Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
PFF vs SPYD: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, PFF returned −4.2% to SPYD's +15.3%; 4% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $11.8bn for iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF and $7.5bn for State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF.
Pair scorecard
SPYD costs 0.38 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 19.5 points; PFF is 1.6 times larger.
| Measure | PFF | SPYD |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −4.2% | +15.3% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 7.1%, high on May 8, 2026 | 4.1%, high on Aug 24, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | ICE Exchange-Listed Preferred & Hybrid Securities Index | S&P 500 High Dividend Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.45% | 0.07% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $11.8bn | $7.5bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 4% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 22.7% | 16.1% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 30, 2015 to Oct 23, 2026 · 573 weekly returnsSPYD returned more: +168.7% to +36.7%. PFF swung less: 12.0% to 19.6%. PFF fell less at its worst: −27.2% to −43.0%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | PFF | SPYD | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +36.7% | +168.7% | SPYD | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +2.9% | +9.4% | SPYD | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −26.7% | +61.3% | SPYD | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 12.0% | 19.6% | PFF | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 8.6% | 13.8% | PFF | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −27.2% | −43.0% | PFF | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.10 | 0.44 | SPYD | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.15 | 0.62 | SPYD | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.11 | 0.22 | SPYD | 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, PFF and SPYD 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
PFF and SPYD on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
PFF and SPYD do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. PFF follows ICE Exchange-Listed Preferred & Hybrid Securities Index and SPYD follows S&P 500 High Dividend Index.
- 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 PFF returned −4.2% and SPYD +15.3% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 19.5 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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PFF
PFF tracks an index of Preferred and Income Securities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −4.2% with distributions reinvested, against +13.6% for its benchmark, the MSCI USA Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.45% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 453 positions, with the top ten at 22.7%. It sat 7.1% below its high of May 8, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
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, PFF or SPYD?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, PFF returned −4.2% and SPYD +15.3%.
- Which is cheaper, PFF or SPYD?
- SPYD is cheaper, by 0.38 percentage points a year. That is about $38 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.
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown
ETFIQ, PFF against SPYD, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/pff-vs-spyd
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). PFF against SPYD. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/pff-vs-spyd
[PFF against SPYD (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/pff-vs-spyd)
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