IBB vs XT: which is really different?
IBB and XT hold 4% of their weight in the same names, and IBB returned +36.1% over the year. iShares Biotechnology ETF and iShares Future Exponential Technologies ETF.
IBB costs 0.02 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 11.8 points; IBB is 2.6 times larger.
| IBB | XT | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.44% | 0.46% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 8, 2026 | $10.3bn | $4.0bn |
| Total return, 1 year | +36.1% | +24.3% |
| What it tracks | Biotech | Broad innovation and megatrends |
| Holdings in common | 4% | |
| S&P 500, total return, 1 year | +17.3% | |
| Against the S&P 500, 1 year | ahead by 18.8 pts | ahead by 7.1 pts |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 8, 2026.
40% of IBB's weight is in S&P 500 companies and 61% is outside the index. Holdings as of Oct 8, 2026.
65% of XT's weight is in S&P 500 companies and 35% is outside the index. Holdings as of Oct 8, 2026.
A percentile among the 391 thematic ETFs with a holdings filing. All thematic ETFs ranked by it → How it is computed →
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, IBB and XT hold 4% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Oct 8, 2026.
half
4% in common
4% of the two portfolios are the same securities at the same weight.
Performance, window by window
| Total return | vs the S&P 500 | vs the Nasdaq-100 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | IBB | XT | IBB | XT | IBB | XT |
| 3 months | +7.5% | +3.2% | +4.1 pts | −0.2 pts | +3.9 pts | −0.5 pts |
| 6 months | +21.9% | +20.4% | +6.8 pts | +5.2 pts | −1.3 pts | −2.8 pts |
| 1 year | +36.1% | +24.3% | +18.8 pts | +7.1 pts | +12.5 pts | +0.7 pts |
| 3 years | +69.1% | +76.1% | −16.7 pts | −9.6 pts | −38.2 pts | −31.1 pts |
| Since launch IBB Feb 2001 · XT Mar 2015 | +525.3% | +297.6% | −299.7 pts | −53.3 pts | −936.3 pts | −360.4 pts |
Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →
On the same fields
As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
IBB in plain words
By weight, 40% of IBB's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 99%. The top ten holdings are 50% of the fund across 245 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 8, 2026. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 the fund returned +36.1% with distributions reinvested against +17.3% for the S&P 500, so a holder was ahead by 18.8 pts.
XT in plain words
By weight, 65% of XT's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 68%. The top ten holdings are 36% of the fund across 196 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 8, 2026. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 the fund returned +24.3% with distributions reinvested against +17.3% for the S&P 500, so a holder was ahead by 7.1 pts.
Questions people ask
- Do IBB and XT hold the same stocks?
- By their latest filings, 4% of their books are the same securities at the same weight, which is mostly different names. Overlap is the sum of the smaller weight of every security they share.
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure; a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation.
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed.
Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.
ETFIQ, IBB against XT, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ibb-vs-xt
ETFIQ. (Oct 9, 2026). IBB against XT. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ibb-vs-xt
[IBB against XT (ETFIQ, Oct 9, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/themes/ibb-vs-xt)
Free to use with attribution for figures ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.