Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
DGRO vs XBI: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, DGRO returned +18.8% to XBI's +41.2%, and DGRO charges 0.08% to XBI's 0.35%.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $44.6bn for iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF and $10.3bn for State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF.
Pair scorecard
DGRO costs 0.27 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 22.4 points; DGRO is 4.3 times larger.
| Measure | DGRO | XBI |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +18.8% | +41.2% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its all-time high | 8.9%, high on Feb 8, 2021 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index | Biotech |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.08% | 0.35% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $44.6bn | $10.3bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 98% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 4% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 27.2% | 18% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jun 20, 2014 to Oct 23, 2026 · 644 weekly returnsDGRO returned more: +321.3% to +200.7%. DGRO swung less: 15.3% to 30.8%. DGRO fell less at its worst: −32.1% to −61.5%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | DGRO | XBI | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +321.3% | +200.7% | DGRO | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +12.3% | +9.3% | DGRO | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +216.7% | +192.4% | DGRO | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 15.3% | 30.8% | DGRO | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 10.7% | 20.7% | DGRO | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −32.1% | −61.5% | DGRO | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.70 | 0.38 | DGRO | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.00 | 0.56 | DGRO | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.38 | 0.15 | DGRO | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 644 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, DGRO and XBI hold 4% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
4% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
DGRO and XBI on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
DGRO and XBI do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. DGRO follows Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index and XBI follows Biotech.
- Holdings in common. 4% 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 XBI +41.2% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 22.4 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%.
XBI
By weight, 13% of XBI's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 98%. The top ten holdings are 18% of the fund across 165 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +41.2% with distributions reinvested. It sits 8.9% below its all-time high of Feb 8, 2021.
Questions people ask
- Are DGRO and XBI in the same category?
- DGRO is a stock ETF and XBI is a thematic ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
- Which returned more over the last year, DGRO or XBI?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, DGRO returned +18.8% and XBI +41.2%.
- Which is cheaper, DGRO or XBI?
- DGRO is cheaper, by 0.27 percentage points a year. That is about $27 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 XBI, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dgro-vs-xbi
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). DGRO against XBI. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dgro-vs-xbi
[DGRO against XBI (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dgro-vs-xbi)
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