Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
BOXX vs XLU: Differences, Returns & Fees
BOXX is an actively managed short-term fund and XLU an equity index fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, BOXX returned +4.0% against −3.0%.
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Net assets: $14.5bn on Oct 28, 2026 for Alpha Architect 1-3 Month Box ETF, and $23.9bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLU costs 0.11 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 7.0 points; XLU is 1.6 times larger.
| Measure | BOXX | XLU |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +4.0% | −3.0% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 9.1%, high on Feb 27, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | No index, actively managed | Utilities Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.19% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 26, 2026 | $14.4bn | $23.7bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | not published | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 100% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 58.7% | |
Side by side
BOXX and XLU on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
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.
XLU
XLU tracks an index of Utilities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −3.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 32 positions, with the top ten at 58.7%. It sat 9.1% below its high of Feb 27, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, BOXX or XLU?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BOXX returned +4.0% and XLU −3.0%.
- Which is cheaper, BOXX or XLU?
- XLU is cheaper, by 0.11 percentage points a year. That is about $11 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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ETFIQ, BOXX against XLU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-xlu
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). BOXX against XLU. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-xlu
[BOXX against XLU (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/boxx-vs-xlu)
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