Data as of Sep 12, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
SPY vs XBI: how they differ
SPY and XBI hold 2% of their weight in the same names, and XBI returned more over the year.
SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust and State Street(R) SPDR(R) S&P(R) Biotech ETF.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, SPY and XBI hold 2% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | SPY | XBI |
|---|---|---|
| AbbVie, Inc. | 0.69% | 1.04% |
| Amgen, Inc. | 0.30% | 1.00% |
| Gilead Sciences, Inc. | 0.24% | 0.97% |
| Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 0.20% | 1.06% |
| Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 0.10% | 0.96% |
| Biogen, Inc. | 0.05% | 1.03% |
| Moderna, Inc. | 0.04% | 1.41% |
| Incyte Corp. | 0.03% | 1.00% |
| Only in SPY | Only in XBI |
|---|---|
| NVIDIA Corp. 7.52% | Apogee Therapeutics Inc 1.49% |
| Apple, Inc. 6.59% | Twist Bioscience Corp 1.41% |
| Microsoft Corp. 4.30% | Oruka Therapeutics Inc 1.38% |
| Amazon.com, Inc. 3.62% | Kymera Therapeutics Inc 1.36% |
| Alphabet, Inc. 3.25% | Viking Therapeutics Inc 1.31% |
| Broadcom, Inc. 2.77% | Praxis Precision Medicines Inc 1.29% |
| Alphabet, Inc. 2.59% | Erasca Inc 1.27% |
| Micron Technology, Inc. 2.02% | Revolution Medicines Inc 1.21% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026.
| SPY SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | XBI State Street(R) SPDR(R) S&P(R) Biotech ETF | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | State Street | State Street |
| What it is | S&P 500, book from IVV | SPDR S&P Biotech |
| Total return, 1 year | +17.5% | +64.0% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | 0.0 pts | +46.5 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | 0.35% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 100.0% | 8.5% |
| Holdings | 504 | 150 |
SPY in plain words
SPY is an index equity fund tracking the S&P 500. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +17.5% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 504 positions, with the top ten at 36.4%.
XBI in plain words
XBI is an index equity fund tracking the SPDR S&P Biotech. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +64.0% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.35% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 8% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 150 positions, with the top ten at 13.3%. It sat 9.6% below its high of Feb 8, 2021 on Sep 11, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, SPY or XBI?
- In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SPY returned +17.5% and XBI returned +64.0%, so XBI returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, SPY or XBI?
- SPY charges 0.09% a year and XBI charges 0.35%, so SPY is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do SPY and XBI overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 100% of SPY and 8% of XBI by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 2% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.
Other comparisons
Where to next
Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, SPY against XBI, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/SPY-XBI Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources