Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
XBI vs XLB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, XBI returned +41.2% to XLB's +18.5%, and XLB charges 0.08% to XBI's 0.35%.
askIQ about this page
askIQ about XBI and XLB
Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $10.3bn for State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF and $8.1bn for State Street Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLB costs 0.27 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 22.7 points; XBI is 1.3 times larger.
| Measure | XBI | XLB |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +41.2% | +18.5% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its all-time high | 8.9%, high on Feb 8, 2021 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Biotech | Materials Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $10.3bn | $8.1bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 98% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 18% | 58.5% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Feb 17, 2006 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,079 weekly returnsXBI returned more: +817.9% to +412.1%. XLB swung less: 22.2% to 29.2%. XLB fell slightly less at its worst: −59.0% to −61.5%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | XBI | XLB | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +817.9% | +412.1% | XBI | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +11.3% | +8.2% | XBI | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +767.9% | +224.2% | XBI | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 29.2% | 22.2% | XLB | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 20.0% | 15.4% | XLB | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −61.5% | −59.0% | XLB (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.45 | 0.39 | XBI | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.66 | 0.56 | XBI | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.18 | 0.14 | XBI | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,079 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, XBI and XLB 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
XBI and XLB on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
XBI and XLB do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. XBI follows Biotech and XLB follows Materials Select Sector 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 XBI returned +41.2% and XLB +18.5% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 22.7 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
The two-page PDF for this pair is coming. Save the comparison to follow its changes. Free. It needs an email sign-in, once.
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.
XLB
XLB tracks an index of Materials. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +18.5% 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 25 positions, with the top ten at 58.5%.
Questions people ask
- Are XBI and XLB in the same category?
- XBI is a thematic ETF and XLB is a stock ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
- Which returned more over the last year, XBI or XLB?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, XBI returned +41.2% and XLB +18.5%.
- Which is cheaper, XBI or XLB?
- XLB is cheaper, by 0.27 percentage points a year. That is about $27 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, XBI against XLB, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/xbi-vs-xlb
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). XBI against XLB. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/xbi-vs-xlb
[XBI against XLB (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/xbi-vs-xlb)
Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.