Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond

Fund

Prospectus

October XX, 2021

Investor Shares & Admiral™ Shares

Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund Investor Shares ( ) Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund Admiral Shares ( )

Subject to Completion

Preliminary Prospectus

Dated July 29, 2021

Information contained in this prospectus is subject to completion or amendment. A registration statement for Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund, has been filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission but has not yet become effective.

Shares of Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund may not be sold, nor may offers to buy be accepted, prior to the time the registration statement becomes effective. This communication shall not constitute an offer to sell, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state.

This is the Fund's initial prospectus, so it contains no performance data.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has not approved or disapproved these securities or passed upon the adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

Contents

Fund Summary	X
More on the Fund	X
The Fund and Vanguard	X
Investment Advisor	X
Dividends, Capital Gains, and Taxes	X
Share Price	X
Investing With Vanguard	X
Purchasing Shares	X
Converting Shares	X
Redeeming Shares	X
Exchanging Shares	X
Frequent-Trading Limitations	X
Other Rules You Should Know	X
Fund and Account Updates	X
Employer-Sponsored Plans	X
Contacting Vanguard	X
Additional Information	X
Glossary of Investment Terms	X

Fund Summary

Investment Objective

The Fund seeks to provide total return while generating a moderate to high level of current income.

Fees and Expenses

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell Investor Shares or Admiral Shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.

Shareholder Fees

(Fees paid directly from your investment)

	Investor Shares	Admiral Shares
Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases	None	None
Purchase Fee	None	None
Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Reinvested Dividends	None	None
Redemption Fee	None	None
Account Service Fee Per Year
(for certain fund account balances below $10,000)	$20	$20

Annual Fund Operating Expenses

(Expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

	Investor Shares	Admiral Shares
Management Fees	XX%	XX%
12b-1 Distribution Fee	None	None
Other Expenses	XX%	XX%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses1	0.40%	0.30%

1 The expense information shown in the table reflects estimated amounts for the current fiscal year.

Examples

The following examples are intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund's Investor Shares or Admiral Shares with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. They illustrate the hypothetical expenses that you would incur over various periods if you were to invest $10,000 in the Fund's shares. These examples assume that the shares provide a return of 5% each year and that total annual fund operating expenses remain as stated in the preceding table. You would incur these hypothetical expenses whether or not you were to redeem your investment at the end of the given period. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

	1 Year	3 Years
Investor Shares	$XX	$XX
Admiral Shares	$XX	$XX

Portfolio Turnover

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in more taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the previous expense examples, reduce the Fund's performance. The Fund has no operating history and therefore has no portfolio turnover information.

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund invests in a variety of fixed income securities that are high-quality, medium-quality, and lower quality bonds (commonly known as "junk bonds"). Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its assets in bonds, which include fixed income securities such as corporate bonds; emerging market bonds; and U.S. Treasury obligations and other U.S. government and agency securities.

The Fund can purchase bonds of any credit quality. High-quality fixed income securities are investment-grade securities that are rated the equivalent of A3 or better by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. (Moody's) or another independent rating agency or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Fund's advisor. Medium-quality fixed income securities are investment-grade securities that are rated the equivalent of Baa1, Baa2, or Baa3 by Moody's or another independent rating agency or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Fund's advisor. Lower quality fixed income securities are non-investment-grade securities that are rated the equivalent of Ba1 or lower by Moody's or another independent bond rating agency or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Fund's advisor. No more than

65% of the Fund's assets may be invested in non-investment-grade fixed income securities, or junk bonds.

The Fund invests in a variety of fixed income securities of issuers that are tied economically to emerging market countries. Emerging market bonds include sovereign debt securities, which include fixed income securities that are issued or guaranteed by foreign governments or their agencies, authorities, political subdivisions or instrumentalities, or other supranational agencies, as well as debt securities issued or guaranteed by foreign corporations and foreign financial institutions. Emerging market countries include countries whose economies or bond markets are less developed. This would include most countries except for Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the United States, the United Kingdom, and most European Monetary Union countries. The Fund may invest in emerging market bonds that have lower quality ratings.

The Fund seeks to have a majority of its assets denominated in or hedged back to the U.S. dollar but has the ability to invest in bonds denominated in a foreign currency on an unhedged basis. The Fund may attempt to hedge some or all of its foreign currency exposure, primarily through the use of foreign currency exchange forward contracts, in an effort to manage the currency risk associated with investing in securities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar.

In addition to foreign currency exchange forward contracts, the Fund may invest in other derivatives instruments, such as options, futures contracts, or other swap agreements.

Principal Risks

An investment in the Fund could lose money over short or long periods of time. You should expect the Fund's share price and total return to fluctuate within a wide range. The Fund is subject to the following risks, which could affect the Fund's performance, and the level of risk may vary based on market conditions:

•Interest rate risk, which is the chance that bond prices overall will decline because of rising interest rates.

•Income risk, which is the chance that the Fund's income will decline because of falling interest rates. A fund's income declines when interest rates fall because the fund then must invest new cash flow and cash from maturing bonds in lower- yielding bonds. Income risk is generally high for short-term bond funds and moderate for intermediate-term bond funds, so investors should expect the Fund's monthly income to fluctuate accordingly.

•Call risk, which is the chance that during periods of falling interest rates, issuers of callable bonds may call (redeem) securities with higher coupon rates or interest rates before their maturity dates. The Fund would then lose any price appreciation above the bond's call price and would be forced to reinvest the unanticipated proceeds at lower interest rates, resulting in a decline in the Fund's income. Such redemptions and subsequent reinvestments would also increase the Fund's portfolio turnover rate.

•Extension risk, which is the chance that during periods of rising interest rates, certain debt securities will be paid off substantially more slowly than originally anticipated, and the value of those securities may fall.

•Credit risk, which is the chance that a bond issuer will fail to pay interest or principal in a timely manner or that negative perceptions of the issuer's ability to make such payments will cause the price of that bond to decline. Because the Fund invests in junk bonds, credit risk should be high for the Fund.

•Liquidity risk, which is the chance that the Fund may not be able to sell a security in a timely manner at a desired price.

•Emerging markets risk, which is the chance that the bonds of governments, government agencies, government-owned corporations, and foreign companies located in emerging market countries will be substantially more volatile, and substantially less liquid, than the bonds of governments, government agencies, government-owned corporations, and foreign companies located in more developed foreign markets because, among other factors, emerging market countries can have more variable economic performance; greater custodial and operational risks; less developed legal, tax, regulatory, and accounting systems; and greater political, social, and economic instability than developed markets. Emerging markets risk should be high for the Fund.

•Country/regional risk, which is the chance that world events—such as political upheaval, financial troubles, or natural disasters—will adversely affect the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by foreign governments, government agencies, government-owned corporations, and foreign companies. Because the Fund may invest its assets in bonds of issuers located in any one country or region, the Fund's performance may be hurt disproportionately by the poor performance of its investments in that area. Country/regional risk is especially high in emerging market countries.

•Currency risk, which is the chance that the value of a foreign investment, measured in U.S. dollars, will decrease because of unfavorable changes in currency exchange rates. Currency risk is especially high in emerging markets.

•Currency hedging risk. The Fund has the ability to invest in foreign bonds which may or may not be denominated in or hedged back to U.S. dollars. The Fund will decline in value if it underhedges a currency that has weakened or overhedges a currency that has strengthened relative to the U.S. dollar. In addition, the Fund will incur expenses to hedge its foreign currency exposure. By entering into currency hedging transactions, the Fund may eliminate any chance to benefit from favorable fluctuations in relevant currency exchange rates.

•Manager risk, which is the chance that poor security selection will cause the Fund to underperform relevant benchmarks or other funds with a similar investment objective.

•Derivatives risk. The Fund may invest in derivatives, which may involve risks different from, and possibly greater than, those of investments directly in the underlying securities or assets.

•Counterparty risk, which is the chance that the counterparty to a currency forward contract, or other investment vehicle, with the Fund is unable or unwilling to meet its financial obligations.

An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

Annual Total Returns

The Fund began operations on October XX, 2021, so performance information is not yet available.

Investment Advisor

The Vanguard Group, Inc. (Vanguard)

Portfolio Managers

Michael Chang, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021.

Arvind Narayanan, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021.

Daniel Shaykevich, Portfolio Manager and Principal at Vanguard. He has co- managed the Fund since its inception in 2021.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

You may purchase or redeem shares online through our website (vanguard.com), by mail (The Vanguard Group, P.O. Box 982901, El Paso, TX 79998-2901), or by telephone (800-662-2739). The minimum investment amount required to open and maintain a Fund account for Investor Shares or Admiral Shares is $3,000 or $50,000, respectively. The minimum investment amount required to add to an existing Fund account is generally $1. Financial intermediaries, institutional clients, and Vanguard-advised clients should contact Vanguard for information on special eligibility rules that may apply to them regarding Admiral Shares. If you are investing through an intermediary, please contact that firm directly for more information regarding your eligibility. If you are investing through an employer- sponsored retirement or savings plan, your plan administrator or your benefits office can provide you with detailed information on how you can invest through your plan.

More on the Fund

This prospectus describes the principal risks you would face as a Fund shareholder. It is important to keep in mind one of the main principles of investing: generally, the higher the risk of losing money, the higher the potential reward. The reverse, also, is generally true: the lower the risk, the lower the potential reward. As you consider an investment in any mutual fund, you should take into account your personal tolerance for fluctuations in the securities markets. Look for this

symbol throughout the prospectus. It is used to mark detailed information about the more significant risks that you would confront as a Fund

shareholder. To highlight terms and concepts important to mutual fund investors, we have provided Plain Talk® explanations along the way. Reading the prospectus will help you decide whether the Fund is the right investment for you. We suggest that you keep this prospectus for future reference.

Share Class Overview

The Fund offers two separate classes of shares: Investor Shares and Admiral Shares.

Both share classes offered by the Fund have the same investment objective, strategies, and policies. However, different share classes have different expenses; as a result, their investment returns will differ.

Plain Talk About Fund Expenses

All mutual funds have operating expenses. These expenses, which are deducted from a fund's gross income, are expressed as a percentage of the net assets of the fund. Assuming that operating expenses remain as stated in the Fees and Expenses section, Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund's expense ratios would be as follows: for Investor Shares, XX%, or $XX per $1,000 of average net assets; for Admiral Shares, XX%, or $XX per $1,000 of average net assets.

Plain Talk About Costs of Investing

Costs are an important consideration in choosing a mutual fund. That is because you, as a shareholder, pay a proportionate share of the costs of operating a fund and any transaction costs incurred when the fund buys or sells securities. These costs can erode a substantial portion of the gross income or the capital appreciation a fund achieves. Even seemingly small differences in expenses can, over time, have a dramatic effect on a fund's performance.

The following sections explain the principal investment strategies and policies that the Fund uses in pursuit of its investment objective. The Fund's board of trustees, which oversees the Fund's management, may change investment strategies or policies in the interest of shareholders without a shareholder vote, unless those strategies or policies are designated as fundamental. Note that the Fund's investment objective is not fundamental and may be changed without a shareholder vote. The Fund may change its 80% policy only upon 60 days' notice to shareholders.

Market Exposure

The Fund invests mainly in bonds. As a result, it is subject to certain risks.

The Fund is subject to interest rate risk, which is the chance that bond prices overall will decline because of rising interest rates.

Although fixed income securities (commonly referred to as bonds) are often thought to be less risky than stocks, there have been periods when bond prices have fallen significantly because of rising interest rates. For instance, prices of long-term bonds fell by almost 48% between December 1976 and September 1981.

To illustrate the relationship between bond prices and interest rates, the following table shows the effect of a 1% and a 2% change (both up and down) in interest rates on the values of three noncallable bonds (i.e., bonds that cannot be redeemed by the issuer) of different maturities, each with a face value of $1,000.

How Interest Rate Changes Affect the Value of a $1,000 Bond1

Type of Bond (Maturity)	After a 1%	After a 1%	After a 2%	After a 2%
Type of Bond (Maturity)	Increase	Decrease	Increase	Decrease
Short-Term (2.5 years)	$977	$1,024	$954	$1,049
Intermediate-Term (10 years)	922	1,086	851	1,180
Long-Term (20 years)	874	1,150	769	1,328
1 Assuming a 4% coupon rate.

These figures are for illustration only; you should not regard them as an indication of future performance of the bond market as a whole or the Fund in particular.

Plain Talk About Bonds and Interest Rates

As a rule, when interest rates rise, bond prices fall. The opposite is also true: Bond prices go up when interest rates fall. Why do bond prices and interest rates move in opposite directions? Let's assume that you hold a bond offering a 4% yield. A year later, interest rates are on the rise and bonds of comparable quality and maturity are offered with a 5% yield. With higher- yielding bonds available, you would have trouble selling your 4% bond for the price you paid—you would probably have to lower your asking price. On the other hand, if interest rates were falling and 3% bonds were being offered, you should be able to sell your 4% bond for more than you paid.

Changes in interest rates can affect bond income as well as bond prices.

The Fund is subject to income risk, which is the chance that the Fund's income will decline because of falling interest rates. A fund's income declines when interest rates fall because the fund then must invest new cash flow and cash from maturing bonds in lower-yielding bonds. Income risk is generally high for short-term bond funds and moderate for intermediate-term bond funds, so investors should expect the Fund's monthly income to fluctuate accordingly.

Plain Talk About Bond Maturities

A bond is issued with a specific maturity date—the date when the issuer must pay back the bond's principal (face value). Bond maturities range from less than 1 year to more than 30 years. Typically, the longer a bond's maturity, the more price risk you, as a bond investor, will face as interest rates rise—but also the higher the potential yield you could receive. Longer-term bonds are more suitable for investors willing to take a greater risk of price fluctuations to get higher and more stable interest income. Shorter-term bond investors should be willing to accept lower yields and greater income variability in return for less fluctuation in the value of their investment. The stated maturity of a bond may differ from the effective maturity of a bond, which takes into consideration that an action such as a call or refunding may cause bonds to be repaid before their stated maturity dates.

Although falling interest rates tend to strengthen bond prices, they can cause other problems for bond fund investors—bond calls and prepayments.

Plain Talk About Callable Bonds

Although bonds are issued with clearly defined maturities, in some cases the bond issuer has a right to call in (redeem) the bond earlier than its maturity date. When a bond is called, the bondholder may have to replace it with another bond that may have a lower yield than the original bond. One way for bond investors to protect themselves against call risk is to purchase a bond early in its lifetime, long before its call date. Another way is to buy bonds with lower coupon rates or interest rates, which make them less likely to be called.

The Fund is subject to call risk, which is the chance that during periods of falling interest rates, issuers of callable bonds may call (redeem) securities with higher coupon rates or interest rates before their maturity dates. The Fund would then lose any price appreciation above the bond's call price and would be forced to reinvest the unanticipated proceeds at lower interest rates, resulting in a decline in the Fund's income. Such redemptions and subsequent reinvestments would also increase the Fund's portfolio turnover rate.

The Fund is subject to credit risk, which is the chance that a bond issuer will fail to pay interest or principal in a timely manner or that negative perceptions of the issuer's ability to make such payments will cause the price of that bond to decline. Because the Fund invests in junk bonds, credit risk should be high for the Fund.

Plain Talk About Credit Quality

A bond's credit quality rating is an assessment of the issuer's ability to pay interest on the bond and, ultimately, to repay the principal. The lower the credit quality, the greater the perceived chance that the bond issuer will default, or fail to meet its payment obligations. All things being equal, the lower a bond's credit quality, the higher its yield should be to compensate investors for assuming additional risk.

The Fund invests in a variety of fixed income securities that are high-quality, medium-quality, and lower quality, higher-risk bonds—commonly known as junk bonds.

		Credit Ratings of the Fund's Investments
	(Percentage of Fund Assets Under Normal Circumstances)
	Issued or Backed	High or
	by U.S. Gov't. or	Highest	Upper-		Non-
	its Agencies and	Quality	Medium	Medium	Investment-
Vanguard Fund	Instrumentalities	(Non-Gov't.)	Quality	Quality	Grade
Multi-Sector					No more
Income Bond	——————————At least 35%——————————				No more
Fund	——————————At least 35%——————————				than 65%

The Fund may invest no more than 65% of its assets in non-investment-grade fixed income securities, or junk bonds. Non-investment-grade fixed income securities are those rated the equivalent of Moody's Ba1 or below or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Fund's advisor.

Plain Talk About High-Yield Bonds

High-yield bonds, or "junk bonds," are issued by companies or other entities whose ability to pay interest and principal on the debt in a timely manner is considered questionable. Such bonds are rated "below investment-grade" by independent rating agencies. Because they have greater credit risk than investment-grade bonds, similar maturity high-yield bonds typically must pay more interest to attract investors. Some high- yield bonds are issued by smaller, less-seasoned companies, while others are issued as part of a corporate restructuring, such as an acquisition, a merger, or a leveraged buyout. Some high-yield bonds were once rated as investment-grade but have been downgraded to junk bond status because of financial difficulties experienced by their issuers. Conversely, an issuer's improving financial condition may result in an upgrading of its junk bonds to investment-grade status.

To a limited extent, the Fund is subject to event risk, which is the chance that corporate fixed income securities held by the Fund may suffer a substantial decline in credit quality and market value because of a restructuring of the companies that issued the securities or because of other factors negatively affecting the issuers.

The Fund is subject to liquidity risk, which is the chance that the Fund may not be able to sell a security in a timely manner at a desired price.

Liquidity in the bond market may be challenged depending on overall economic conditions and credit tightening, as well as the willingness of market participants to buy and sell such securities. There may be little trading in the secondary market for particular bonds, loans and other debt securities, which may make them more difficult to value or sell.

Plain Talk About Types of Bonds

Bonds are issued (sold) by many sources: Corporations issue corporate bonds; the federal government issues U.S. Treasury bonds; agencies of the federal government issue agency bonds; financial institutions issue asset- backed bonds; and mortgage holders issue "mortgage-backed" pass-through certificates. Each issuer is responsible for paying back the bond's initial value as well as for making periodic interest payments. Many bonds issued by government agencies and entities are neither guaranteed nor insured by the U.S. government.

The Fund invests in a variety of fixed income securities of issuers that are tied economically to emerging market countries. Emerging market bonds include sovereign debt securities, which include fixed income securities that are issued or guaranteed by foreign governments or their agencies, authorities, political subdivisions or instrumentalities, or other supranational agencies, as well as debt securities issued or guaranteed by foreign corporations and foreign financial institutions. Emerging market countries include countries whose economies or bond markets are less developed. This would include most countries except for Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the United States, the United Kingdom, and most European Monetary Union countries. The advisor will consider, among other things, a country's political and economic stability and the development of its financial and capital markets when determining what constitutes an emerging market country.

The Fund is subject to emerging markets risk, which is the chance that the bonds of governments, government agencies, government-owned corporations, and foreign companies located in emerging market countries will be substantially more volatile, and substantially less liquid, than bonds of governments, government agencies, government-owned corporations, and foreign companies located in more developed foreign markets because, among other factors, emerging market countries can have more variable economic performance; greater custodial and operational risks; less developed legal, tax, regulatory, and accounting systems; and greater political, social, and economic instability than developed markets. Emerging markets risk should be high for the Fund.

The Fund is subject to country/regional risk, which is the chance that world events—such as political upheaval, financial troubles, or natural disasters— will adversely affect the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by foreign governments, government agencies, government-owned corporations, and foreign companies. Because the Fund may invest its assets in bonds of issuers located in any one country or region, the Fund's performance may be hurt disproportionately by the poor performance of its investments in that area. Country/regional risk is especially high in emerging market countries.

Plain Talk About International Investing

U.S. investors who invest in foreign securities will encounter risks not typically associated with U.S. companies because foreign stock and bond markets operate differently from the U.S. markets. For instance, foreign companies and governments may not be subject to the same or similar accounting, auditing, legal, tax, and financial reporting standards and practices as U.S. companies and the U.S. government, and their stocks and bonds may not be as liquid as those of similar U.S. entities. In addition, foreign stock exchanges, brokers, companies, bond markets, and dealers may be subject to less government supervision and regulation than their counterparts in the United States. These factors, among others, could negatively affect the returns U.S. investors receive from foreign investments.

While the Fund seeks to have a majority of its assets denominated in or hedged back to the U.S. dollar, it has the ability to invest in bonds denominated in a foreign currency on an unhedged basis. These bonds include sovereign debt securities, which include fixed income securities that are issued or guaranteed by foreign sovereign governments or their agencies, authorities, political subdivisions or instrumentalities, or other supranational agencies, as well as debt securities issued or guaranteed by foreign corporations and foreign financial institutions.

The Fund may attempt to hedge some or all of its foreign currency exposure, primarily through the use of foreign currency exchange forward contracts. Such hedging is intended to reduce the currency risk associated with investment in bonds denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Local currency bonds are bonds denominated in the local currency of a non-U.S. country. To the extent that the Fund owns local currency bonds and hedges its foreign currency exposure, it is subject to currency hedging risk.

Currency risk can affect the credit risk of the Fund's bonds because the issuer would have a large burden if its local currency weakens significantly compared with the U.S. dollar. If an issuer's local currency declines relative to the U.S. dollar, it could negatively affect perceptions of the issuer's ability to make payments, which could cause the issuer's bonds to decline in value. Many issuers manage this risk by hedging currency exposure, and their effectiveness in doing so is reflected in their credit rating.

The Fund is subject to currency risk, which is the chance that the value of a foreign investment, measured in U.S. dollars, will decrease because of unfavorable changes in currency exchange rates. Currency risk is especially high in emerging markets.

The Fund is subject to currency hedging risk. The Fund has the ability to invest in foreign bonds which may or may not be denominated in or hedged back to U.S. dollars. The Fund will decline in value if it underhedges a currency that has weakened or overhedges a currency that has strengthened relative to the U.S. dollar. In addition, the Fund will incur expenses to hedge its foreign currency exposure. By entering into currency hedging transactions, the Fund may eliminate any chance to benefit from favorable fluctuations in relevant currency exchange rates.

Market disruptions can adversely affect local and global markets as well as normal market conditions and operations. Any such disruptions could have an adverse impact on the value of the Fund's investments and Fund performance.

Security Selection

Vanguard's actively managed fixed income funds follow a portfolio manager- driven process that uses both top-down and bottom-up inputs. Portfolio managers are responsible for portfolio construction and strategy, leveraging the top-down insights of the Senior Investment Committee and Vanguard's Investment Strategy Group, the bottom-up insights of the sector teams, and the relative value views across fixed income sectors. Risk optimization measures are present throughout the investment process, and the Senior Investment Committee provides governance and oversight for the entire lineup. The types of financial instruments that may be purchased by the Fund are identified and explained as follows:

•Corporate bonds are IOUs issued by businesses that want to borrow money for some purpose—often to develop a new product or service, to expand into a new market, or to buy another company. As with other types of bonds, the issuer promises to repay the principal on a specific date and to make interest payments in the meantime. The amount of interest offered depends both on market conditions and on the financial health of the corporation issuing the bonds; a company whose credit rating is not strong will have to offer a higher interest rate to obtain buyers for its bonds.

•U.S. government and agency bonds represents loans by investors to the U.S. Treasury or a wide variety of government agencies and instrumentalities. Securities issued by most U.S. government entities are neither guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury nor backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. These entities include, among others, the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBs), the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC). Securities issued by the U.S. Treasury and a small number of U.S. government agencies, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA), are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. The market values of U.S. government and agency securities and U.S. Treasury securities are subject to fluctuation.

•Cash equivalent investments is a blanket term that describes a variety of short- term fixed income investments, including money market instruments, commercial paper, bank certificates of deposit, banker's acceptances, and repurchase agreements. Repurchase agreements represent short-term (normally overnight) loans by a fund to banks or large securities dealers. Repurchase agreements can carry several risks. For instance, if the seller is unable to repurchase the securities as promised, a fund may experience a loss when trying to sell the securities to another buyer. Also, if the seller becomes insolvent, a bankruptcy court may determine that the securities do not belong to a fund and order that the securities be used to pay off the seller's debts. The Fund's advisor believes that these risks can be controlled through careful security selection and monitoring.

•Futures, options, and other derivatives are described in detail under Other Investment Policies and Risks.

•International dollar-denominated bonds are bonds denominated in U.S. dollars and issued by foreign governments and companies. To the extent that the Fund owns foreign bonds, it is subject to country risk, which is the chance that world events—such as political upheaval, financial troubles, or natural disasters—will adversely affect the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by companies in foreign countries. In addition, the prices of foreign bonds and the prices of U.S. bonds have, at times, moved in opposite directions. Because the bond's value is designated in dollars rather than in the currency of the issuer's country, the investor is not exposed to currency risk; rather, the issuer assumes that risk, usually to attract U.S. investors. Although currency movements do not affect the value of international dollar-denominated bonds directly, they could affect the value indirectly by adversely affecting the issuer's ability (or the market's perception of the issuer's ability) to pay interest or repay principal.

•Foreign currency bonds are bonds denominated in a foreign currency and issued by governments, government or supranational agencies, and companies of non-U.S. countries. The Fund will seek to have a majority of its assets either denominated in or hedged back to the U.S. dollar, but will also have the ability to invest in bonds denominated in a foreign currency on an unhedged basis. To the extent that the Fund's investments in foreign currency bonds are hedged, the fund is subject to currency risk and currency hedging risk.

•Bank Loans are fixed or floating rate loans arranged through private negotiations between a company or a non-U.S. government and one or more financial institutions. Bank loans often involve borrowers who are less financially strong than companies with higher credit ratings and therefore may be more likely to encounter financial difficulties and be more vulnerable to adverse market events and negative sentiments. For this reason, bank loans will generally be rated below investment-grade and involve greater risks of default, downgrade, or

price declines and are more volatile than investment-grade securities. A fund may have difficulty disposing of bank loans because, in certain cases, the market for such instruments is not highly liquid. The lack of a highly liquid secondary market may have an adverse impact on the value of such instruments and on a fund's ability to dispose of the bank loan in response to a specific economic event, such as deterioration in the creditworthiness of the borrower, but there is no guarantee that an investment in these securities will result in a high rate of return. In addition, bank loans may have trade settlement periods extending beyond seven days, which means that it could take the fund a significant amount of time to get its money after selling an investment. As a result, those proceeds will not be available to make additional investments or to meet the fund's redemption obligations.

•Municipal bonds represent loans by an investor to state or local governments or to other governmental authorities.

•Preferred stocks distribute set dividends from the issuer. The preferred-stock holder's claim on the issuer's income and assets ranks before that of common- stock holders, but after that of bondholders.

•Convertible securities are bonds or preferred stocks that are convertible into, or exchangeable for, common stocks.

•Mortgage-backed securities represent partial ownership interest in pools of commercial or residential mortgage loans made by financial institutions to finance a borrower's real estate purchase. These loans are packaged by private or governmental issuers for sale to investors. As the underlying mortgage loans are paid by borrowers, the investors receive payments of interest and principal. To be announced (TBA) securities represent an agreement to buy or sell mortgage-backed securities with agreed-upon characteristics for a fixed unit price, with settlement on a scheduled future date beyond the typical settlement period for most other securities. The Fund may have short positions in TBAs. See also Other Investment Policies and Risks.

The Fund may also invest in mortgage-backed securities that are packaged by private corporations and are not guaranteed by the U.S. government.

The Fund may enter into mortgage-dollar-roll transactions. In a mortgage-dollar-roll transaction, a fund sells mortgage-backed securities to a dealer and simultaneously agrees to purchase similar securities in the future at a predetermined price. These transactions simulate an investment in mortgage- backed securities and have the potential to enhance a fund's returns and reduce its administrative burdens, compared with holding mortgage-backed securities directly. These transactions may increase the fund's portfolio turnover rate. Mortgage dollar rolls will be used only to the extent that they are consistent with the fund's investment objective and risk profile.

income obligations, are issued by entities formed solely for that purpose, but their value ultimately depends on repayments by underlying borrowers. A primary risk of asset-backed securities is that their maturity is difficult to predict, being driven by borrowers' prepayments.

•Collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs) are special bonds that are collateralized by mortgages or mortgage pass-through securities. Cash flow rights on underlying mortgages—the rights to receive principal and interest payments—are divided up and prioritized to create short-, intermediate-, and long-term bonds. CMOs rely on assumptions about the timing of cash flows on the underlying mortgages, including expected prepayment rates. The primary risk of a CMO is that these assumptions are wrong, which would either shorten or lengthen the bond's maturity. The Fund will invest only in CMOs that are believed to be consistent with its maturity and credit-quality standards.

The Fund is subject to manager risk, which is the chance that poor security selection will cause the Fund to underperform relevant benchmarks or other funds with a similar investment objective.

Other Investment Policies and Risks

In addition to investing in bonds, the Fund may make other kinds of investments to achieve its investment objective.

The Fund may purchase nonpublic securities, generally referred to as 144A securities. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in illiquid securities. Illiquid securities are investments that the Fund reasonably expects cannot be sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. Restricted securities are a special type of illiquid security; these securities have not been publicly issued and legally can be resold only to qualified buyers. From time to time, the board of trustees may determine that particular restricted securities are not illiquid, and those securities may then be purchased by the Fund without limit. The Fund may also hold other types of securities, such as various types of warrants, including, but not limited to warrants linked to countries' economic performance or commodity prices.

The Fund may invest in derivatives. In general, investments in derivatives may involve risks different from, and possibly greater than, those of investments directly in the underlying securities or assets.

Generally speaking, a derivative is a financial contract whose value is based on the value of a financial asset (such as a stock, a bond, or a currency), a physical asset (such as gold, oil, or wheat), a market index, or a reference rate. The Fund may invest in derivatives only if the expected risks and rewards of the derivatives are consistent with the investment objective, policies, strategies, and risks of the Fund as disclosed in this prospectus. In particular, derivatives will be used only

when they may help the advisor to accomplish one or more of the following:

•Invest in eligible asset classes with greater efficiency and lower cost than is possible through direct investment.

•Add value when these instruments are attractively priced.

•Adjust sensitivity to changes in interest rates.

•Adjust the overall credit risk of the portfolio or actively overweight or underweight credit risk to specific bond issuers.

•Hedge foreign currency exposure.

•Hedge foreign interest rate exposure.

The Fund's derivative investments may include fixed income futures contracts; fixed income options, including options on swaps; currency swaps; foreign currency exchange forwards; interest rate swaps; total return swaps; credit default swaps; TBAs; or other derivatives. Losses (or gains) involving futures contracts can sometimes be substantial—in part because a relatively small price movement in a futures contract may result in an immediate and substantial loss (or gain) for a fund. Similar risks exist for other types of derivatives. The Fund may also invest in U.S. Treasury futures for either cash management purposes or potentially to add value since they may be favorably priced.

The Fund may enter into a currency swap or foreign currency exchange forward to sell or buy an amount of foreign currency with which it does not have exposure.

The Fund may invest a small portion of its assets in shares of exchange-traded funds (ETFs). These ETFs typically provide returns similar to those of bonds. The Fund may purchase ETFs when doing so will reduce the Fund's transaction costs, facilitate cash management, mitigate risk, or have the potential to add value because the instruments are favorably priced. Vanguard receives no additional revenue from Fund assets invested in ETF Shares of other Vanguard funds. Fund assets invested in ETF Shares are excluded when allocating to the Fund its share of the costs of Vanguard's operations.

The Fund is subject to counterparty risk, which is the chance that the counterparty to a currency forward contract, or other investment vehicle, with the Fund is unable or unwilling to meet its financial obligations.

Plain Talk About Derivatives

Derivatives can take many forms. Some forms of derivatives—such as exchange-traded futures and options on securities, commodities, or indexes— have been trading on regulated exchanges for decades. These types of derivatives are standardized contracts that can easily be bought and sold and whose market values are determined and published daily. On the other hand, non-exchange-traded derivatives—such as certain swap agreements—tend to be more specialized or complex and may be more difficult to accurately value.

Cash Management

The Fund's daily cash balance may be invested in Vanguard Market Liquidity Fund and/or Vanguard Municipal Cash Management Fund (each, a CMT Fund), which are low-cost money market funds. When investing in a CMT Fund, the Fund bears its proportionate share of the expenses of the CMT Fund in which it invests. Vanguard receives no additional revenue from Fund assets invested in a CMT Fund.

Methods Used to Meet Redemption Requests

Under normal circumstances, the Fund typically expects to meet redemptions with positive cash flows. When this is not an option, the Fund seeks to maintain its risk exposure by selling a cross section of the Fund's holdings to meet redemptions, while also factoring in transaction costs. Additionally, the Fund may work with larger clients to implement their redemptions in a manner that is least disruptive to the portfolio; see "Potentially disruptive redemptions" under Redeeming Shares in the Investing With Vanguard section.

Under certain circumstances, including under stressed market conditions, there are additional tools that the Fund may use in order to meet redemptions, including advancing the settlement of market trades with counterparties to match investor redemption payments or delaying settlement of an investor' transaction to match trade settlement within regulatory requirements. The Fund may also suspend payment of redemption proceeds for up to seven days; see "Emergency circumstances" under Redeeming Shares in the Investing With Vanguard section. Additionally under these unusual circumstances, the Fund may borrow money (subject to certain regulatory conditions and if available under board- approved procedures) through an interfund lending facility; through a bank line-of- credit, including a joint committed credit facility; or through an uncommitted line- of-credit from Vanguard in order to meet redemption requests.

Temporary Investment Measures

The Fund may temporarily depart from its normal investment policies and strategies when the advisor believes that doing so is in the Fund's best interest, so long as the strategy or policy employed is consistent with the Fund's investment objective. For instance, the Fund may invest beyond its normal limits in derivatives or exchange-traded funds that are consistent with the Fund's investment objective when those instruments are more favorably priced or provide needed liquidity, as might be the case when the Fund receives large cash flows that it cannot prudently invest immediately.

In addition, the Fund may take temporary defensive positions that are inconsistent with its normal investment policies and strategies—for instance, by allocating substantial assets to cash equivalent investments or other less volatile instruments— in response to adverse or unusual market, economic, political, or other conditions. In doing so, the Fund may succeed in avoiding losses but may otherwise fail to achieve its investment objective.

Frequent Trading or Market-Timing

Background. Some investors try to profit from strategies involving frequent trading of mutual fund shares, such as market-timing. For funds holding foreign securities, investors may try to take advantage of an anticipated difference between the price of the fund's shares and price movements in overseas markets, a practice also known as time-zone arbitrage. Investors also may try to engage in frequent trading of funds holding investments such as small-cap stocks and high- yield bonds. As money is shifted into and out of a fund by a shareholder engaging in frequent trading, the fund incurs costs for buying and selling securities, resulting in increased brokerage and administrative costs. These costs are borne by all fund shareholders, including the long-term investors who do not generate the costs. In addition, frequent trading may interfere with an advisor's ability to efficiently manage the fund.

Policies to address frequent trading. The Vanguard funds (other than money market funds and short-term bond funds but including Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund) do not knowingly accommodate frequent trading. The board of trustees of each Vanguard fund (other than money market funds and short-term bond funds but including Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund) has adopted policies and procedures reasonably designed to detect and discourage frequent trading and, in some cases, to compensate the fund for the costs associated with it. These policies and procedures do not apply to ETF Shares because frequent trading in ETF Shares generally does not disrupt portfolio management or otherwise harm fund shareholders. Although there is no assurance that Vanguard will be able to detect or prevent frequent trading or market-timing in all circumstances, the following policies have been adopted to address these issues:

•Each Vanguard fund reserves the right to reject any purchase request—including exchanges from other Vanguard funds—without notice and

regardless of size. For example, a purchase request could be rejected because the investor has a history of frequent trading or if Vanguard determines that such purchase may negatively affect a fund's operation or performance.

•Each Vanguard fund (other than money market funds and short-term bond funds, but including Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund) generally prohibits, except as otherwise noted in the Investing With Vanguard section, an investor's purchases or exchanges into a fund account for 30 calendar days after the investor has redeemed or exchanged out of that fund account.

•Certain Vanguard funds charge shareholders purchase and/or redemption fees on transactions.

See the Investing With Vanguard section of this prospectus for further details on Vanguard's transaction policies.

Each Vanguard fund (other than retail and government money market funds), in determining its net asset value, will use fair-value pricing when appropriate, as described in the Share Price section. Fair-value pricing may reduce or eliminate the profitability of certain frequent-trading strategies.

Do not invest with Vanguard if you are a market-timer.

Turnover Rate

Although the Fund generally seeks to invest for the long term, the Fund may sell securities regardless of how long they have been held. The Fund has no operating history and therefore has no portfolio turnover information.

The Fund and Vanguard

The Fund is a member of The Vanguard Group, a family of over 200 funds. All of the funds that are members of The Vanguard Group (other than funds of funds) share in the expenses associated with administrative services and business operations, such as personnel, office space, and equipment.

Vanguard Marketing Corporation provides marketing services to the funds. Although fund shareholders do not pay sales commissions or 12b-1 distribution fees, each fund (other than a fund of funds) or each share class of a fund (in the case of a fund with multiple share classes) pays its allocated share of the Vanguard funds' marketing costs.

Plain Talk About Vanguard's Unique Corporate Structure

The Vanguard Group is owned jointly by the funds it oversees and thus indirectly by the shareholders in those funds. Most other mutual funds are operated by management companies that are owned by third parties—either public or private stockholders—and not by the funds they serve.

Investment Advisor

The Vanguard Group, Inc., P.O. Box 2600, Valley Forge, PA 19482, which began operations in 1975, serves as advisor to the Fund through its Fixed Income Group. As of XX, 2021, Vanguard served as advisor for approximately $XX trillion in assets. Vanguard provides investment advisory services to the Fund pursuant to the Funds' Service Agreement and subject to the supervision and oversight of the trustees and officers of the Fund.

Although the Fund is managed solely by Vanguard, the Fund reserves the right to utilize a multimanager approach in the future. Under the terms of an SEC exemption, the Fund's board of trustees may, without prior approval from shareholders, change the terms of an advisory agreement with a third-party investment advisor or hire a new third-party investment advisor—either as a replacement for an existing advisor or as an additional advisor. Any significant change in the Fund's advisory arrangements will be communicated to shareholders in writing. As the Fund's sponsor and overall manager, Vanguard may provide investment advisory services to the Fund at any time. Vanguard may also recommend to the board of trustees that an advisor be hired, terminated, or replaced or that the terms of an existing advisory agreement be revised. The Fund has filed an application seeking a similar SEC exemption with respect to investment advisors that are wholly owned subsidiaries of Vanguard. If the exemption is granted, the Fund may rely on the new SEC relief.

For a discussion of why the board of trustees approved the Fund's investment advisory arrangement, see the most recent report to shareholders covering the fiscal period ended XX, which will be available 60 days after this date.

The managers primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund are:

Michael Chang, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has been with Vanguard since 2017, has worked in investment management since 2000, has managed investment portfolios since 2011, and has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021. Education: B. Com., University of British Columbia.

Arvind Narayanan, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has been with Vanguard since 2019, has worked in investment management since 2002, has managed investment portfolios since 2006, and has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021. Education: B.A., Goucher College; M.B.A., New York University.

Daniel Shaykevich, Portfolio Manager and Principal at Vanguard. He has worked in investment management since 2001, has managed investment portfolios since 2004, has been with Vanguard since 2013, and has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021. Education: B.S., Carnegie Mellon University.

The Fund's Statement of Additional Information provides information about each portfolio manager's compensation, other accounts under management, and ownership of shares of the Fund.

Dividends, Capital Gains, and Taxes

Fund Distributions

The Fund distributes to shareholders virtually all of its net income (interest less expenses) as well as any net short-term or long-term capital gains realized from the sale of its holdings. From time to time, the Fund may also make distributions that are treated as a return of capital. Income dividends generally are declared monthly and distributed monthly. Capital gains distributions, if any, generally occur annually in December. In addition, the Fund may occasionally make a supplemental distribution at some other time during the year.

You can receive distributions of income or capital gains in cash, or you can have them automatically reinvested in more shares of the Fund. However, if you are investing through an employer-sponsored retirement or savings plan, your distributions will be automatically reinvested in additional Fund shares.

Plain Talk About Distributions

As a shareholder, you are entitled to your portion of a fund's income from interest as well as capital gains from the fund's sale of investments. Income consists of interest the fund earns from its money market and bond investments. Capital gains are realized whenever the fund sells securities for higher prices than it paid for them. These capital gains are either short-term or long-term, depending on whether the fund held the securities for one year or less or for more than one year.

Basic Tax Points

Investors in taxable accounts should be aware of the following basic federal income tax points:

•Distributions are taxable to you whether or not you reinvest these amounts in additional Fund shares.

•Distributions declared in December—if paid to you by the end of January—are taxable as if received in December.

•Any income dividend distribution or short-term capital gains distribution that you receive is taxable to you as ordinary income.

•Any distribution of net long-term capital gains is taxable to you as long-term capital gains, no matter how long you have owned shares in the Fund.

•Capital gains distributions may vary considerably from year to year as a result of the Fund's normal investment activities and cash flows.

•Your cost basis in the Fund will be decreased by the amount of any return of capital that you receive. This, in turn, will affect the amount of any capital gain or loss that you realize when selling or exchanging your Fund shares.

•Return of capital distributions generally are not taxable to you until your cost basis has been reduced to zero. If your cost basis is at zero, return of capital distributions will be treated as capital gains.

•A sale or exchange of Fund shares is a taxable event. This means that you may have a capital gain to report as income, or a capital loss to report as a deduction, when you complete your tax return.

•Any conversion between classes of shares of the same fund is a nontaxable event. By contrast, an exchange between classes of shares of different funds is a taxable event.

•Vanguard (or your intermediary) will send you a statement each year showing the tax status of all of your distributions.

Individuals, trusts, and estates whose income exceeds certain threshold amounts are subject to a 3.8% Medicare contribution tax on "net investment income." Net investment income takes into account distributions paid by the Fund and capital gains from any sale or exchange of Fund shares.

Income dividends and capital gains distributions that you receive, as well as your gains or losses from any sale or exchange of Fund shares, may be subject to state and local income taxes. Depending on your state's rules, however, any dividends attributable to interest earned on direct obligations of the U.S. government may be exempt from state and local taxes. Vanguard will notify you each year how much, if any, of your dividends may qualify for this exemption.

This prospectus provides general tax information only. If you are investing through

atax-advantaged account, such as an IRA or an employer-sponsored retirement or savings plan, special tax rules apply. Please consult your tax advisor for detailed information about any tax consequences for you.

General Information

Backup withholding. By law, Vanguard must withhold 24% of any taxable distributions or redemptions from your account if you do not:

•Provide your correct taxpayer identification number.

•Certify that the taxpayer identification number is correct.

•Confirm that you are not subject to backup withholding.

Similarly, Vanguard (or your intermediary) must withhold taxes from your account if the IRS instructs us to do so

Foreign investors. Vanguard funds offered for sale in the United States (Vanguard U.S. funds), including the Fund offered in this prospectus, are not widely available outside the United States. Non-U.S. investors should be aware that U.S. withholding and estate taxes and certain U.S. tax reporting requirements may apply to any investments in Vanguard U.S. funds. Foreign investors should visit the non-U.S. investors page on our website at vanguard.com for information on Vanguard's non-U.S. products.

Invalid addresses. If an income dividend distribution or capital gains distribution check mailed to your address of record is returned as undeliverable, Vanguard will automatically reinvest the distribution and all future distributions until you provide us with a valid mailing address. Reinvestments will receive the net asset value calculated on the date of the reinvestment.

Share Price

Share price, also known as net asset value (NAV), is calculated as of the close of regular trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), generally 4 p.m., Eastern time, on each day that the NYSE is open for business (a business day). In the rare event the NYSE experiences unanticipated disruptions and is unavailable at the close of the trading day, NAVs will be calculated as of the close of regular trading on the Nasdaq (or another alternate exchange if the Nasdaq is unavailable, as determined at Vanguard's discretion), generally 4 p.m., Eastern time. Each share class has its own NAV, which is computed by dividing the total assets, minus liabilities, allocated to the share class by the number of Fund shares outstanding for that class. On U.S. holidays or other days when the NYSE is closed, the NAV is not calculated, and the Fund does not sell or redeem shares.

Debt securities held by a Vanguard fund are valued based on information furnished by an independent pricing service or market quotations. When a fund determines that pricing-service information or market quotations either are not readily available or do not accurately reflect the value of a security, the security is priced at its fair value (the amount that the owner might reasonably expect to receive upon the current sale of the security).

The values of any foreign securities held by a fund are converted into U.S. dollars using an exchange rate obtained from an independent third party as of the close of regular trading on the NYSE. The values of any mutual fund shares, including institutional money market fund shares, held by a fund are based on the NAVs of the shares. The values of any ETF shares or closed-end fund shares held by a fund are based on the market value of the shares.

Investing With Vanguard

This section of the prospectus explains the basics of doing business with Vanguard. Vanguard fund shares can be held directly with Vanguard or indirectly through an intermediary, such as a bank, a broker, or an investment advisor. If you hold Vanguard fund shares directly with Vanguard, you should carefully read each topic within this section that pertains to your relationship with Vanguard. If you hold Vanguard fund shares indirectly through an intermediary (including shares held in a brokerage account through Vanguard Brokerage Services®), please see Investing With Vanguard Through Other Firms, and also refer to your account agreement with the intermediary for information about transacting in that account. If you hold Vanguard fund shares through an employer-sponsored retirement or savings plan, please see Employer-Sponsored Plans. Vanguard reserves the right to change the following policies without notice. Please call or check online for current information. See Contacting Vanguard.

For Vanguard fund shares held directly with Vanguard, each fund you hold in an account is a separate "fund account." For example, if you hold three funds in a nonretirement account titled in your own name, two funds in a nonretirement account titled jointly with your spouse, and one fund in an individual retirement account, you have six fund accounts—and this is true even if you hold the same fund in multiple accounts. Note that each reference to "you" in this prospectus applies to any one or more registered account owners or persons authorized to transact on your account.

Purchasing Shares

Vanguard reserves the right, without notice, to increase or decrease the minimum amount required to open, convert shares to, or maintain a fund account or to add to an existing fund account.

Investment minimums may differ for certain categories of investors.

Account Minimums for Investor Shares

To open and maintain an account. $3,000.

To add to an existing account. Generally $1.

Account Minimums for Admiral Shares

To open and maintain an account. $50,000. If you request Admiral Shares when you open a new account but the investment amount does not meet the account minimum for Admiral Shares, your investment will be placed in Investor Shares of the Fund. Financial intermediaries, institutional clients, and Vanguard- advised clients should contact Vanguard for information on special eligibility rules that may apply to them regarding Admiral Shares. If you are investing through an intermediary, please contact that firm directly for more information regarding your eligibility.

To add to an existing account. Generally $1.

How to Initiate a Purchase Request

Be sure to check Exchanging Shares, Frequent-Trading Limitations, and Other Rules You Should Know before placing your purchase request.

Online. You may open certain types of accounts, request a purchase of shares, and request an exchange through our website or our mobile application if your account is eligible and you are registered for online access.

By telephone. You may call Vanguard to begin the account registration process or request that the account-opening forms be sent to you. You may also call Vanguard to request a purchase of shares in your account or to request an exchange. See Contacting Vanguard.

By mail. You may send Vanguard your account registration form and check to open a new fund account. To add to an existing fund account, you may send your check with an Invest-by-Mail form (from a transaction confirmation or your account statement) or with a deposit slip (available online).

How to Pay for a Purchase

By electronic bank transfer. You may purchase shares of a Vanguard fund through an electronic transfer of money from a bank account. To establish the electronic bank transfer service on an account, you must designate the bank account online, complete a form, or fill out the appropriate section of your account registration form. After the service is set up on your account, you can purchase shares by electronic bank transfer on a regular schedule (Automatic Investment Plan), if eligible, or upon request. Your purchase request can be initiated online (if you are registered for online access), by telephone, or by mail.

By wire. Wiring instructions vary for different types of purchases. Please call Vanguard for instructions and policies on purchasing shares by wire. See Contacting Vanguard.

By check. You may make initial or additional purchases to your fund account by sending a check with a deposit slip or by utilizing our mobile application if your account is eligible and you are registered for online access. Also see How to Initiate a Purchase Request. Make your check payable to Vanguard and include the appropriate fund number (e.g., Vanguard—xx). For a list of Fund numbers (for share classes in this prospectus), see Additional Information.

By exchange. You may purchase shares of a Vanguard fund using the proceeds from the simultaneous redemption of shares of another Vanguard fund. You may initiate an exchange online (if you are registered for online access), by telephone, or by mail with an exchange form. See Exchanging Shares.

Trade Date

The trade date for any purchase request received in good order will depend on the day and time Vanguard receives your request, the manner in which you are

paying, and the type of fund you are purchasing. Your purchase will be executed using the NAV as calculated on the trade date. NAVs are calculated only on days that the NYSE is open for trading (a business day). In the rare event the NYSE experiences unanticipated disruptions and is unavailable at the close of the trading day, NAVs will be calculated as of the close of regular trading on the Nasdaq (or another alternate exchange if the Nasdaq is unavailable, as determined at Vanguard's discretion), generally 4 p.m., Eastern time. The time selected for NAV calculation in this rare event shall also serve as the conclusion of the trading day. See Share Price.

For purchases by check into all funds other than money market funds and for purchases by exchange, wire, or electronic bank transfer into all funds: If the purchase request is received by Vanguard on a business day before the close of regular trading on the NYSE (generally 4 p.m., Eastern time), the trade date for the purchase will be the same day. If the purchase request is received on a business day after the close of regular trading on the NYSE, or on a nonbusiness day, the trade date for the purchase will be the next business day.

For purchases by check into money market funds: If the purchase request is received by Vanguard on a business day before the close of regular trading on the NYSE (generally 4 p.m., Eastern time), the trade date for the purchase will be the next business day. If the purchase request is received on a business day after the close of regular trading on the NYSE, or on a nonbusiness day, the trade date for the purchase will be the second business day following the day Vanguard receives the purchase request. Because money market instruments must be purchased with federal funds and it takes a money market mutual fund one business day to convert check proceeds into federal funds, the trade date for the purchase will be one business day later than for other funds.

If your purchase request is not accurate and complete, it may be rejected. See Other Rules You Should Know—Good Order.

For further information about purchase transactions, consult our website at vanguard.com or see Contacting Vanguard.

Other Purchase Rules You Should Know

Admiral Shares. Admiral Shares generally are not available for SIMPLE IRAs and Vanguard Individual 401(k) Plans.

Check purchases. All purchase checks must be written in U.S. dollars, be drawn on a U.S. bank, and be accompanied by good order instructions. Vanguard does not accept cash, traveler's checks, starter checks, or money orders. In addition, Vanguard may refuse checks that are not made payable to Vanguard.

New accounts. We are required by law to obtain from you certain personal information that we will use to verify your identity. If you do not provide the information, we may not be able to open your account. If we are unable to verify your identity, Vanguard reserves the right, without notice, to close your account or

take such other steps as we deem reasonable. Certain types of accounts may require additional documentation.

Refused or rejected purchase requests. Vanguard reserves the right to stop selling fund shares or to reject any purchase request at any time and without notice, including, but not limited to, purchases requested by exchange from another Vanguard fund. This also includes the right to reject any purchase request because the investor has a history of frequent trading or because the purchase may negatively affect a fund's operation or performance.

Large purchases. Call Vanguard before attempting to invest a large dollar amount.

No cancellations. Vanguard will not accept your request to cancel any purchase request once processing has begun. Please be careful when placing a purchase request.

Converting Shares

When a conversion occurs, you receive shares of one class in place of shares of another class of the same fund. At the time of conversion, the dollar value of the "new" shares you receive equals the dollar value of the "old" shares that were converted. In other words, the conversion has no effect on the value of your investment in the fund at the time of the conversion. However, the number of shares you own after the conversion may be greater than or less than the number of shares you owned before the conversion, depending on the NAVs of the two share classes.

Vanguard will not accept your request to cancel any self-directed conversion request once processing has begun. Please be careful when placing a conversion request.

A conversion between share classes of the same fund is a nontaxable event.

Trade Date

The trade date for any conversion request received in good order will depend on the day and time Vanguard receives your request. Your conversion will be executed using the NAVs of the different share classes on the trade date. NAVs are calculated only on days that the NYSE is open for trading (a business day). In the rare event the NYSE experiences unanticipated disruptions and is unavailable at the close of the trading day, NAVs will be calculated as of the close of regular trading on the Nasdaq (or another alternate exchange if the Nasdaq is unavailable, as determined at Vanguard's discretion), generally 4 p.m., Eastern time. The time selected for NAV calculation in this rare event shall also serve as the conclusion of the trading day. See Share Price.

For a conversion request received by Vanguard on a business day before the close of regular trading on the NYSE (generally 4 p.m., Eastern time), the trade date will be the same day. For a conversion request received on a business day after the close of regular trading on the NYSE, or on a nonbusiness day, the trade date will be the next business day. See Other Rules You Should Know.

Conversions From Investor Shares to Admiral Shares

Self-directed conversions. If your account balance in the Fund is at least $50,000, you may ask Vanguard to convert your Investor Shares to Admiral Shares. You may request a conversion through our website (if you are registered for online access), by telephone, or by mail. Financial intermediaries, institutional clients, and Vanguard-advised clients should contact Vanguard for information on special eligibility rules that may apply to them regarding Admiral Shares. See Contacting Vanguard. If you are investing through an intermediary, please contact that firm directly for more information regarding your eligibility.

Automatic conversions. Vanguard conducts periodic reviews of account balances and may, if your account balance in the Fund exceeds $50,000, automatically convert your Investor Shares to Admiral Shares. You will be notified before an automatic conversion occurs and will have an opportunity to instruct Vanguard not to effect the conversion. Financial intermediaries, institutional clients, and Vanguard-advised clients should contact Vanguard for information on special eligibility rules that may apply to them regarding Admiral Shares. If you are investing through an intermediary, please contact that firm directly for more information regarding your eligibility.

Mandatory Conversions to Investor Shares

If an account no longer meets the balance requirements for Admiral Shares, Vanguard may automatically convert the shares in the account to Investor Shares. A decline in the account balance because of market movement may result in such a conversion. Vanguard will notify the investor in writing before any mandatory conversion occurs.

Redeeming Shares

How to Initiate a Redemption Request

Be sure to check Exchanging Shares, Frequent-Trading Limitations, and Other Rules You Should Know before placing your redemption request.

Online. You may request a redemption of shares or request an exchange through our website or our mobile application if your account is eligible and you are registered for online access.

By telephone. You may call Vanguard to request a redemption of shares or an exchange. See Contacting Vanguard.

By mail. You may send a form (available online) to Vanguard to redeem from a fund account or to make an exchange. By writing a check. If you have established the checkwriting service on your account, you can redeem shares by writing a check for $250 or more.

How to Receive Redemption Proceeds

By electronic bank transfer. You may have the proceeds of a fund redemption sent directly to a designated bank account. To establish the electronic bank transfer service on an account, you must designate a bank account online, complete a form, or fill out the appropriate section of your account registration form. After the service is set up on your account, you can redeem shares by electronic bank transfer on a regular schedule (Automatic Withdrawal Plan), if eligible, or upon request. Your redemption request can be initiated online (if you are registered for online access), by telephone, or by mail.

By wire. To receive your proceeds by wire, you may instruct Vanguard to wire your redemption proceeds ($100 minimum) to a previously designated bank account. To establish the wire redemption service, you generally must designate a bank account online, complete a form, or fill out the appropriate section of your account registration form.

Please note that Vanguard charges a $10 wire fee for outgoing wire redemptions. The fee is assessed in addition to, rather than being withheld from, redemption proceeds and is paid directly to the fund in which you invest. For example, if you redeem $100 via a wire, you will receive the full $100, and the $10 fee will be assessed to your fund account through an additional redemption of fund shares. If you redeem your entire fund account, your redemption proceeds will be reduced by the amount of the fee. The wire fee does not apply to accounts held by Flagship and Flagship Select clients; accounts held through intermediaries, including Vanguard Brokerage Services; or accounts held by institutional clients.

By exchange. You may have the proceeds of a Vanguard fund redemption invested directly in shares of another Vanguard fund. You may initiate an exchange online (if you are registered for online access), by telephone, or by mail. See Exchanging Shares.

By check. If you have not chosen another redemption method, Vanguard will mail you a redemption check, generally payable to all registered account owners, normally within two business days of your trade date, and generally to the address of record.

Trade Date

The trade date for any redemption request received in good order will depend on the day and time Vanguard receives your request and the manner in which you are redeeming. Your redemption will be executed using the NAV as calculated on the trade date. NAVs are calculated only on days that the NYSE is open for trading (a business day). In the rare event the NYSE experiences unanticipated

disruptions and is unavailable at the close of the trading day, NAVs will be calculated as of the close of regular trading on the Nasdaq (or another alternate exchange if the Nasdaq is unavailable, as determined at Vanguard's discretion), generally 4 p.m., Eastern time. The time selected for NAV calculation in this rare event shall also serve as the conclusion of the trading day. See Share Price.

For redemptions by check, exchange, or wire: If the redemption request is received by Vanguard on a business day before the close of regular trading on the NYSE (generally 4 p.m., Eastern time), the trade date will be the same day. If the redemption request is received on a business day after the close of regular trading on the NYSE, or on a nonbusiness day, the trade date will be the next business day.

•Note on timing of wire redemptions from money market funds: For telephone requests received by Vanguard on a business day before 10:45 a.m., Eastern time (2 p.m., Eastern time, for Vanguard Cash Reserves Federal Money Market Fund; 12:30 p.m., Eastern time, for Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund), the redemption proceeds generally will leave Vanguard by the close of business the same day. For telephone requests received by Vanguard on a business day after those cut-off times, or on a nonbusiness day, and for all requests other than by telephone, the redemption proceeds generally will leave Vanguard by the close of business on the next business day.

•Note on timing of wire redemptions from all other funds: For requests received by Vanguard on a business day before the close of regular trading on the NYSE (generally 4 p.m., Eastern time), the redemption proceeds generally will leave Vanguard by the close of business on the next business day. For requests received by Vanguard on a business day after the close of regular trading on the NYSE, or on a nonbusiness day, the redemption proceeds generally will leave Vanguard by the close of business on the second business day after Vanguard receives the request.

For redemptions by electronic bank transfer: If the redemption request is received by Vanguard on a business day before the close of regular trading on the NYSE (generally 4 p.m., Eastern time), the trade date will be the same day. If the redemption request is received on a business day after the close of regular trading on the NYSE, or on a nonbusiness day, the trade date will be the next business day.

If your redemption request is not accurate and complete, it may be rejected. If we are unable to send your redemption proceeds by wire or electronic bank transfer because the receiving institution rejects the transfer, Vanguard will make additional efforts to complete your transaction. If Vanguard is still unable to complete the transaction, we may send the proceeds of the redemption to you by check, generally payable to all registered account owners, or use your proceeds to purchase new shares of the fund from which you sold shares for the purpose of the wire or electronic bank transfer transaction. See Other Rules You Should Know—Good Order.

If your redemption request is received in good order, we typically expect that redemption proceeds will be paid by the Fund within one business day of the trade date; however, in certain circumstances, investors may experience a longer settlement period at the time of the transaction. For further information, see "Potentially disruptive redemptions" and "Emergency circumstances."

For further information about redemption transactions, consult our website at vanguard.com or see Contacting Vanguard.

Other Redemption Rules You Should Know

Documentation for certain accounts. Special documentation may be required to redeem from certain types of accounts, such as trust, corporate, nonprofit, or retirement accounts. Please call us before attempting to redeem from these types of accounts.

Potentially disruptive redemptions. Vanguard reserves the right to pay all or part of a redemption in kind—that is, in the form of securities—if we reasonably believe that a cash redemption would negatively affect the fund's operation or performance or that the shareholder may be engaged in market-timing or frequent trading. Under these circumstances, Vanguard also reserves the right to delay payment of the redemption proceeds for up to seven calendar days. By calling us before you attempt to redeem a large dollar amount, you may avoid in-kind or delayed payment of your redemption. Please see Frequent-Trading Limitations for information about Vanguard's policies to limit frequent trading.

Recently purchased shares. Although you can redeem shares at any time, proceeds may not be made available to you until the fund collects payment for your purchase. This may take up to seven calendar days for shares purchased by check or by electronic bank transfer. If you have written a check on a fund in an account with checkwriting privileges, that check may be rejected if your fund account does not have a sufficient available balance.

Address change. If you change your address online or by telephone, there may be up to a 14-day restriction (starting on the business day after your address is changed) on your ability to request check redemptions online and by telephone. You can request a redemption in writing (using a form available online) at any time. Confirmations of address changes are sent to both the old and new addresses.

Payment to a different person or address. At your request, we can make your redemption check payable, or wire your redemption proceeds, to a different person or send it to a different address. However, this generally requires the written consent of all registered account owners and may require additional documentation, such as a signature guarantee or a notarized signature. You may obtain a signature guarantee from some commercial or savings banks, credit unions, trust companies, or member firms of a U.S. stock exchange.

No cancellations. Vanguard will not accept your request to cancel any redemption request once processing has begun. Please be careful when placing a redemption request.

Emergency circumstances. Vanguard funds can postpone payment of redemption proceeds for up to seven calendar days. In addition, Vanguard funds can suspend redemptions and/or postpone payments of redemption proceeds beyond seven calendar days at times when the NYSE is closed or during emergency circumstances, as determined by the SEC.

Exchanging Shares

An exchange occurs when you use the proceeds from the redemption of shares of one Vanguard fund to simultaneously purchase shares of a different Vanguard fund. You can make exchange requests online (if you are registered for online access), by telephone, or by mail. See Purchasing Shares and Redeeming Shares.

If the NYSE is open for regular trading (generally until 4 p.m., Eastern time, on a business day) at the time an exchange request is received in good order, the trade date generally will be the same day. See Other Rules You Should Know—Good Order for additional information on all transaction requests.

Vanguard will not accept your request to cancel any exchange request once processing has begun. Please be careful when placing an exchange request.

Call Vanguard before attempting to exchange a large dollar amount. By calling us before you attempt to exchange a large dollar amount, you may avoid delayed or rejected transactions.

Please note that Vanguard reserves the right, without notice, to revise or terminate the exchange privilege, limit the amount of any exchange, or reject an exchange, at any time, for any reason. See Frequent-Trading Limitations for additional restrictions on exchanges.

Frequent-Trading Limitations

Because excessive transactions can disrupt management of a fund and increase the fund's costs for all shareholders, the board of trustees of each Vanguard fund places certain limits on frequent trading in the funds. Each Vanguard fund (other than money market funds and short-term bond funds, but including Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund) limits an investor's purchases or exchanges into a fund account for 30 calendar days after the investor has redeemed or exchanged out of that fund account. ETF Shares are not subject to these frequent-trading limits.

For Vanguard Retirement Investment Program pooled plans, the limitations apply to exchanges made online or by telephone.

These frequent-trading limitations do not apply to the following:

•Purchases of shares with reinvested dividend or capital gains distributions.

•Transactions through Vanguard's Automatic Investment Plan, Automatic Exchange Service, Direct Deposit Service, Automatic Withdrawal Plan, Required Minimum Distribution Service, and Vanguard Small Business Online®.

•Discretionary transactions through Vanguard Personal Advisor Services®, Vanguard Institutional Advisory Services®, and Vanguard Digital Advisor™.

•Redemptions of shares to pay fund or account fees.

•Redemptions of shares to remove excess shareholder contributions to certain types of retirement accounts (including, but not limited to, IRAs and Vanguard Individual 401(k) Plans).

•Transfers and reregistrations of shares within the same fund.

•Purchases of shares by asset transfer or direct rollover.

•Conversions of shares from one share class to another in the same fund.

•Checkwriting redemptions.

•Section 529 college savings plans.

•Certain approved institutional portfolios and asset allocation programs, as well as trades made by funds or trusts managed by Vanguard or its affiliates that invest in other Vanguard funds. (Please note that shareholders of Vanguard's funds of funds are subject to the limitations.)

For participants in employer-sponsored defined contribution plans,* the frequent- trading limitations do not apply to:

•Purchases of shares with participant payroll or employer contributions or loan repayments.

•Purchases of shares with reinvested dividend or capital gains distributions.

•Distributions, loans, and in-service withdrawals from a plan.

•Redemptions of shares as part of a plan termination or at the direction of the plan.

•Transactions executed through the Vanguard Managed Account Program.

•Redemptions of shares to pay fund or account fees.

•Share or asset transfers or rollovers.

•Reregistrations of shares.

•Conversions of shares from one share class to another in the same fund.

•Exchange requests submitted by written request to Vanguard. (Exchange requests submitted by fax, if otherwise permitted, are subject to the limitations.)

*The following Vanguard fund accounts are subject to the frequent-trading limitations: SEP-IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs, certain Individual 403(b)(7) Custodial Accounts, and Vanguard Individual 401(k) Plans.

Accounts Held by Institutions (Other Than Defined Contribution Plans)

Vanguard will systematically monitor for frequent trading in institutional clients' accounts. If we detect suspicious trading activity, we will investigate and take appropriate action, which may include applying to a client's accounts the 30-day policy previously described, prohibiting a client's purchases of fund shares, and/or revoking the client's exchange privilege.

Accounts Held by Intermediaries

When intermediaries establish accounts in Vanguard funds for the benefit of their clients, we cannot always monitor the trading activity of the individual clients. However, we review trading activity at the intermediary (omnibus) level, and if we detect suspicious activity, we will investigate and take appropriate action. If necessary, Vanguard may prohibit additional purchases of fund shares by an intermediary, including for the benefit of certain of the intermediary's clients. Intermediaries also may monitor their clients' trading activities with respect to Vanguard funds.

For those Vanguard funds that charge purchase and/or redemption fees, intermediaries will be asked to assess these fees on client accounts and remit these fees to the funds. The application of purchase and redemption fees and frequent-trading limitations may vary among intermediaries. There are no assurances that Vanguard will successfully identify all intermediaries or that intermediaries will properly assess purchase and redemption fees or administer frequent-trading limitations. If you invest with Vanguard through an intermediary, please read that firm's materials carefully to learn of any other rules or fees that may apply.

Other Rules You Should Know

Prospectus and Shareholder Report Mailings

When two or more shareholders have the same last name and address, just one summary prospectus (or prospectus) and/or shareholder report may be sent in an attempt to eliminate the unnecessary expense of duplicate mailings. You may request individual prospectuses and reports by contacting our Client Services Department in writing, by telephone, or online. See Contacting Vanguard.

Vanguard.com

Registration. If you are a registered user of vanguard.com, you can review your account holdings; buy, sell, or exchange shares of most Vanguard funds; and perform most other transactions through our website. You must register for this service online.

Electronic delivery. Vanguard can deliver your account statements, transaction confirmations, prospectuses, certain tax forms, and shareholder reports electronically. If you are a registered user of vanguard.com, you can consent to the electronic delivery of these documents by logging on and changing your mailing preferences under "Account Maintenance." You can revoke your electronic consent at any time through our website, and we will begin to send paper copies of these documents within 30 days of receiving your revocation.

Telephone Transactions

Automatic. When we set up your account, we will automatically enable you to do business with us by telephone, unless you instruct us otherwise in writing.

Tele-Account®. To obtain fund and account information through Vanguard's automated telephone service, you must first establish a Personal Identification Number (PIN) by calling Tele-Account at 800-662-6273.

Proof of a caller's authority. We reserve the right to refuse a telephone request if the caller is unable to provide the requested information or if we reasonably believe that the caller is not an individual authorized to act on the account. Before we allow a caller to act on an account, we may request the following information:

•Authorization to act on the account (as the account owner or by legal documentation or other means).

•Account registration and address.

•Fund name and account number, if applicable.

•Other information relating to the caller, the account owner, or the account.

Good Order

We reserve the right to reject any transaction instructions that are not in "good order." Good order generally means that your instructions:

•Are provided by the person(s) authorized in accordance with Vanguard's policies and procedures to access the account and request transactions.

•Include the fund name and account number.

•Include the amount of the transaction (stated in dollars, shares, or percentage).

Written instructions also must generally be provided on a Vanguard form and include:

•Signature(s) and date from the authorized person(s).

•Signature guarantees or notarized signatures, if required for the type of transaction. (Call Vanguard for specific requirements.)

•Any supporting documentation that may be required.

Good order requirements may vary among types of accounts and transactions. For more information, consult our website at vanguard.com or see Contacting Vanguard.

Vanguard reserves the right, without notice, to revise the requirements for good order.

Future Trade-Date Requests

Vanguard does not accept requests to hold a purchase, conversion, redemption, or exchange transaction for a future date. All such requests will receive trade dates as previously described in Purchasing Shares, Converting Shares, Redeeming Shares, and Exchanging Shares. Vanguard reserves the right to return future-dated purchase checks.

Accounts With More Than One Owner

If an account has more than one owner or authorized person, Vanguard generally will accept instructions from any one owner or authorized person.

Responsibility for Fraud

You should take precautions to protect yourself from fraud. Keep your account- related information private, and review any account confirmations, statements, or other information that we provide to you as soon as you receive them. Let us know immediately if you discover unauthorized activity or see something on your account that you do not understand or that looks unusual.

Vanguard will not be responsible for losses that result from transactions by a person who we reasonably believe is authorized to act on your account.

Uncashed Checks

Please cash your distribution or redemption checks promptly. Vanguard will not pay interest on uncashed checks. Vanguard may be required to transfer assets related to uncashed checks to a state under the state's abandoned property law.

Dormant Accounts

If your account has no activity in it for a period of time, Vanguard may be required to transfer it to a state under the state's abandoned property law, subject to potential federal or state withholding taxes.

Unusual Circumstances

If you experience difficulty contacting Vanguard online or by telephone, you can send us your transaction request on a Vanguard form by regular or express mail.

Investing With Vanguard Through Other Firms

through that firm and to learn about other rules that may apply. Your financial intermediary can provide you with account information and any required tax forms. You may be required to pay a commission on purchases of mutual fund shares made through a financial intermediary.

Please see Frequent-Trading Limitations—Accounts Held by Intermediaries for information about the assessment of any purchase or redemption fees and the monitoring of frequent trading for accounts held by intermediaries.

Account Service Fee

Vanguard may charge a $20 account service fee on fund accounts that have a balance below $10,000 for any reason, including market fluctuation. The account service fee may be applied to both retirement and nonretirement fund accounts and may be assessed on fund accounts in all Vanguard funds, regardless of the account minimum. The fee, which will be collected by redeeming fund shares in the amount of $20, will be deducted from fund accounts subject to the fee once per calendar year.

If you elect to receive your statements and other materials electronically (i.e., by e-delivery), the account service fee will not be charged, so long as your election remains in effect. You can make your e-delivery election on vanguard.com.

Certain account types have alternative fee structures, including SIMPLE IRAs, Vanguard Retirement Investment Program pooled plans, and Vanguard Individual 401(k) Plans.

Low-Balance Accounts

The Fund reserves the right to liquidate a fund account whose balance falls below the account minimum for any reason, including market fluctuation. This liquidation policy applies to nonretirement fund accounts and accounts that are held through intermediaries. Any such liquidation will be preceded by written notice to the investor.

Right to Change Policies

In addition to the rights expressly stated elsewhere in this prospectus, Vanguard reserves the right, without notice, to (1) alter, add, or discontinue any conditions of purchase (including eligibility requirements), redemption, exchange, conversion, service, or privilege at any time and (2) alter, impose, discontinue, or waive any purchase fee, redemption fee, account service fee, or other fee charged to a shareholder or a group of shareholders. Changes may affect any or all investors. These actions will be taken when, at the sole discretion of Vanguard management, Vanguard believes they are in the best interest of a fund.

Account Restrictions

Vanguard reserves the right to: (1) redeem all or a portion of a fund/account to meet a legal obligation, including tax withholding, tax lien, garnishment order, or other obligation imposed on your account by a court or government agency; (2) redeem shares, close an account, or suspend account privileges, features, or options in the case of threatening conduct or activity; (3) redeem shares, close an account, or suspend account privileges, features, or options if Vanguard believes or suspects that not doing so could result in a suspicious, fraudulent, or illegal transaction; (4) place restrictions on the ability to redeem any or all shares in an account if it is required to do so by a court or government agency; (5) place restrictions on the ability to redeem any or all shares in an account if Vanguard believes that doing so will prevent fraud, financial exploitation or abuse, or to protect vulnerable investors; (6) freeze any account and/or suspend account services if Vanguard has received reasonable notice of a dispute regarding the assets in an account, including notice of a dispute between the registered or beneficial account owners; and (7) freeze any account and/or suspend account services upon initial notification to Vanguard of the death of an account owner.

Share Classes

Vanguard reserves the right, without notice, to change the eligibility requirements of its share classes, including the types of clients who are eligible to purchase each share class.

Fund and Account Updates

Confirmation Statements

We will send (or provide through our website, whichever you prefer) a confirmation of your trade date and the amount of your transaction when you buy, sell, exchange, or convert shares. However, we will not send confirmations reflecting only checkwriting redemptions or the reinvestment of dividend or capital gains distributions. For any month in which you had a checkwriting redemption, a Checkwriting Activity Statement will be sent to you itemizing the checkwriting redemptions for that month. Promptly review each confirmation statement that we provide to you. It is important that you contact Vanguard immediately with any questions you may have about any transaction reflected on a confirmation statement, or Vanguard will consider the transaction properly processed.

Portfolio Summaries

We will send (or provide through our website, whichever you prefer) quarterly portfolio summaries to help you keep track of your accounts throughout the year. Each summary shows the market value of your account at the close of the statement period, as well as all distributions, purchases, redemptions, exchanges, transfers, and conversions for the current calendar quarter (or month). Promptly review each summary that we provide to you. It is important that you contact Vanguard immediately with any questions you may have about any transaction reflected on the summary, or Vanguard will consider the transaction properly processed.

Tax Information Statements

For most accounts, Vanguard (or your intermediary) is required to provide annual tax forms to assist you in preparing your income tax returns. These forms are generally available for each calendar year early in the following year. Registered users of vanguard.com can also view certain forms through our website. Vanguard (or your intermediary) may also provide you with additional tax-related documentation. For more information, consult our website at vanguard.com or see Contacting Vanguard.

Annual and Semiannual Reports

We will send (or provide through our website, whichever you prefer) reports about Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund twice a year, in May and November. These reports include overviews of the financial markets and provide the following specific Fund information:

•Performance assessments and comparisons with industry benchmarks.

•Reports from the advisor.

•Financial statements with listings of Fund holdings.

Portfolio Holdings

Please consult the Fund's Statement of Additional Information or our website for a description of the policies and procedures that govern disclosure of the Fund's portfolio holdings.

Employer-Sponsored Plans

Your plan administrator or your employee benefits office can provide you with detailed information on how to participate in your plan and how to elect the Fund as an investment option.

•If you have any questions about the Fund or Vanguard, including those about the Fund's investment objective, strategies, or risks, contact Vanguard Participant Services toll-free at 800-523-1188 or visit our website at vanguard.com.

•If you have questions about your account, contact your plan administrator or the organization that provides recordkeeping services for your plan.

•Be sure to carefully read each topic that pertains to your transactions with Vanguard.

Vanguard reserves the right to change its policies without notice to shareholders.

Transactions

Processing times for your transaction requests may differ among recordkeepers or among transaction and funding types. Your plan's recordkeeper (which may also be Vanguard) will determine the necessary processing time frames for your transaction requests prior to submission to the Fund. Consult your recordkeeper or plan administrator for more information.

If Vanguard is serving as your plan recordkeeper and if your transaction involves one or more investments with an early cut-off time for processing or another trading restriction, your entire transaction will be subject to the restriction when the trade date for your transaction is determined.

Contacting Vanguard

Web

Vanguard.com	For the most complete source of Vanguard news
	For fund, account, and service information
	For most account transactions
	For literature requests
	24 hours a day, 7 days a week

Phone
Vanguard Tele-Account®	For automated fund and account information
800-662-6273	Toll-free, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
Investor Information 800-662-7447	For fund and service information
(Text telephone for people with	For literature requests
hearing impairment at 800-749-7273)
Client Services 800-662-2739	For account information
(Text telephone for people with	For most account transactions
hearing impairment at 800-749-7273)

Participant Services 800-523-1188 (Text telephone for people with hearing impairment at 800-749-7273)

For information and services for participants in employer-sponsored plans

Institutional Division	For information and services for large institutional
888-809-8102	investors
Financial Advisor and Intermediary	For information and services for financial intermediaries
Sales Support 800-997-2798	including financial advisors, broker-dealers, trust
	institutions, and insurance companies
Financial Advisory and Intermediary	For account information and trading support for financial
Trading Support 800-669-0498	intermediaries including financial advisors, broker-
	dealers, trust institutions, and insurance companies

Additional Information

			Vanguard
	Inception	Newspaper	Fund	CUSIP
	Date	Abbreviation	Number	Number
Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund
Investor Shares	XX	XX	XX	XX
Admiral Shares	XX	XX	XX	XX

CGS identifiers have been provided by CUSIP Global Services, managed on behalf of the American Bankers Association by Standard & Poor's Financial Services, LLC, and are not for use or dissemination in a manner that would serve as a substitute for any CUSIP service. The CUSIP Database, ©2021 American Bankers Association. "CUSIP" is a registered trademark of the American Bankers Association.

CFA® is a registered trademark owned by CFA Institute.

BLOOMBERG is a trademark and service mark of Bloomberg Finance L.P. BARCLAYS is a trademark and service mark of Barclays Bank Plc, used under license. Bloomberg Finance L.P. and its affiliates, including Bloomberg Index Services Limited (BISL) (collectively, Bloomberg), or Bloomberg's licensors, own all proprietary rights in the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Universal Total Return Index (the Index or Bloomberg Barclays Index).

Neither Barclays Bank Plc, Barclays Capital Inc., or any affiliate (collectively Barclays) or Bloomberg is the issuer or producer of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund and neither Bloomberg nor Barclays has any responsibilities, obligations or duties to investors in the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund. The Index is licensed for use by The Vanguard Group, Inc. (Vanguard) as the sponsor of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund. Bloomberg and Barclays' only relationship with Vanguard in respect to the Index is the licensing of the Index, which is determined, composed and calculated by BISL, or any successor thereto, without regard to the Issuer or the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund or the owners of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund.

Additionally, Vanguard may for itself execute transaction(s) with Barclays in or relating to the Index in connection with the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund. Investors acquire the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund from Vanguard and investors neither acquire any interest in the Index nor enter into any relationship of any kind whatsoever with Bloomberg or Barclays upon making an investment in the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund. The Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund is not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Bloomberg or Barclays. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays makes any representation or warranty, express or implied regarding the advisability of investing in the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund or the advisability of investing in securities generally or the ability of the Index to track corresponding or relative market performance. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays has passed on the legality or suitability of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund with respect to any person or entity. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays is responsible for and has not participated in the determination of the timing of, prices at, or quantities of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund to be issued. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays has any obligation to take the needs of the Issuer or the owners of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund or any other third party into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the Index. Neither Bloomberg nor Barclays has any obligation or liability in connection with administration, marketing or trading of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund.

The licensing agreement between Bloomberg and Barclays is solely for the benefit of Bloomberg and Barclays and not for the benefit of the owners of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund, investors or other third parties. In addition, the licensing agreement between Vanguard and Bloomberg is solely for the benefit of Vanguard and Bloomberg and not for the benefit of the owners of the Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund, investors or other third parties.

NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS SHALL HAVE ANY LIABILITY TO THE ISSUER, INVESTORS OR TO OTHER THIRD PARTIES FOR THE QUALITY, ACCURACY AND/OR COMPLETENESS OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN OR FOR INTERRUPTIONS IN THE DELIVERY OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX. NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS MAKES ANY WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY THE ISSUER, THE INVESTORS OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS MAKES ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EACH HEREBY EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. BLOOMBERG RESERVES THE RIGHT TO CHANGE THE METHODS OF CALCULATION OR PUBLICATION, OR TO CEASE THE CALCULATION OR PUBLICATION OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX, AND NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY MISCALCULATION OF OR ANY INCORRECT, DELAYED OR INTERRUPTED PUBLICATION WITH RESPECT TO THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX. NEITHER BLOOMBERG NOR BARCLAYS SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY SPECIAL, INDIRECT OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OR ANY LOST PROFITS AND EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH, RESULTING FROM THE USE OF THE BLOOMBERG BARCLAYS INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN OR WITH RESPECT TO THE MULTI-SECTOR INCOME BOND FUND.

None of the information supplied by Bloomberg or Barclays and used in this publication may be reproduced in any manner without the prior written permission of both Bloomberg and Barclays Capital, the investment banking division of Barclays Bank Plc. Barclays Bank Plc is registered in England No. 1026167, registered office 1 Churchill Place London E14 5HP.

Glossary of Investment Terms

Average Maturity. The average length of time until bonds held by a fund reach maturity and are repaid. In general, the longer the average maturity, the more a fund's share price fluctuates in response to changes in market interest rates. In calculating average maturity, a fund uses a bond's maturity or, if applicable, an earlier date on which the advisor believes it is likely that a maturity-shortening device (such as a call, put, refunding, prepayment, or redemption provision or an adjustable coupon rate) will cause the bond to be repaid.

Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Universal Total Return Index. An index that represents the union of the Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Index, Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Corporate High Yield Index, Bloomberg Barclays Investment Grade 144A Index, Bloomberg Barclays Eurodollar Index, Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Emerging Markets Index, and the non-ERISA eligible portion of the Bloomberg Barclays Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities Index. The index covers USD-denominated, taxable bonds that are rated either investment grade or high-yield. Some U.S. Universal Index constituents may be eligible for one or more of its contributing subcomponents that are not mutually exclusive. These securities are not double-counted in the index. The U.S. Universal index was created on January 1, 1999, with index history backfilled to January 1, 1990.

Bond. A debt security (IOU) issued by a corporation, a government, or a government agency in exchange for the money the bondholder lends it. In most instances, the issuer agrees to pay back the loan by a specific date and generally to make regular interest payments until that date.

Capital Gains Distributions. Payments to mutual fund shareholders of gains realized on securities that a fund has sold at a profit, minus any realized losses.

Corporate Bond. An IOU issued by a business that wants to borrow money. As with other types of bonds, the issuer promises to repay the borrowed money by a specific date and generally to make interest payments in the meantime.

Coupon Rate. The interest rate paid by the issuer of a debt security until its maturity. It is expressed as an annual percentage of the face value of the security.

Dividend Distributions. Payments to mutual fund shareholders of income from interest or dividends generated by a fund's investments.

Expense Ratio. A fund's total annual operating expenses expressed as a percentage of the fund's average net assets. The expense ratio includes management and administrative expenses, but it does not include the transaction costs of buying and selling portfolio securities.

Face Value. The amount to be paid at a bond's maturity; also known as the par value or principal.

Fixed Income Security. A fixed income security, commonly referred to as a bond, is an investment representing a debt that must be repaid by a specified date, and on which the borrower may pay a fixed, variable, or floating rate of interest.

Inception Date. The date on which the assets of a fund (or one of its share classes) are first invested in accordance with the fund's investment objective. For funds with a subscription period, the inception date is the day after that period ends. Investment performance is generally measured from the inception date.

Investment-Grade Bond. A debt security whose credit quality is considered by independent bond rating agencies, or through independent analysis conducted by a fund's advisor, to be sufficient to ensure timely payment of principal and interest under current economic circumstances. Debt securities rated in one of the four highest rating categories are considered investment-grade. Other debt securities may be considered by an advisor to be investment-grade.

Joint Committed Credit Facility. The Fund participates, along with other funds managed by Vanguard, in a committed credit facility provided by a syndicate of lenders pursuant to a credit agreement that may be renewed annually; each Vanguard fund is individually liable for its borrowings, if any, under the credit facility. The amount and terms of the committed credit facility are subject to approval by the Fund's board of trustees and renegotiation with the lender syndicate on an annual basis.

Multi-Sector Income Composite Index. An index that is weighted 40% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. High Yield Corporate BB/B 2% Issuer Cap Index, 40% Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Intermediate Credit Index, and 20% Bloomberg Barclays Emerging Market USD Government RIC Capped Index.

Mutual Fund. An investment company that pools the money of many people and invests it in a variety of securities in an effort to achieve a specific objective over time.

New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). A stock exchange based in New York City that is open for regular trading on business days, Monday through Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Eastern time.

Non-Investment-Grade Bond. A debt security whose credit quality is considered by independent bond rating agencies, or through independent analysis conducted by a fund's advisor, to be below investment-grade. These high-risk bonds have a credit quality rating equivalent to or below Moody's Ba1 and are commonly referred to as "junk bonds.

Connect with Vanguard®> vanguard.com

For More Information

If you would like more information about Vanguard Multi-Sector Income Bond Fund, the following documents are available free upon request:

Annual/Semiannual Reports to

Shareholders

Additional information about the Fund's investments will be available in the Fund's annual and semiannual reports to shareholders. In the annual report, you will find a discussion of the market conditions and investment strategies that significantly affected the Fund's performance during its last fiscal year.

Statement of Additional Information (SAI) The SAI provides more detailed information about the Fund and is incorporated by reference into (and thus legally a part of) this prospectus.

To receive a free copy of the latest annual or semiannual report (when available) or the SAI, or to request additional information about the Fund or other Vanguard funds, please visit vanguard.com or contact us as follows:

If you are an individual investor:

Telephone: 800-662-7447; Text telephone for

people with hearing impairment: 800-749- 7273

If you are a participant in an employer- sponsored plan:

Telephone: 800-523-1188; Text telephone for

people with hearing impairment: 800-749- 7273

If you are a current Vanguard shareholder and would like information about your account, account transactions, and/or account statements, please call:

Client Services Department

Telephone: 800-662-2739; Text telephone for

people with hearing impairment: 800-749- 7273

Information Provided by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Reports and other information about the Fund are available in the EDGAR database on the SEC's website at sec.gov, or you can receive copies of this information, for a fee, by electronic request at the following email address: publicinfo@sec.gov.

Fund's Investment Company Act file number: 811-05628

P XX XX

Contents

Fund Summary	X
More on the Fund	X
The Fund and Vanguard	X
Investment Advisor	X
Dividends, Capital Gains, and Taxes	X
Share Price	x
Investing With Vanguard	X
Purchasing Shares	X
Converting Shares	X
Redeeming Shares	X
Exchanging Shares	X
Frequent-Trading Limitations	X
Other Rules You Should Know	X
Fund and Account Updates	X
Employer-Sponsored Plans	X
Contacting Vanguard	X
Additional Information	X
Glossary of Investment Terms	X

Fund Summary

Investment Objective

The Fund seeks to provide total return while generating a moderate to high level of current income.

Fees and Expenses

Shareholder Fees

(Fees paid directly from your investment)

	Investor Shares	Admiral Shares
Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases	None	None
Purchase Fee	None	None
Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Reinvested Dividends	None	None
Redemption Fee	None	None
Account Service Fee Per Year
(for certain fund account balances below $10,000)	$20	$20

Annual Fund Operating Expenses

(Expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

	Investor Shares	Admiral Shares
Management Fees	XX%	XX%
12b-1 Distribution Fee	None	None
Other Expenses	XX%	XX%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses1	0.30%	0.20%

1 The expense information shown in the table reflects estimated amounts for the current fiscal year.

Examples

	1 Year	3 Years
Investor Shares	$XX	$XX
Admiral Shares	$XX	$XX

Portfolio Turnover

Principal Investment Strategies

The Fund invests in fixed income securities of various maturities, yields, and qualities. Under normal circumstances, the Fund will invest at least 80% of its assets in bonds, which include fixed income securities such as corporate bonds; U.S. Treasury obligations and other U.S. government and agency securities; and asset-backed, mortgage-backed, and mortgage-related securities. All bonds purchased by the Fund will have a maturity of 90 days or more at the time of their issuance. The Fund may invest in fixed income securities of non-U.S. issuers, including emerging market countries.

The Fund can purchase bonds of any quality. High-quality fixed income securities are investment-grade securities that are rated the equivalent of A3 or better by Moody's Investors Service, Inc. (Moody's), or another independent rating agency or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Fund's advisor. Medium-quality fixed income securities are investment-grade securities that are rated the equivalent of Baa1, Baa2, or Baa3 by Moody's or another independent rating agency or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Fund's advisor. Lower quality fixed income securities—commonly known as "junk bonds"—are non-investment-grade securities that are rated the equivalent of Ba1 or lower by Moody's or another independent rating agency or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable

quality by the Fund's advisor. No more than 35% of the Fund's assets may be invested in non-investment-grade fixed-income securities, or junk bonds.

In addition to foreign currency exchange forward contracts, the Fund may invest in other derivatives instruments, such as options, futures contracts, other swap agreements, or in to be announced ("TBA") mortgage-backed securities.

Principal Risks

•Interest rate risk, which is the chance that bond prices overall will decline because of rising interest rates.

•Income risk, which is the chance that the Fund's income will decline because of falling interest rates. A fund's income declines when interest rates fall because the fund then must invest new cash flow and cash from maturing bonds in lower-yielding bonds. Income risk is generally high for short-term bond funds and moderate for intermediate-term bond funds, so investors should expect the Fund's monthly income to fluctuate accordingly.

•Prepayment risk, which is the chance that during periods of falling interest rates, homeowners will refinance their mortgages before their maturity dates, resulting in prepayment of mortgage-backed securities held by the Fund. The Fund would then lose any price appreciation above the mortgage's principal and may be forced to reinvest the unanticipated proceeds at lower interest rates, resulting in a decline in the Fund's income. Such prepayments and subsequent reinvestments would also increase the Fund's portfolio turnover rate.

•Extension risk, which is the chance that during periods of rising interest rates, certain debt securities will be paid off substantially more slowly than

originally anticipated, and the value of those securities may fall. For funds that invest in mortgage-backed securities, extension risk is the chance that during periods of rising interest rates, homeowners will repay their mortgages at slower rates.

•Liquidity risk, which is the chance that the Fund may not be able to sell a security in a timely manner at a desired price.

•Country/regional risk, which is the chance that world events—such as political upheaval, financial troubles, or natural disasters—will adversely affect the value and/or liquidity of securities issued by foreign governments, government agencies, government-owned corporations, and foreign companies. Because the Fund may invest in bonds of issuers located in any one country or region, the Fund's performance may be hurt disproportionately by the poor performance of its investments in that area. Country/regional risk is especially high in emerging market countries.

•Manager risk, which is the chance that poor security selection will cause the Fund to underperform relevant benchmarks or other funds with a similar investment objective.

•Derivatives risk. The Fund may invest in derivatives, which may involve risks different from, and possibly greater than, those of investments directly in the underlying securities or assets.

•Counterparty risk, which is the chance that the counterparty to a currency forward contract, or other investment vehicle, with the Fund is unable or unwilling to meet its financial obligations.

An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.

Annual Total Returns

The Fund began operations on October XX, 2021, so performance information is not yet available.

Investment Advisor

The Vanguard Group, Inc. (Vanguard)

Portfolio Managers

Michael Chang, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021.

Arvind Narayanan, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021.

Brian W. Quigley, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021.

Daniel Shaykevich, Portfolio Manager and Principal at Vanguard. He has co- managed the Fund since its inception in 2021.

Purchase and Sale of Fund Shares

More on the Fund

this symbol throughout the prospectus. It is used to mark detailed information about the more significant risks that you would confront as a

Fund shareholder. To highlight terms and concepts important to mutual fund investors, we have provided Plain Talk® explanations along the way. Reading the prospectus will help you decide whether the Fund is the right investment for you. We suggest that you keep this prospectus for future reference.

Share Class Overview

The Fund offers two separate classes of shares: Investor Shares and Admiral Shares.

Plain Talk About Fund Expenses

All mutual funds have operating expenses. These expenses, which are deducted from a fund's gross income, are expressed as a percentage of the net assets of the fund. Assuming that operating expenses remain as stated in the Fees and Expenses section, Vanguard Core-Plus Bond Fund's expense ratios would be as follows: for Investor Shares, XX%, or $XX per $1,000 of average net assets; for Admiral Shares, XX%, or $XX per $1,000 of average net assets.

Plain Talk About Costs of Investing

Market Exposure

The Fund invests mainly in bonds. As a result, it is subject to certain risks.

The Fund is subject to interest rate risk, which is the chance that bond prices overall will decline because of rising interest rates.

How Interest Rate Changes Affect the Value of a $1,000 Bond1

Type of Bond (Maturity)	After a 1%	After a 1%	After a 2%	After a 2%
Type of Bond (Maturity)	Increase	Decrease	Increase	Decrease
Short-Term (2.5 years)	$977	$1,024	$954	$1,049
Intermediate-Term (10 years)	922	1,086	851	1,180
Long-Term (20 years)	874	1,150	769	1,328
1 Assuming a 4% coupon rate.

These figures are for illustration only; you should not regard them as an indication of future performance of the bond market as a whole or the Fund in particular.

Plain Talk About Bonds and Interest Rates

How mortgage-backed securities are different: In general, declining interest rates will not lift the prices of mortgage-backed securities—such as those guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association—as much as the prices of comparable bonds. Why? Because when interest rates fall, the bond market tends to discount the prices of mortgage-backed securities for prepayment risk—the possibility that homeowners will refinance their mortgages at lower rates and cause the bonds to be paid off prior to maturity. In part to compensate for this prepayment possibility, mortgage-backed securities tend to offer higher yields than other bonds of comparable credit quality and maturity. In contrast, when interest rates rise, prepayments tend to slow down, subjecting mortgage-backed securities to extension risk—the possibility that homeowners will repay their mortgages at slower rates. This will lengthen the duration or average life of mortgage-backed securities held by a fund and delay the fund's ability to reinvest proceeds at higher interest rates, making the fund more sensitive to changes in interest rates.

Changes in interest rates can affect bond income as well as bond prices.

Plain Talk About Bond Maturities

Although falling interest rates tend to strengthen bond prices, they can cause other problems for bond fund investors—bond calls and prepayments.

Plain Talk About Callable Bonds

The Fund is subject to prepayment risk, which is the chance that during periods of falling interest rates, homeowners will refinance their mortgages before their maturity dates, resulting in prepayment of mortgage- backed securities held by the Fund. The Fund would then lose any price appreciation above the mortgage's principal and may be forced to reinvest the unanticipated proceeds at lower interest rates, resulting in a decline in the Fund's income. Such prepayments and subsequent reinvestments would also increase the Fund's portfolio turnover rate.

The Fund is subject to extension risk, which is the chance that during periods of rising interest rates, certain debt securities will be paid off substantially more slowly than originally anticipated, and the value of those securities may fall. For funds that invest in mortgage-backed securities, extension risk is the chance that during periods of rising interest rates, homeowners will repay their mortgages at slower rates. This will lengthen the duration or average life of mortgage-backed securities held by the Fund and delay the Fund's ability to reinvest proceeds at higher interest rates.

Plain Talk About Credit Quality

A bond's credit quality rating is an assessment of the issuer's ability to pay interest on the bond and, ultimately, to repay the principal. The lower the credit quality, the greater the perceived chance that the bond issuer will default or fail to meet its payment obligations. All things being equal, the lower a bond's credit quality, the higher its yield should be to compensate investors for assuming additional risk.

The majority of the Fund's exposure to fixed income securities is expected to have credit quality that is investment-grade.

		Credit Ratings of the Fund's Investments
	(Percentage of Fund Assets Under Normal Circumstances)
	Issued or Backed	High or
	by U.S. Gov't. or	Highest	Upper-		Non-
	its Agencies and	Quality	Medium	Medium	Investment-
Vanguard Fund	Instrumentalities	(Non-Gov't.)	Quality	Quality	Grade
Core-Plus Bond	——————————At least 65%——————————				No more
Fund	——————————At least 65%——————————				than 35%

The Fund may invest no more than 35% of its assets in non-investment-grade fixed income securities, or junk bonds. Non-investment-grade fixed income securities are those rated the equivalent of Moody's Ba1 or below or, if unrated, are determined to be of comparable quality by the Fund's advisor.

Plain Talk About High-Yield Bonds

High-yield bonds, or "junk bonds," are issued by companies or other entities whose ability to pay interest and principal on the debt in a timely manner is considered questionable. Such bonds are rated "below investment-grade" by independent rating agencies. Because they have greater credit risk than investment-grade bonds, similar maturity high-yield bonds typically must pay more interest to attract investors. Some high-yield bonds are issued by smaller, less-seasoned companies, while others are issued as part of a corporate restructuring, such as an acquisition, a merger, or a leveraged buyout. Some high-yield bonds were once rated as investment-grade but have been downgraded to junk bond status because of financial difficulties experienced by their issuers. Conversely, an issuer's improving financial condition may result in an upgrading of its junk bonds to investment-grade status.

The Fund is subject to liquidity risk, which is the chance that the Fund may not be able to sell a security in a timely manner at a desired price.

Liquidity in the bond market may be challenged depending on overall economic conditions and credit tightening, as well as the willingness of market participants to buy and sell such securities. There may be little trading in the secondary market for particular bonds, loans, and other debt securities, which may make them more difficult to value or sell.

Plain Talk About Types of Bonds

The Fund may invest in a variety of fixed income securities of issuers that are tied economically to emerging market countries. Emerging market bonds include sovereign debt securities, which include fixed income securities that are issued or guaranteed by foreign governments or their agencies, authorities, political subdivisions or instrumentalities, or other supranational agencies, as well as debt securities issued or guaranteed by foreign corporations and foreign financial institutions. Emerging market countries include countries whose economies or bond markets are less developed. This would include most countries except for Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the United States, the United Kingdom, and most European Monetary Union countries. The advisor will consider, among other things, a country's political and economic stability and the development of its financial and capital markets when determining what constitutes an emerging market country.

Plain Talk About International Investing

Security Selection

•U.S. government and agency bonds represent loans by investors to the U.S. Treasury or a wide variety of government agencies and instrumentalities. Securities issued by most U.S. government entities are neither guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury nor backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. These entities include, among others, the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBs), the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC). Securities issued by the U.S. Treasury and a small number of U.S. government agencies, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA), are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. The market values of U.S. government and agency securities and U.S. Treasury securities are subject to fluctuation.

•Municipal bonds represent loans by an investor to state or local governments or to other governmental authorities.

•Mortgage-backed securities represent partial ownership interest in pools of commercial or residential mortgage loans made by financial institutions to finance a borrower's real estate purchase. These loans are packaged by private or governmental issuers for sale to investors. As the underlying mortgage loans are paid by borrowers, the investors receive payments of interest and principal. To be announced (TBA) securities represent an agreement to buy or sell mortgage- backed securities with agreed-upon characteristics for a fixed unit price, with settlement on a scheduled future date beyond the typical settlement period for most other securities. The Fund may have short positions in TBAs. See also Other Investment Policies and Risks.

The Fund may also invest in mortgage-backed securities that are packaged by private corporations and are not guaranteed by the U.S. government.

The Fund may enter into mortgage-dollar-roll transactions. In a mortgage-dollar- roll transaction, a fund sells mortgage-backed securities to a dealer and simultaneously agrees to purchase similar securities in the future at a predetermined price. These transactions simulate an investment in mortgage- backed securities and have the potential to enhance a fund's returns and reduce its administrative burdens, compared with holding mortgage-backed securities directly. These transactions may increase the fund's portfolio turnover rate. Mortgage dollar rolls will be used only to the extent that they are consistent with the fund's investment objective and risk profile.

•Futures, options, and other derivatives are described in detail under Other Investment Policies and Risks.

•Asset-backed securities are bonds that represent partial ownership in pools of consumer or commercial loans—most often credit card, automobile, or trade receivables. Asset-backed securities, which can be types of corporate fixed income obligations, are issued by entities formed solely for that purpose, but their value ultimately depends on repayments by underlying borrowers. A primary risk

of asset-backed securities is that their maturity is difficult to predict, being driven by borrowers' prepayments.

•Foreign currency bonds are bonds denominated in a foreign currency and issued by governments, government or supranational agencies, and companies of non-U.S. countries. The Fund will seek to have a majority of its assets either denominated in or hedged back to the U.S. dollar, but will also have the ability to invest in bonds denominated in a foreign currency on an unhedged basis. To the extent that the Fund's investments in foreign currency bonds may or may not be hedged, the Fund is subject to currency risk and currency hedging risk.

•Convertible securities are bonds or preferred stocks that are convertible into, or exchangeable for, common stocks.

•Collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs) are special bonds that are collateralized by mortgages or mortgage pass-through securities. Cash flow rights on underlying mortgages—the rights to receive principal and interest payments— are divided up and prioritized to create short-, intermediate-, and long-term bonds. CMOs rely on assumptions about the timing of cash flows on the underlying mortgages, including expected prepayment rates. The primary risk of a CMO is that these assumptions are wrong, which would either shorten or lengthen the bond's maturity. The Fund will invest only in CMOs that are believed to be consistent with its maturity and credit-quality standards.

rated below investment-grade and involve greater risks of default, downgrade, or price declines and are more volatile than investment-grade securities. A fund may have difficulty disposing of bank loans because, in certain cases, the market for such instruments is not highly liquid. The lack of a highly liquid secondary market may have an adverse impact on the value of such instruments and on a fund's ability to dispose of the bank loan in response to a specific economic event, such as deterioration in the creditworthiness of the borrower, but there is no guarantee that an investment in these securities will result in a high rate of return. In addition, bank loans may have trade settlement periods extending beyond seven days, which means that it could take the fund a significant amount of time to get its money after selling an investment. As a result, those proceeds will not be available to make additional investments or to meet the fund's redemption obligations.

The Fund is subject to manager risk, which is the chance that poor security selection will cause the Fund to underperform relevant benchmarks or other funds with a similar investment objective.

Plain Talk About U.S. Government-Sponsored Enterprises

A variety of U.S. government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), such as the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC), the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), and the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBs), issue debt and mortgage-backed securities. Although GSEs may be chartered or sponsored by acts of Congress, they are not funded by congressional appropriations. In September of 2008, the U.S. Treasury placed FNMA and FHLMC under conservatorship and appointed the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to manage their daily operations. In addition, the U.S. Treasury entered into purchase agreements with FNMA and FHLMC to provide them with capital in exchange for senior preferred stock. Generally, a GSE's securities are neither issued nor guaranteed by the U.S. Treasury and are not backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. In most cases, these securities are supported only by the credit of the GSE, standing alone. In some cases, a GSE's securities may be supported by the ability of the GSE to borrow from the U.S. Treasury or may be supported by the U.S. government in some other way. Securities issued by the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA), however, are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.

Other Investment Policies and Risks

In addition to investing in bonds, the Fund may make other kinds of investments to achieve its investment objective.

sold or disposed of in current market conditions in seven calendar days or less without the sale or disposition significantly changing the market value of the investment. Restricted securities are a special type of illiquid security; these securities have not been publicly issued and legally can be resold only to qualified buyers. From time to time, the board of trustees may determine that particular restricted securities are not illiquid, and those securities may then be purchased by the Fund without limit. The Fund may also hold other types of securities, such as various types of warrants, including, but not limited to warrants linked to countries' economic performance or commodity prices.

•Invest in eligible asset classes with greater efficiency and lower cost than is possible through direct investment.

•Add value when these instruments are attractively priced.

•Adjust sensitivity to changes in interest rates.

•Adjust the overall credit risk of the portfolio or actively overweight or underweight credit risk to specific bond issuers.

•Hedge foreign currency exposure.

•Hedge foreign interest rate exposure.

The Fund may enter into a currency swap or foreign currency exchange forward to sell or buy an amount of foreign currency with which it does not have exposure.

Plain Talk About Derivatives

Cash Management

Methods Used to Meet Redemption Requests

Under certain circumstances, including under stressed market conditions, there are additional tools that the Fund may use in order to meet redemptions, including advancing the settlement of market trades with counterparties to match investor redemption payments or delaying settlement of an investor's transaction to match trade settlement within regulatory requirements. The Fund may also suspend payment of redemption proceeds for up to seven days; see "Emergency circumstances" under Redeeming Shares in the Investing With Vanguard section. Additionally under these unusual circumstances, the Fund may borrow money (subject to certain regulatory conditions and if available under board- approved procedures) through an interfund lending facility; through a bank line-of- credit, including a joint committed credit facility; or through an uncommitted line- of-credit from Vanguard in order to meet redemption requests.

Temporary Investment Measures

Frequent Trading or Market-Timing

Policies to address frequent trading. The Vanguard funds (other than money market funds and short-term bond funds, but including Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund) do not knowingly accommodate frequent trading. The board of trustees of each Vanguard fund (other than money market funds and short-term bond funds, but including Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund) has adopted policies and procedures reasonably designed to detect and discourage frequent trading and, in some cases, to compensate the fund for the costs associated with it. These policies and procedures do not apply to ETF Shares because frequent trading in ETF Shares generally does not disrupt portfolio management or otherwise harm fund shareholders. Although there is no assurance that Vanguard will be able to detect or prevent frequent trading or market-timing in all circumstances, the following policies have been adopted to address these issues:

•Each Vanguard fund reserves the right to reject any purchase request—including exchanges from other Vanguard funds—without notice and regardless of size. For example, a purchase request could be rejected because the investor has a history of frequent trading or if Vanguard determines that such purchase may negatively affect a fund's operation or performance.

•Certain Vanguard funds charge shareholders purchase and/or redemption fees on transactions.

See the Investing With Vanguard section of this prospectus for further details on Vanguard's transaction policies.

Do not invest with Vanguard if you are a market-timer.

Turnover Rate

The Fund and Vanguard

Plain Talk About Vanguard's Unique Corporate Structure

Investment Advisor

The managers primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of the Fund are:

Michael Chang, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has been with Vanguard since 2017, has worked in investment management since 2002, has managed investment portfolios since 2011, and has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021. Education: B. Com., University of British Columbia.

Brian W. Quigley, CFA, Portfolio Manager at Vanguard. He has been with Vanguard since 2003, has worked in investment management since 2005, has managed investment portfolios since 2015, and has co-managed the Fund since its inception in 2021. Education: B.S., Lehigh University.

The Fund's Statement of Additional Information provides information about each portfolio manager's compensation, other accounts under management, and ownership of shares of the Fund.

Dividends, Capital Gains, and Taxes

Fund Distributions