Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
SPYD vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, SPYD returned +15.3% to TLT's −7.9%; 0% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $7.5bn for State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF and $47.4bn for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF.
Pair scorecard
SPYD costs 0.08 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 23.2 points; TLT is 6.3 times larger.
| Measure | SPYD | TLT |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +15.3% | −7.9% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.1%, high on Aug 24, 2026 | 42.6%, high on Aug 4, 2020 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | S&P 500 High Dividend Index | ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.07% | 0.15% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $7.5bn | $47.4bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 99% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 16.1% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 30, 2015 to Oct 23, 2026 · 573 weekly returnsSPYD returned more: +168.7% to −9.6%. TLT swung less: 13.8% to 19.6%. SPYD fell less at its worst: −43.0% to −47.8%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | SPYD | TLT | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +168.7% | −9.6% | SPYD | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +9.4% | −0.9% | SPYD | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +61.3% | −33.8% | SPYD | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 19.6% | 13.8% | TLT | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 13.8% | 10.1% | TLT | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −43.0% | −47.8% | SPYD | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.44 | −0.17 | SPYD | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.62 | −0.22 | SPYD | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.22 | −0.02 | SPYD | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 573 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, SPYD and TLT hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
SPYD and TLT on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
SPYD and TLT do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. SPYD follows S&P 500 High Dividend Index and TLT follows ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 SPYD returned +15.3% and TLT −7.9% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 23.2 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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SPYD
SPYD tracks the S&P 500 High Dividend. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +15.3% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.07% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 99% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 79 positions, with the top ten at 16.1%. It sat 4.1% below its high of Aug 24, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
TLT
TLT tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −7.9% with distributions reinvested, against −7.8% for its benchmark, the ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. It sat 42.6% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, SPYD or TLT?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SPYD returned +15.3% and TLT −7.9%.
- Which is cheaper, SPYD or TLT?
- SPYD is cheaper, by 0.08 percentage points a year. That is about $8 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, SPYD against TLT, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/spyd-vs-tlt
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). SPYD against TLT. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/spyd-vs-tlt
[SPYD against TLT (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/spyd-vs-tlt)
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