Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
QUAL vs SCHB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, QUAL returned +13.1% to SCHB's +13.4%; 39% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $48.2bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF, and $44.6bn on Aug 31, 2026 for Schwab U.S. Broad Market ETF.
Pair scorecard
SCHB costs 0.12 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.3 points.
| Measure | QUAL | SCHB |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +13.1% | +13.4% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI USA Sector Neutral Quality Index | Dow Jones U.S. Broad Stock Market Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.15% | 0.03% |
| Net assets, QUAL as of Oct 28, 2026 and SCHB as of Aug 31, 2026 | $48.2bn | $44.6bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 39% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 44.5% | 33.7% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jul 26, 2013 to Oct 23, 2026 · 691 weekly returnsQUAL returned slightly more: +444.7% to +430.7%. QUAL and SCHB swung about the same: 16.2% and 16.5%. QUAL fell slightly less at its worst: −31.4% to −33.3%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | QUAL | SCHB | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +444.7% | +430.7% | QUAL (slight) | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +13.6% | +13.4% | Tie | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +346.8% | +326.5% | QUAL (slight) | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 16.2% | 16.5% | Tie | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 11.2% | 11.4% | QUAL (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −31.4% | −33.3% | QUAL (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.75 | 0.73 | QUAL (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.09 | 1.05 | QUAL (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.43 | 0.40 | QUAL (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 691 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, QUAL and SCHB hold 39% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
39% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
QUAL and SCHB on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
QUAL and SCHB are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. QUAL follows MSCI USA Sector Neutral Quality Index and SCHB follows Dow Jones U.S. Broad Stock Market Index.
- Holdings in common. 39% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026).
- Number of holdings. QUAL holds 119 positions and SCHB holds 2372.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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QUAL
QUAL tracks the MSCI USA Quality Factor. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.1% with distributions reinvested, against +13.6% for its benchmark, the MSCI USA Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 119 positions, with the top ten at 44.5%.
SCHB
SCHB tracks an index of US broad market. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings filed for Aug 31, 2026, 88% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 2,372 positions, with the top ten at 33.7%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, QUAL or SCHB?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, QUAL returned +13.1% and SCHB +13.4%.
- Which is cheaper, QUAL or SCHB?
- SCHB 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.
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ETFIQ, QUAL against SCHB, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qual-vs-schb
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). QUAL against SCHB. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qual-vs-schb
[QUAL against SCHB (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qual-vs-schb)
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