a total-market fund is diversified. It is diversified by company count and considerably less so by sector.
Micron at 1.8% inside the top ten is a useful marker of how far semiconductor weights have risen. A memory manufacturer sitting among the ten largest US companies by market value is a recent development, and it means the index carries exposure to an industry cycle that has historically been sharp in both directions.
None of this is an argument against holding the fund. A cap-weighted index reflects where capital has accumulated, which is the point of owning it. It is an argument against assuming that three thousand holdings implies three thousand independent bets, because the arithmetic says otherwise.
VTHR holdings: top 10
Approximate weights as of August 2026. Each ticker links to its individual stock guide in Walnut.
How do I invest in VTHR?
There are three common ways to get VTHR exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) of VTHR directly at any major broker that lists it. Hold it as a core position and layer more concentrated ideas on top. Or build it into a thematic portfolio in Walnut, so VTHR sits alongside other holdings that express the same thesis, with target weights you can rebalance toward. VTHR trades like a stock during market hours, so you buy it the same way you would any listed share.
New to buying funds? See how to buy an ETF, step by step.
Is VTHR a good buy?
Whether VTHR is a good buy depends less on any single call and more on your time horizon and what you already hold: it tracks the Russell 3000 Index, so the real question is whether you want that exposure in your mix and at what weight. We walk through valuation, concentration, and what would have to be true for it to outperform from here in is VTHR a buy?
The bottom line on VTHR
VTHR gives you the Russell 3000 Index exposure in one ticker at a 0.06% expense ratio. Most investors use it as a core holding and layer more concentrated thematic portfolios on top.
More on VTHR
Whether VTHR is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, concentration, and what would have to be true for it to outperform from here in is VTHR a buy?
VTHR yields 1.03% as of August 2026, paid by passing through the dividends of its underlying holdings. For the payout schedule, history, and how the distributions are taxed, see VTHR dividend: yield and schedule.
New to funds like VTHR? Start with what an ETF is, then how to buy an ETF, or browse the full guide to ETF investing.
Wondering how VTHR fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.
Investing in VTHR with AI
Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how VTHR fits what you actually hold: what it overlaps with, what it leaves you exposed to, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.
FAQ
What is the Russell 3000?
+
It is an index of roughly the 3,000 largest US companies by market capitalisation, covering the great majority of the investable US equity market by value. FTSE Russell reconstitutes it annually, which is a fixed and well-known event in the market calendar. VTHR holds the constituents at index weights and charges 0.06% a year to do so.
Why does Alphabet appear twice in the holdings?
+
Alphabet has two publicly traded share classes, and cap-weighted indices include both. Class A sits at 2.9% and Class C at 2.3%, so the company's true weight in the fund is 5.2%. It is one business, not two positions. The same pattern appears in other funds holding companies with multiple listed share classes.
How concentrated is VTHR really?
+
More than the holdings count suggests. The ten largest positions account for 32% of assets, and technology is 36% of the fund. The remaining companies share what is left, with the smallest thousands contributing very little each. That is a feature of capitalisation weighting rather than a flaw in the fund, but it should shape expectations of what diversification means here.
How does the Russell 3000 differ from a total stock market index?
+
Total-market indices generally reach further into the smallest listed companies and follow different reconstitution schedules. In practice the differences are minor, since the additional companies carry tiny weights. The two families of fund end up holding substantially the same businesses in substantially the same proportions, which makes cost and tax treatment the more useful comparison points.
Is 0.06% competitive for US total-market exposure?
+
It is low in absolute terms and above the cheapest option available for the same market. Vanguard's broadest US equity index fund charges less for effectively the same exposure. For an investor without a mandate to track the Russell 3000 specifically, that difference is the clearest reason to compare the two before choosing.
Why do investors use a Russell 3000 fund at all?
+
Mainly because they are measured against that benchmark. Retirement plans, institutional mandates and performance reporting frameworks frequently specify the Russell 3000, and tracking a different index introduces a mismatch that has nothing to do with investment merit. VTHR exists to serve those cases, which is consistent with its $6.1 billion in assets relative to Vanguard's larger US equity funds.
Does VTHR include small-cap companies?
+
Yes, the index extends well down the size range, so small companies are represented by count. They contribute very little by weight, though, since capitalisation weighting gives each of them a fraction of a percent at most. An investor who wants small caps to have a meaningful influence on results needs a dedicated small-cap fund alongside this one.
What is the annual reconstitution and does it matter?
+
FTSE Russell rebuilds the index each June, adjusting which companies belong and at what weights. Because so many funds track Russell indices, that date sees concentrated trading in the affected names. Index funds must trade to match, which creates a small and well-documented cost. It is a known feature of the Russell family rather than a problem specific to VTHR.
What is VTHR's expense ratio?
+
VTHR has an expense ratio of 0.06% per year as of August 2026, charged by Vanguard and deducted from the fund's value rather than billed to you separately. On a $10,000 position that is roughly $6 a year. Fees compound over time, so on a long-term holding the expense ratio is one of the few return drivers you control. It is worth comparing against other funds that track the Russell 3000 Index before you choose.
How do I compare VTHR to similar ETFs?
+
Put a few fields side by side: the expense ratio (fees compound over decades), the index or strategy it tracks, the top holdings and how much they overlap with what you already own, the dividend yield, and the AUM, liquidity, and bid-ask spread that affect trading costs. For index funds, tracking error (how closely it follows its index) and tax efficiency matter too. VTHR's figures are above; the full method is in Walnut's guide on how to compare ETFs.
Related ETFs
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Holdings weights and fund statistics on this page are approximations stamped to August 2026; verify current figures against Vanguard's fund page or your broker before investing.