VCIT’s worst drop since 2009 was 21%
Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF (VCIT) fell 21% from Aug 2021 to Oct 2022. It took 4.0 years from that peak to close at a new high, in Jul 2025. Over the same years the S&P 500 fell as much as 34%.
That drop is milder than most. It ranks 173rd of the 203 ETFs PortfolioAutopsy tracks, counted from the deepest.
Drawdown from the last high, 2009 to now
How VCIT held up in each crash
| Crash | Years | VCIT | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dot-com bust | 2000–02 | not trading yet | −47.5% |
| Financial crisis | 2007–09 | not trading yet | −55.2% |
| COVID crash | 2020 | −16.9% | −33.7% |
| 2022 rate shock | 2022 | −18.5% | −24.5% |
Each number is the deepest fall from a high inside that window, using daily prices with dividends reinvested.
See how VCIT behaves inside your whole mix, with the worst 12 months, loss odds and crash replays. Free, no signup, and the math runs in your browser.
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What was VCIT’s maximum drawdown?
VCIT’s deepest fall since 2009 was 20.6%, from its high on August 2, 2021 to its low on October 20, 2022. The figure uses daily prices with dividends reinvested.
How long did VCIT take to recover?
4.0 years. VCIT first closed above its Aug 2021 high again on July 29, 2025.
Was VCIT riskier than the S&P 500?
Over the same years, VCIT’s worst drop was 20.6% against 33.7% for the S&P 500 (SPY), and its worst 12 months were −18.6% against −19.7%.
Compare with
Daily adjusted closes from Yahoo Finance, November 24, 2009 through October 13, 2026, dividends reinvested. Historical facts, not a forecast and not investment advice.