Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
SCHF vs XBI: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, SCHF returned +17.6% to XBI's +41.2%, and SCHF charges 0.03% to XBI's 0.35%.
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Net assets: $69.7bn on Aug 31, 2026 for Schwab International Equity ETF, and $10.3bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF.
Pair scorecard
SCHF costs 0.32 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 23.6 points.
| Measure | SCHF | XBI |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +17.6% | +41.2% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.4%, high on Aug 25, 2026 | |
| Below its all-time high | 8.9%, high on Feb 8, 2021 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | FTSE Developed ex US Index | Biotech |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.35% |
| Net assets, SCHF as of Aug 31, 2026 and XBI as of Oct 27, 2026 | $69.7bn | $10.3bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 98% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 13.8% | 18% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Nov 13, 2009 to Oct 23, 2026 · 884 weekly returnsXBI returned more: +826.5% to +222.5%. SCHF swung less: 17.1% to 29.4%. SCHF fell less at its worst: −33.8% to −61.5%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | SCHF | XBI | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +222.5% | +826.5% | XBI | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +7.1% | +14.0% | XBI | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +106.8% | +791.7% | XBI | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 17.1% | 29.4% | SCHF | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 12.1% | 19.8% | SCHF | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −33.8% | −61.5% | SCHF | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.40 | 0.54 | XBI | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.56 | 0.81 | XBI | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.21 | 0.23 | XBI (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 884 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, SCHF and XBI hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
SCHF and XBI on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
SCHF and XBI do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. SCHF follows FTSE Developed ex US Index and XBI follows Biotech.
- Holdings in common. 0% 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 SCHF returned +17.6% and XBI +41.2% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 23.6 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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SCHF
SCHF tracks an index of International Equity. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +17.6% with distributions reinvested, against +12.1% for its benchmark, the MSCI EAFE Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings filed for Aug 31, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 1,475 positions, with the top ten at 13.8%. It sat 4.4% below its high of Aug 25, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
XBI
By weight, 13% of XBI's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 98%. The top ten holdings are 18% of the fund across 165 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +41.2% with distributions reinvested. It sits 8.9% below its all-time high of Feb 8, 2021.
Questions people ask
- Are SCHF and XBI in the same category?
- SCHF is a stock ETF and XBI is a thematic ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
- Which returned more over the last year, SCHF or XBI?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SCHF returned +17.6% and XBI +41.2%.
- Which is cheaper, SCHF or XBI?
- SCHF is cheaper, by 0.32 percentage points a year. That is about $32 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, SCHF against XBI, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/schf-vs-xbi
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). SCHF against XBI. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/schf-vs-xbi
[SCHF against XBI (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/schf-vs-xbi)
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