Which came closer to its stated multiple, SOXL or SOXS?

Over the window to Sep 30, 2026, SOXL finished 16.6 points from what its multiple implies and SOXS finished 28.5 points from its own, so SOXL came closer. Neither figure predicts the next window: it depends on how much the underlying moves about.

Are SOXL and SOXS levered on the same thing?

Yes. Both are levered on semiconductors, SOXL at +3 times and SOXS at -3 times the daily move.

Which one decays faster, SOXL or SOXS?

Decay follows how much the underlying moves about. Over this window SOXL’s moved at 47% annualized and SOXS’s at 47%, so SOXL has the rougher ride and, at the same multiple, loses more to compounding.

Can I hold SOXL or SOXS for a year?

Both reset every day, so the multiple in the name applies to a single day and the daily results compound. Over a year the total is not the multiple times the year’s move, and in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less. ETFIQ makes no recommendation either way.

Which is cheaper, SOXL or SOXS?

SOXL charges 0.75% a year and SOXS charges 1.00%, so SOXL is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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SOXL vs SOXS: which held to its multiple?

Over three months against its own daily promise, SOXL finished 4.0 points short and SOXS 3.7 points over. Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X ETF and Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bear 3X ETF.

−32.0%

SOXL returned, 3 months

−13.2%

SOXS returned, 3 months

−16.6 pts

SOXL from its stated multiple

−28.5 pts

SOXS from its stated multiple

SOXL · 3 months to Sep 30, 202616.6 pts short of its stated multiple

SOXL returned −32.0% while 3 times SOXX's move would have been −15.4%

SOXS · 3 months to Sep 30, 202628.5 pts short of its stated multiple

SOXS returned −13.2% while −3 times SOXX's move would have been +15.4%

ETFIQ Decay Resistance Score · SOXS scores higherDid it keep up with its own daily multiple, compounded day by day?

SOXL among the 470 leveraged ETFs, long, over three months

SOXL 23.3

0.1, the lowest in this set99.9, the highest

SOXS among the 125 inverse ETFs over three months

SOXS 91.6

0.4, the lowest in this set99.6, the highest

A percentile among the 470 leveraged ETFs, long, over three months. SOXS is a percentile among the 125 inverse ETFs over three months, a different set, so the two marks are not on one scale. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All leveraged ETFs ranked by it → How it is computed →

Performance, window by window

	Total return		Multiple would give		Difference
Window	SOXL	SOXS	SOXL	SOXS	SOXL	SOXS
1 month	+31.2%	−31.6%	+34.0%	−34.0%	−2.9 pts	+2.4 pts
3 months	−32.0%	−13.2%	−15.4%	+15.4%	−16.6 pts	−28.5 pts
6 months	+183.1%	−90.7%	+204.4%	−204.4%	−21.4 pts	+113.8 pts
1 year	+324.7%	−96.7%	not meaningful	not meaningful	not meaningful	not meaningful
3 years	+696.9%	−99.8%	not meaningful	not meaningful	not meaningful	not meaningful
Since launch SOXL Mar 2010 · SOXS Mar 2010	+24480.8%	−100.0%	not meaningful	not meaningful	not meaningful	not meaningful

SOXL and SOXS over each window. Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →

On the same fields

SOXL

Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X ETF · Aims to return three times the daily move of semiconductors (SOXX)

SOXS

Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bear 3X ETF · Aims to return three times the opposite of the daily move of semiconductors (SOXX)

Issuer Direxion Direxion

Sets out to return +3x -3x

Underlying asset SOXX SOXX

Segment sector sector

Fund returned, 3 months or since launch −32.0% −13.2%

Underlying returned, over that window −5.1% −5.1%

What the stated multiple implies, over that window −15.4% +15.4%

Difference from stated, over that window −16.6 pts −28.5 pts

Fund returned, 1 year or since launch +324.7% −96.7%

Difference from stated, over that window not available not available

Underlying volatility 47% 47%

Expense ratio 0.75% 1.00%

Launched Mar 11, 2010 Mar 11, 2010

Net assets $23.9bn $1.8bn

SOXL and SOXS on the same fields, as of Sep 30, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

SOXL in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: SOXL returned −32.0% where its own daily promise gave −27.9%, 4.0 points short. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and 3 times SOXX's −5.1% implies −15.4%, which makes SOXL look 16.6 points short. 12.6 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any 3 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. SOXL aims to return +3 times SOXX's move each day, then resets. Over one day it does that. Over longer, the daily results compound, so the total is not +3 times the period's move: in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less, and in a steady run it can be more. SOXX moved at 47% annualized over that window. That is what decides how far the two figures separate: the same fund on a calm underlying and a violent one is a different product.

SOXS in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: SOXS returned −13.2% where its own daily promise gave −16.8%, 3.7 points over. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and −3 times SOXX's −5.1% implies +15.4%, which makes SOXS look 28.5 points short. 32.2 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any −3 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. SOXS aims to return -3 times SOXX's move each day, then resets. Over longer, the daily results compound, so the total is not -3 times the period's move: in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less, and in a steady run it can be more.

Questions people ask

Which came closer to its stated multiple, SOXL or SOXS?: Over the window to Sep 30, 2026, SOXL finished 16.6 points from what its multiple implies and SOXS finished 28.5 points from its own, so SOXL came closer. Neither figure predicts the next window: it depends on how much the underlying moves about.
Are SOXL and SOXS levered on the same thing?: Yes. Both are levered on semiconductors, SOXL at +3 times and SOXS at -3 times the daily move.
Which one decays faster, SOXL or SOXS?: Decay follows how much the underlying moves about. Over this window SOXL’s moved at 47% annualized and SOXS’s at 47%, so SOXL has the rougher ride and, at the same multiple, loses more to compounding.
Can I hold SOXL or SOXS for a year?: Both reset every day, so the multiple in the name applies to a single day and the daily results compound. Over a year the total is not the multiple times the year’s move, and in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less. ETFIQ makes no recommendation either way.
Which is cheaper, SOXL or SOXS?: SOXL charges 0.75% a year and SOXS charges 1.00%, so SOXL is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

SOXX →SOXL on its own →SOXS on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

SOXL and SOXS filings on SEC EDGAR ↗SOXL and SOXS prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗Direxion website ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page

ETFIQ, SOXL against SOXS, data as of Sep 30, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/leverage/soxl-vs-soxs

Open data

Free to use with attribution. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.