Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
DGRO vs SPYD: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, DGRO returned +18.8% to SPYD's +15.3%; 5% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $44.6bn for iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF and $7.5bn for State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF.
Pair scorecard
SPYD costs 0.01 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.5 points; DGRO is 5.9 times larger.
| Measure | DGRO | SPYD |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +18.8% | +15.3% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.1%, high on Aug 24, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index | S&P 500 High Dividend Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.08% | 0.07% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $44.6bn | $7.5bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 5% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 27.2% | 16.1% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 30, 2015 to Oct 23, 2026 · 573 weekly returnsDGRO returned more: +293.0% to +168.7%. DGRO swung less: 15.6% to 19.6%. DGRO fell less at its worst: −32.1% to −43.0%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | DGRO | SPYD | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +293.0% | +168.7% | DGRO | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +13.2% | +9.4% | DGRO | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +204.2% | +61.3% | DGRO | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 15.6% | 19.6% | DGRO | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 11.0% | 13.8% | DGRO | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −32.1% | −43.0% | DGRO | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.73 | 0.44 | DGRO | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.03 | 0.62 | DGRO | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.41 | 0.22 | DGRO | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 573 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, DGRO and SPYD hold 5% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
5% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
DGRO and SPYD on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
DGRO and SPYD are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. DGRO follows Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index and SPYD follows S&P 500 High Dividend Index.
- Holdings in common. 5% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 DGRO returned +18.8% and SPYD +15.3% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 3.5 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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DGRO
DGRO tracks an index of Dividend Growth. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +18.8% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 92% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 393 positions, with the top ten at 27.2%.
SPYD
SPYD tracks the S&P 500 High Dividend. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +15.3% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.07% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 99% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 79 positions, with the top ten at 16.1%. It sat 4.1% below its high of Aug 24, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, DGRO or SPYD?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, DGRO returned +18.8% and SPYD +15.3%.
- Which is cheaper, DGRO or SPYD?
- SPYD is cheaper, by 0.01 percentage points a year. That is about $1 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, DGRO against SPYD, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dgro-vs-spyd
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). DGRO against SPYD. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dgro-vs-spyd
[DGRO against SPYD (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dgro-vs-spyd)
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