Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
QQQ vs QTUM: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, QQQ returned +15.2% to QTUM's +28.9%, and QQQ charges 0.18% to QTUM's 0.40%.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $483.0bn for Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 and $5.4bn for Defiance Quantum ETF.
Pair scorecard
QQQ costs 0.22 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 13.7 points; QQQ is far larger, $483.0bn against $5.4bn.
| Measure | QQQ | QTUM |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +15.2% | +28.9% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.5%, high on Oct 6, 2026 | |
| Below its all-time high | 14.3%, high on Jun 2, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Nasdaq-100 Index | Quantum computing |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.18% | 0.40% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $483.0bn | $5.4bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 82% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 24% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 46.7% | 18% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Oct 28, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Sep 14, 2018 to Oct 23, 2026 · 423 weekly returnsQTUM returned more: +489.3% to +303.8%. QQQ swung less: 21.8% to 26.3%. QQQ fell slightly less at its worst: −35.1% to −38.1%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | QQQ | QTUM | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +303.8% | +489.3% | QTUM | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +18.7% | +24.4% | QTUM | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +282.8% | +450.1% | QTUM | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 21.8% | 26.3% | QQQ | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 14.5% | 17.6% | QQQ | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −35.1% | −38.1% | QQQ (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.77 | 0.86 | QTUM | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.16 | 1.28 | QTUM (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.53 | 0.64 | QTUM | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 423 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, QQQ and QTUM hold 24% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Oct 28, 2026.
half
24% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
QQQ and QTUM on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
QQQ and QTUM do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. QQQ follows Nasdaq-100 Index and QTUM follows Quantum computing.
- Holdings in common. 24% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Oct 28, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 QQQ returned +15.2% and QTUM +28.9% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 13.7 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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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.
QTUM
By weight, 38% of QTUM's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 82%. The top ten holdings are 18% of the fund across 85 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 28, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +28.9% with distributions reinvested. It sits 14.3% below its all-time high of Jun 2, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Are QQQ and QTUM in the same category?
- QQQ is a stock ETF and QTUM 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, QQQ or QTUM?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, QQQ returned +15.2% and QTUM +28.9%.
- Which is cheaper, QQQ or QTUM?
- QQQ is cheaper, by 0.22 percentage points a year. That is about $22 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, QQQ against QTUM, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-qtum
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). QQQ against QTUM. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-qtum
[QQQ against QTUM (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-qtum)
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