Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
QQQ vs SPHD: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, QQQ returned +15.2% to SPHD's +11.0%; 2% of their weight is in the same names.
askIQ about this page
askIQ about QQQ and SPHD
Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $483.0bn for Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 and $3.3bn for Invesco S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility ETF.
Pair scorecard
QQQ costs 0.12 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 4.2 points; QQQ is far larger, $483.0bn against $3.3bn.
| Measure | QQQ | SPHD |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +15.2% | +11.0% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.5%, high on Oct 6, 2026 | 4.2%, high on Aug 24, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Nasdaq-100 Index | S&P 500 Low Volatility High Dividend Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.18% | 0.30% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $483.0bn | $3.3bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 2% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 46.7% | 28.2% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Nov 2, 2012 to Oct 23, 2026 · 729 weekly returnsQQQ returned more: +1,118.5% to +266.3%. SPHD swung less: 16.1% to 19.0%. QQQ fell slightly less at its worst: −35.1% to −38.2%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | QQQ | SPHD | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +1,118.5% | +266.3% | QQQ | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +19.5% | +9.7% | QQQ | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +980.9% | +107.7% | QQQ | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 19.0% | 16.1% | SPHD | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 12.6% | 11.3% | SPHD (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −35.1% | −38.2% | QQQ (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.94 | 0.54 | QQQ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.42 | 0.77 | QQQ | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.56 | 0.25 | QQQ | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 729 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, QQQ and SPHD hold 2% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
2% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
QQQ and SPHD on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
QQQ and SPHD do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. QQQ follows Nasdaq-100 Index and SPHD follows S&P 500 Low Volatility High Dividend Index.
- Holdings in common. 2% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 QQQ returned +15.2% and SPHD +11.0% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 4.2 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
The two-page PDF for this pair is coming. Save the comparison to follow its changes. Free. It needs an email sign-in, once.
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.
SPHD
SPHD tracks the S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +11.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.30% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 95% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 59 positions, with the top ten at 28.2%. It sat 4.2% below its high of Aug 24, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, QQQ or SPHD?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, QQQ returned +15.2% and SPHD +11.0%.
- Which is cheaper, QQQ or SPHD?
- QQQ is cheaper, by 0.12 percentage points a year. That is about $12 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, QQQ against SPHD, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-sphd
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). QQQ against SPHD. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-sphd
[QQQ against SPHD (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-sphd)
Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.