Are FMF and SPY in the same category?

FMF is an alternatives ETF and SPY is a stock ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.

Which returned more over the last year, FMF or SPY?

In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FMF returned +11.1% and SPY +14.8%.

Which is cheaper, FMF or SPY?

SPY is cheaper, by 0.89 percentage points a year. That is about $89 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Across categories

FMF vs SPY: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, FMF returned +11.1% to SPY's +14.8%, and SPY charges 0.09% to FMF's 0.98%.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $298m for First Trust Managed Futures Strategy Fund and $804.8bn for SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust.

FMF on its own →SPY on its own →

At a glance

+11.1%

FMF total return, 1 year

+14.8%

SPY total return, 1 year

0.98%

FMF expense ratio

0.09%

SPY expense ratio

Pair scorecard

SPY costs 0.89 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.7 points; SPY is far larger, $804.8bn against $298m.

FMF vs SPY: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	FMF	SPY
Return
Measure	FMF	SPY
Total return, 1 year	+11.1%	+14.8%
Total return, 52 weeks	+10.6%
Against its benchmark
Measure	FMF	SPY
What it tracks	not published	S&P 500 Index
Treasury bills, 52 weeks	+3.7%
Against cash	6.9 points ahead
Cost and size
Measure	FMF	SPY
Expense ratio	0.98%	0.09%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026	$298m	$804.8bn
Holdings
Measure	FMF	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
In the S&P 500, by weight		100%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund		37.3%
Risk
Measure	FMF	SPY
Correlation with the S&P 500’s weekly returns	+0.16
Beta to the S&P 500	+0.11: about 0.11% for each 1%
Its average week when the S&P 500 fell	fell 0.11%
Down-week capture	9.9%
Weeks the S&P 500 fell	26 of 52, by 1.07% on average

Method

Side by side

FMF First Trust Managed Futures Strategy Fund SPY SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust

Where it sits Alternatives ETF Stock ETF

Issuer First Trust State Street

What it is Managed futures Tracks the S&P 500

Total return, 1 year +11.1% +14.8%

Its benchmark over the same days not measured +14.8% (VOO)

Gap to its benchmark not measured 0.0 pts vs VOO

Expense ratio 0.98% 0.09%

Holdings not read by ETFIQ 504

Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $298m $804.8bn

FMF and SPY on the fields both publish, as of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Alert

About each fund

FMF

FMF is a managed futures fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of +0.16 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.11, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.11% the same way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks FMF fell 0.11% on average, a down-week capture of 9.9%. Over the same 52 weeks FMF returned +10.6% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 6.9 percentage points ahead of cash.

SPY

SPY tracks the S&P 500. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026 it returned +14.8% with distributions reinvested, against +14.8% for its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Nov 3, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 504 positions, with the top ten at 37.3%.

Questions people ask

Are FMF and SPY in the same category?: FMF is an alternatives ETF and SPY is a stock ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, FMF or SPY?: In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FMF returned +11.1% and SPY +14.8%.
Which is cheaper, FMF or SPY?: SPY is cheaper, by 0.89 percentage points a year. That is about $89 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

FMF vs IVV FMF vs VOO FMF vs QQQ FMF vs TLT MFUT vs SPY ISMF vs SPY HFMF vs SPY PRAE vs SPY

Where to next

BIL, the T-bill fund these are measured against →FMF on its own →SPY on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →FMF dividend history →SPY dividend history →SPY holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

FMF filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

FMF prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

First Trust page for FMF ↗

SPY filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

State Street website ↗

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

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ETFIQ, FMF against SPY, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/fmf-vs-spy

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