Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
QQQ vs XLU: how they differ
QQQ and XLU hold 1% of their weight in the same names, and QQQ returned more over the year.
Invesco QQQ Trust and State Street(R) Utilities Select Sector SPDR(R) ETF.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, QQQ and XLU hold 1% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | QQQ | XLU |
|---|---|---|
| Constellation Energy Corp | 0.46% | 6.92% |
| American Electric Power Co Inc | 0.30% | 5.08% |
| Xcel Energy Inc | 0.21% | 3.56% |
| Exelon Corp | 0.20% | 3.36% |
| Only in QQQ | Only in XLU |
|---|---|
| NVIDIA Corp 8.52% | NEXTERA ENERGY INC 13.01% |
| Apple Inc 7.72% | SOUTHERN CO/THE 7.49% |
| Microsoft Corp 5.89% | DUKE ENERGY CORP 7.04% |
| Micron Technology Inc 4.90% | DOMINION ENERGY INC 4.33% |
| Amazon.com Inc 4.36% | SEMPRA 4.16% |
| Advanced Micro Devices Inc 3.65% | ENTERGY CORP 3.66% |
| Alphabet Inc 3.12% | VISTRA CORP 3.53% |
| Meta Platforms Inc 3.07% | CONSOLIDATED EDISON INC 2.98% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Sep 10, 2026.
| QQQ Invesco QQQ Trust | XLU State Street(R) Utilities Select Sector SPDR(R) ETF | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | Invesco | State Street |
| What it is | Nasdaq-100 | Utilities |
| Total return, 1 year | +23.0% | +2.4% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | +5.5 pts | −15.1 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.18% | 0.08% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 96.7% | 100.0% |
| Holdings | 105 | 32 |
QQQ in plain words
QQQ is an index equity fund tracking the Nasdaq-100. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +23.0% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.18% a year. By its holdings filed for Sep 10, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 105 positions, with the top ten at 47.0%. It sat 4.1% below its high of Jun 2, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.
XLU in plain words
XLU is an index equity fund tracking the Utilities. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +2.4% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings filed for Sep 10, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 32 positions, with the top ten at 58.8%. It sat 10.0% below its high of Feb 27, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, QQQ or XLU?
- In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, QQQ returned +23.0% and XLU returned +2.4%, so QQQ returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, QQQ or XLU?
- QQQ charges 0.18% a year and XLU charges 0.08%, so XLU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do QQQ and XLU overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 97% of QQQ and 100% of XLU by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 1% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.
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Where these figures came from
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Cite this page. ETFIQ, QQQ against XLU, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qqq-vs-xlu Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
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