Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
IBB vs QQQ: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, IBB returned +37.5% to QQQ's +15.2%, and QQQ charges 0.18% to IBB's 0.44%.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $11.0bn for iShares Biotechnology ETF and $483.0bn for Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1.
Pair scorecard
QQQ costs 0.26 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 22.3 points; QQQ is far larger, $483.0bn against $11.0bn.
| Measure | IBB | QQQ |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +37.5% | +15.2% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.5%, high on Oct 6, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Biotech | Nasdaq-100 Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.44% | 0.18% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $11.0bn | $483.0bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 99% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 3% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 50% | 46.7% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Feb 23, 2001 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,339 weekly returnsQQQ returned more: +1,532.9% to +586.4%. QQQ swung slightly less: 22.2% to 24.3%. IBB and QQQ fell about the same at their worst: −59.2% and −60.2%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | IBB | QQQ | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +586.4% | +1,532.9% | QQQ | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +7.8% | +11.5% | QQQ | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +557.1% | +1,276.3% | QQQ | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 24.3% | 22.2% | QQQ (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 17.2% | 15.4% | QQQ | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −59.2% | −60.2% | Tie | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.36 | 0.52 | QQQ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.50 | 0.75 | QQQ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.13 | 0.19 | QQQ | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,339 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, IBB and QQQ hold 3% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
3% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
IBB and QQQ on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
IBB and QQQ do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. IBB follows Biotech and QQQ follows Nasdaq-100 Index.
- Holdings in common. 3% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 IBB returned +37.5% and QQQ +15.2% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 22.3 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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IBB
By weight, 40% of IBB's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 99%. The top ten holdings are 50% of the fund across 245 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +37.5% with distributions reinvested.
QQQ
QQQ tracks the Nasdaq-100. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +15.2% with distributions reinvested, against +15.2% for its benchmark, the Nasdaq-100 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.18% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 96% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 103 positions, with the top ten at 46.7%. It sat 4.5% below its high of Oct 6, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Are IBB and QQQ in the same category?
- IBB is a thematic ETF and QQQ 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, IBB or QQQ?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IBB returned +37.5% and QQQ +15.2%.
- Which is cheaper, IBB or QQQ?
- QQQ is cheaper, by 0.26 percentage points a year. That is about $26 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, IBB against QQQ, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-qqq
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). IBB against QQQ. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-qqq
[IBB against QQQ (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibb-vs-qqq)
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