Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
SCHD vs SPY: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, SCHD returned +34.5% to SPY's +13.6%; 8% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $112.3bn on Aug 31, 2026 for Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF, and $814.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust.
Pair scorecard
SCHD costs 0.03 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 20.9 points.
| Measure | SCHD | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +34.5% | +13.6% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index | S&P 500 Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.06% | 0.09% |
| Net assets, SCHD as of Aug 31, 2026 and SPY as of Oct 27, 2026 | $112.3bn | $814.8bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 8% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 41.7% | 38.1% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 28, 2011 to Oct 23, 2026 · 782 weekly returnsSPY returned more: +668.0% to +554.4%. SCHD swung slightly less: 14.8% to 15.7%. SCHD and SPY fell about the same at their worst: −31.5% and −31.8%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | SCHD | SPY | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +554.4% | +668.0% | SPY | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +13.3% | +14.5% | SPY (slight) | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +306.8% | +491.0% | SPY | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 14.8% | 15.7% | SCHD (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 10.4% | 10.8% | SCHD (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −31.5% | −31.8% | Tie | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.80 | 0.83 | SPY (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 1.15 | 1.21 | SPY (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.42 | 0.46 | SPY (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 782 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, SCHD and SPY hold 8% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
8% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
SCHD and SPY on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
SCHD and SPY do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. SCHD follows Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index and SPY follows S&P 500 Index.
- Holdings in common. 8% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 SCHD returned +34.5% and SPY +13.6% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 20.9 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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SCHD
SCHD tracks an index of US dividend. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +34.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.06% a year. By its holdings filed for Aug 31, 2026, 95% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 99 positions, with the top ten at 41.7%.
SPY
SPY tracks the S&P 500. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.6% with distributions reinvested, against +13.7% for its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% 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 504 positions, with the top ten at 38.1%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, SCHD or SPY?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SCHD returned +34.5% and SPY +13.6%.
- Which is cheaper, SCHD or SPY?
- SCHD is cheaper, by 0.03 percentage points a year. That is about $3 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, SCHD against SPY, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/schd-vs-spy
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). SCHD against SPY. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/schd-vs-spy
[SCHD against SPY (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/schd-vs-spy)
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