Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
SPY vs VPU: how they differ
SPY and VPU hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and SPY returned more over the year.
SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust and Vanguard Utilities Index Fund.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, SPY and VPU hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in SPY | Only in VPU |
|---|---|
| NVIDIA CORP 8.08% | NextEra Energy Inc 11.84% |
| APPLE INC 7.33% | Southern Co/The 6.70% |
| MICROSOFT CORP 5.59% | Duke Energy Corp 6.31% |
| AMAZON.COM INC 3.77% | Constellation Energy Corp 5.86% |
| ALPHABET INC CL A 2.98% | American Electric Power Co Inc 4.47% |
| BROADCOM INC 2.61% | Sempra 3.85% |
| ALPHABET INC CL C 2.39% | Dominion Energy Inc 3.78% |
| META PLATFORMS INC CLASS A 2.16% | Vistra Corp 3.59% |
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 May 31, 2026 and Sep 10, 2026.
| SPY SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | VPU Vanguard Utilities Index Fund | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | State Street | Vanguard |
| What it is | S&P 500 | Utilities |
| Total return, 1 year | +17.5% | +2.1% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | 0.0 pts | −15.4 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | 0.09% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 100.0% | 90.1% |
| Holdings | 505 | 66 |
SPY in plain words
SPY is an index equity fund tracking the S&P 500. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +17.5% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% 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 505 positions, with the top ten at 38.2%.
VPU in plain words
VPU is an index equity fund tracking the Utilities. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +2.1% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. By its holdings filed for May 31, 2026, 90% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 66 positions, with the top ten at 52.7%. It sat 9.8% below its high of Feb 27, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, SPY or VPU?
- In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SPY returned +17.5% and VPU returned +2.1%, so SPY returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, SPY or VPU?
- SPY charges 0.09% a year and VPU charges 0.09%, so VPU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do SPY and VPU overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 100% of SPY and 90% of VPU by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.
Other comparisons
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Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, SPY against VPU, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/spy-vs-vpu Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources