Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
DIA vs XLG: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, DIA returned +11.6% to XLG's +6.4%; 34% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $45.9bn for SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust and $11.9bn for Invesco S&P 500 Top 50 ETF.
Pair scorecard
DIA costs 0.04 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 5.2 points; DIA is 3.9 times larger.
| Measure | DIA | XLG |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +11.6% | +6.4% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 3.0%, high on Aug 5, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Dow Jones Industrial Average | S&P 500 Top 50 Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.16% | 0.20% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $45.9bn | $11.9bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 34% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 54.7% | 60.3% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
May 20, 2005 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,118 weekly returnsXLG returned more: +882.5% to +695.6%. DIA and XLG swung about the same: 16.9% and 17.0%. DIA and XLG fell about the same at their worst: −50.9% and −51.7%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | DIA | XLG | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +695.6% | +882.5% | XLG | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +10.1% | +11.2% | XLG (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +398.3% | +572.4% | XLG | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 16.9% | 17.0% | Tie | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 12.0% | 11.8% | Tie | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −50.9% | −51.7% | Tie | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.55 | 0.61 | XLG (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.78 | 0.87 | XLG | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.20 | 0.22 | XLG (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,118 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, DIA and XLG hold 34% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
34% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
DIA and XLG on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
DIA and XLG are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. DIA follows Dow Jones Industrial Average and XLG follows S&P 500 Top 50 Index.
- Holdings in common. 34% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 DIA returned +11.6% and XLG +6.4% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 5.2 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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DIA
DIA tracks the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +11.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.16% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 30 positions, with the top ten at 54.7%. It sat 3.0% below its high of Aug 5, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
XLG
XLG tracks the S&P 500 top 50. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +6.4% with distributions reinvested, against +13.7% for its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.20% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 98% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 53 positions, with the top ten at 60.3%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, DIA or XLG?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, DIA returned +11.6% and XLG +6.4%.
- Which is cheaper, DIA or XLG?
- DIA 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.
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, DIA against XLG, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dia-vs-xlg
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