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Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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BOXX vs QQQM: Differences, Returns & Fees

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BOXX is an actively managed short-term fund and QQQM an equity index fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, QQQM returned +15.2% against +4.0%.

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Net assets: $14.5bn on Oct 28, 2026 for Alpha Architect 1-3 Month Box ETF, and $110.4bn on Oct 27, 2026 for Invesco NASDAQ 100 ETF.

BOXX on its own →QQQM on its own →
At a glance
+4.0%
BOXX total return, 1 year
+15.2%
QQQM total return, 1 year
0.19%
BOXX expense ratio
0.15%
QQQM expense ratio

Pair scorecard

QQQM costs 0.04 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 11.2 points; QQQM is 7.6 times larger.

BOXX vs QQQM: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureBOXXQQQM
Return
Total return, 1 year+4.0%+15.2%
Drawdown
Below its high4.5%, high on Oct 6, 2026
Benchmark
What it tracksNo index, actively managedNasdaq-100 Index
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.19%0.15%
Net assets, as of Oct 26, 2026$14.4bn$108.8bn
Holdings
Holdings in commonnot published
In the S&P 500, by weight96%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund46.7%

Method

Risk and return

Jan 6, 2023 to Oct 23, 2026 · 198 weekly returns
BOXX QQQM
Return
Total return edge QQQM +18.9% +168.5%
Annualized edge QQQM +4.6% +29.6%
Price return edge QQQM +18.6% +162.4%
Risk
Volatility edge BOXX 0.2% 19.2%
Max drawdown edge BOXX −0.1% −21.2%
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe edge QQQM −0.25 1.21
Sortino edge QQQM −0.35 1.94
Calmar Not measured 1.40
Reading

QQQM returned more: +168.5% to +18.9%. BOXX swung less: 0.2% to 19.2%. BOXX fell less at its worst: −0.1% to −21.2%.

Full scorecard

9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
Risk and return: BOXX vs QQQM: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureBOXXQQQMEdgeHow it is measured
Return
Total return+18.9%+168.5%QQQMPrice change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized+4.6%+29.6%QQQMTotal return as a yearly rate.
Price return+18.6%+162.4%QQQMPrice change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility0.2%19.2%BOXXSpread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation0.2%12.0%BOXXLike volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown−0.1%−21.2%BOXXDeepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe−0.251.21QQQMReturn above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino−0.351.94QQQMReturn above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
CalmarNot measured1.40Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 198 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

Side by side

BOXX Alpha Architect 1-3 Month Box ETF QQQM Invesco NASDAQ 100 ETF
Where it sits Bond ETF Stock ETF
Issuer Alpha Architect Invesco
What it is Actively managed Tracks the Nasdaq-100
Total return, 1 year +4.0% +15.2%
Its benchmark over the same days not measured +15.2% (QQQ)
Gap to its benchmark not measured 0.0 pts vs QQQ
Expense ratio 0.19% 0.15%
Holdings not counted 105
Net assets, BOXX as of Oct 28, 2026 and QQQM as of Oct 27, 2026 $14.5bn $110.4bn

BOXX and QQQM on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-F77D9E84D2

BOXX and QQQM do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?

  1. What each follows. BOXX follows No index, actively managed and QQQM follows Nasdaq-100 Index.
  2. One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 BOXX returned +4.0% and QQQM +15.2% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 11.2 points.
  3. Size. BOXX has $14.4bn in net assets and QQQM $108.8bn (net assets, as of Oct 26, 2026); QQQM is 7.6 times larger.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund
BOXX

BOXX is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +4.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.19% a year.

QQQM

QQQM tracks the Nasdaq-100. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +15.2% with distributions reinvested, against +15.2% for its benchmark, the Nasdaq-100 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 96% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 105 positions, with the top ten at 46.7%. It sat 4.5% below its high of Oct 6, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, BOXX or QQQM?
In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BOXX returned +4.0% and QQQM +15.2%.
Which is cheaper, BOXX or QQQM?
QQQM is cheaper, by 0.04 percentage points a year. That is about $4 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
BOXX vs QQQBOXX vs SPYGBOXX vs VUGBOXX vs VONGQQQM vs VBILMINT vs QQQMQQQM vs USFRPULS vs QQQM
Where to next
BOXX on its own →QQQM on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →BOXX dividend history →QQQM dividend history →QQQM holdings →Standards and sources →
Sources and dates
BOXX filings on SEC EDGAR ↗
BOXX prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗
Alpha Architect website ↗
QQQM filings on SEC EDGAR ↗
QQQM prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗
Invesco page for QQQM ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

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ETFIQ, BOXX against QQQM, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-qqqm

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