Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
QUAL vs XLU: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, QUAL returned +13.1% to XLU's −3.0%; 2% of their weight is in the same names.
askIQ about this page
askIQ about QUAL and XLU
Net assets: $48.2bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF, and $23.9bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLU costs 0.07 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 16.1 points; QUAL is 2.0 times larger.
| Measure | QUAL | XLU |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +13.1% | −3.0% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 9.1%, high on Feb 27, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI USA Sector Neutral Quality Index | Utilities Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.15% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 26, 2026 | $48.3bn | $23.7bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 2% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 44.5% | 58.7% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, QUAL and XLU 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
QUAL and XLU on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
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%.
XLU
XLU tracks an index of Utilities. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −3.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 32 positions, with the top ten at 58.7%. It sat 9.1% below its high of Feb 27, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, QUAL or XLU?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, QUAL returned +13.1% and XLU −3.0%.
- Which is cheaper, QUAL or XLU?
- XLU is cheaper, by 0.07 percentage points a year. That is about $7 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, QUAL against XLU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qual-vs-xlu
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). QUAL against XLU. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qual-vs-xlu
[QUAL against XLU (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/qual-vs-xlu)
Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.