Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
XLP vs XRT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, XLP returned +13.8% to XRT's +2.4%; 10% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $14.6bn for State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF and $362m for State Street SPDR S&P Retail ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLP costs 0.27 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 11.4 points; XLP is far larger, $14.6bn against $362m.
| Measure | XLP | XRT |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +13.8% | +2.4% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 3.5%, high on Oct 22, 2026 | 9.9%, high on Nov 16, 2021 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Consumer Staples Select Sector Index | S&P Retail Select Industry Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.08% | 0.35% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $14.6bn | $362m |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 10% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 62.9% | 16.6% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jun 30, 2006 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,060 weekly returnsXLP returned slightly more: +521.8% to +507.2%. XLP swung less: 13.5% to 25.8%. XLP fell less at its worst: −31.3% to −64.5%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | XLP | XRT | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +521.8% | +507.2% | XLP (slight) | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +9.4% | +9.3% | Tie | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +264.9% | +366.0% | XRT | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 13.5% | 25.8% | XLP | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 9.7% | 17.4% | XLP | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −31.3% | −64.5% | XLP | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.61 | 0.41 | XLP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.85 | 0.60 | XLP | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.30 | 0.14 | XLP | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,060 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, XLP and XRT hold 10% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
10% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
XLP and XRT on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
XLP and XRT do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. XLP follows Consumer Staples Select Sector Index and XRT follows S&P Retail Select Industry Index.
- Holdings in common. 10% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 XLP returned +13.8% and XRT +2.4% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 11.4 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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XLP
XLP tracks an index of Consumer staples. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.8% 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 36 positions, with the top ten at 62.9%. It sat 3.5% below its high of Oct 22, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
XRT
XRT tracks the S&P Retail. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.35% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 22% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 74 positions, with the top ten at 16.6%. It sat 9.9% below its high of Nov 16, 2021 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, XLP or XRT?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, XLP returned +13.8% and XRT +2.4%.
- Which is cheaper, XLP or XRT?
- XLP 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, XLP against XRT, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/xlp-vs-xrt
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