Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
XBI vs XLC: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, XBI returned +41.2% to XLC's −10.4%, and XLC charges 0.08% to XBI's 0.35%.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $10.3bn for State Street SPDR S&P Biotech ETF and $22.1bn for State Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLC costs 0.27 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 51.6 points; XLC is 2.1 times larger.
| Measure | XBI | XLC |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +41.2% | −10.4% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its all-time high | 8.9%, high on Feb 8, 2021 | |
| Below its high | 13.3%, high on Jan 30, 2026 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Biotech | Communication Services Select Sector Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.08% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $10.3bn | $22.1bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 98% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 18% | 75.3% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jun 29, 2018 to Oct 23, 2026 · 434 weekly returnsXLC returned more: +131.1% to +58.6%. XLC swung less: 20.0% to 30.8%. XLC fell less at its worst: −45.9% to −61.5%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | XBI | XLC | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +58.6% | +131.1% | XLC | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +5.7% | +10.6% | XLC | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +57.1% | +113.0% | XLC | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 30.8% | 20.0% | XLC | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 20.9% | 14.0% | XLC | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −61.5% | −45.9% | XLC | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.24 | 0.46 | XLC | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.36 | 0.66 | XLC | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.09 | 0.23 | XLC | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 434 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, XBI and XLC 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 XLC on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
XBI and XLC do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. XBI follows Biotech and XLC follows Communication Services 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 XLC −10.4% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 51.6 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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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.
XLC
XLC tracks an index of Communication services. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −10.4% 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 23 positions, with the top ten at 75.3%. It sat 13.3% below its high of Jan 30, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Are XBI and XLC in the same category?
- XBI is a thematic ETF and XLC 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 XLC?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, XBI returned +41.2% and XLC −10.4%.
- Which is cheaper, XBI or XLC?
- XLC 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.
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ETFIQ, XBI against XLC, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/xbi-vs-xlc
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). XBI against XLC. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/xbi-vs-xlc
[XBI against XLC (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/xbi-vs-xlc)
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