Statistics · 2026 · ETFs
Technology ETF Statistics (2026)
XLK returned 42.3% over the past year with dividends reinvested, the best of the 6 technology ETFs compared here, as of October 2, 2026. IGV returned -5.7%, a gap of 47.9 points, while the S&P 500 fund SPY returned 16.7%. Fees run from 0.08% to 0.38% a year.
Key takeaways
- XLK led the past year at 42.3%; IGV trailed at -5.7%.
- Over five years, XLK returned 22.6% a year and IGV returned 6.3%, against 13.9% for SPY.
- 5 of the 6 funds beat SPY over five years.
- 3 of the 6 funds charge less than 0.10% a year; IGV charges 0.38%, $38 per $10,000.
- The three largest holdings of XLK total 39.4% of the fund, versus 21.5% for the three largest S&P 500 stocks.
- IGV returned 6.3% a year over five years, 7.6 points below SPY.
Which technology ETFs performed best?
XLK led the group over one year at 42.3% with dividends reinvested, and it also led over five years at 22.6% a year. IGV ranked last over one year at -5.7%. The S&P 500 fund SPY returned 16.7% over the year.
1. One-year spread: 47.9 percentage points
XLK returned 42.3% and IGV returned -5.7% over the past year (WealthyBud data · 6 technology ETFs, total return · October 2, 2026). Each return runs from a month-end close to the October 2, 2026 price and is annualized over the actual days: the one-year figure covers September 30, 2025 to October 2, 2026, so it will not match an issuer's month-end one-year return.
2. IYW led the three-year run at 37.2% a year
IYW compounded at 37.2% a year over three years, ahead of FTEC at 36.2%. IGV was lowest at 16.6% (WealthyBud data · 3-yr annualized total return · October 2, 2026).
3. Five-year spread: 16.3 points a year
XLK returned 22.6% a year and IGV returned 6.3%. All 6 funds have 121 month-end prices (WealthyBud data · 5-yr annualized total return · October 2, 2026).
4. 25.3% a year: the best ten-year return
IYW returned 25.3% a year over ten years, and IGV returned 17.0%. SPY returned 15.3%. All 6 funds have 121 month-end prices (WealthyBud data · 10-yr annualized total return · October 2, 2026).
| Ticker | Fund | Expense ratio | 1-yr total return | 5-yr total return (ann.) | Volatility (ann.) | Trailing yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTEC | Fidelity MSCI Information Technology Index ETF | 0.084% | 38.3% | 21.7% | 23.4% | 0.36% |
| IGV | iShares Expanded Tech-Software Sector ETF | 0.38% | -5.7% | 6.3% | 26.8% | 0.02% |
| IYW | iShares U.S. Technology ETF | 0.37% | 37.6% | 22.0% | 24.0% | 0.09% |
| QQQ | Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 | 0.18% | 25.3% | 16.6% | 20.9% | 0.41% |
| VGT | Vanguard Information Technology ETF | 0.09% | 37.9% | 21.4% | 23.4% | 0.37% |
| XLK | State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.08% | 42.3% | 22.6% | 24.0% | 0.42% |
| SPY | State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | 0.0945% | 16.7% | 13.9% | 15.7% | 0.99% |
How much do technology ETFs cost?
XLK is the cheapest of the 6 funds at 0.08% a year, or $8 on every $10,000 invested. IGV is the most expensive at 0.38%, $38 per $10,000. The median fund charges 0.135%, and 3 of 6 charge under 0.10%.
5. Fees range from 0.08% to 0.38%
0.08% (XLK), 0.084% (FTEC), 0.09% (VGT), 0.18% (QQQ), 0.37% (IYW), and 0.38% (IGV). The gap between the cheapest and priciest fund is $30 per $10,000 each year (WealthyBud data · issuer-verified expense ratios · October 2, 2026).
6. Vanguard lists 0.09% for VGT
The Vanguard fund page shows an expense ratio of 0.09%, as of December 19, 2025, per the Vanguard VGT page.
7. State Street lists a 0.08% gross expense ratio for XLK
The XLK page defines the gross ratio as the total annual operating expense ratio before fee waivers, per the State Street XLK page. SPY charges 0.0945% (WealthyBud data · expense ratio vs SPY · October 2, 2026).
8. iShares reports $41.0 billion across IYW and IGV
IYW holds $26.74 billion and IGV holds $14.28 billion in net assets as of October 1, 2026, per the IYW and IGV pages. The sum is WealthyBud’s addition of the two page figures.
Compare major ETFs by fees and returns
How volatile are technology ETFs?
IGV was the most volatile technology ETF, with annualized volatility of 26.8%, and QQQ was the calmest at 20.9%. The S&P 500 fund SPY measured 15.7%. 6 of the 6 funds moved more than the index from month to month, so each carries extra risk.
9. IGV swung the most: 26.8% annualized
Volatility is the annualized standard deviation of the last 60 complete monthly returns through September 30, 2026. QQQ measured 20.9% and SPY measured 15.7% (WealthyBud data · annualized volatility · October 2, 2026).
10. IGV fell 43.0% at its worst
Max drawdown is the largest fall from a month-end high to a later low, using 121 month-end prices from September 30, 2016 to September 30, 2026 plus the October 2, 2026 price; lows within a month are not captured and the dataset does not record when each low occurred. XLK had the shallowest at 31.2%; SPY fell 23.9%. 6 of 6 funds fell further than the index (WealthyBud data · max drawdown · October 2, 2026).
11. Trailing yields range from 0.02% to 0.42%
XLK paid the highest trailing 12-month yield and IGV the lowest. SPY yielded 0.99%, so technology funds pay less income (WealthyBud data · trailing-12-month distributions · October 2, 2026).
How do technology ETFs compare with the S&P 500?
5 of the 6 technology funds beat the S&P 500 fund SPY over five years, which returned 13.9% a year. Over one year 5 of 6 did, and over ten years 6 did. IGV was the weakest five-year fund at 6.3%.
12. 5 of 6 funds beat the S&P 500 over five years
XLK, IYW, FTEC, VGT, and QQQ finished ahead of SPY at 13.9% a year; IGV did not (WealthyBud data · 5-yr annualized total return vs SPY · October 2, 2026).
13. 5 of 6 funds beat the S&P 500 over three years
SPY returned 23.1% a year over three years. The best technology fund, IYW, returned 37.2%, an edge of 14.2 points (WealthyBud data · 3-yr annualized total return vs SPY · October 2, 2026).
14. QQQ returned 16.6% a year over five years
The Nasdaq-100 fund QQQ ranked 5th of 6 on five-year return and beat SPY by 2.7 points. Invesco says the index holds 100 companies, so it is broader than a pure technology fund, per the Invesco QQQ page (WealthyBud data · 5-yr annualized total return · October 2, 2026).
How concentrated are tech ETFs in a few stocks?
The three largest holdings of XLK are NVDA, AAPL, and MSFT, and together they make up 39.4% of the fund. The top ten hold 64.1%. The three largest stocks in the S&P 500 total 21.5%, so XLK is more concentrated than the index.
15. XLK’s top three holdings are 39.4% of the fund
NVDA (15.47%), AAPL (13.35%) and MSFT (10.54%) lead the fund. State Street’s XLK page shows the same top-three weights as of October 1, 2026. The remaining 64 stocks share 35.9% (WealthyBud data · XLK holdings file, equities only · October 2, 2026).
16. Holdings counts run from 74 to 318
XLK holds 74 stocks and VGT holds 318, per the issuers’ pages (XLK, IYW, IGV and VGT). Vanguard’s count is as of August 31, 2026; the others are as of October 1, 2026. The two dates differ, so the counts are not an exact like-for-like comparison.
17. Chip names fill 6 of XLK’s top ten slots
Chip companies here means SEC industry code 3674 (semiconductors) plus IT-sector code 3559 (semiconductor equipment). NVDA, AMD, MU, AVGO, INTC, and LRCX carry 35.3% of XLK. All 17 qualifying holdings total 43.0%: NVDA, AMD, MU, AVGO, INTC, LRCX, AMAT, TXN, and 9 others (WealthyBud data · XLK holdings file; SEC industry codes · October 2, 2026).
18. Information Technology is 39.9% of the S&P 500
A plain SPY holder already owns that share. Adding a technology ETF raises the bet beyond what the index holds; see our sector ETF statistics for all 11 sectors (WealthyBud data · SPY sector weights as of 01-Oct-2026 · October 2, 2026).
| Rank | Company | Ticker | Weight in XLK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nvidia Corp | NVDA | 15.47% |
| 2 | Apple Inc | AAPL | 13.35% |
| 3 | Microsoft Corp | MSFT | 10.54% |
| 4 | Advanced Micro Devices | AMD | 5.04% |
| 5 | Micron Technology Inc | MU | 4.55% |
| 6 | Broadcom Inc | AVGO | 4.53% |
| 7 | Intel Corp | INTC | 3.34% |
| 8 | Palantir Technologies Inc A | PLTR | 2.45% |
| 9 | Cisco Systems Inc | CSCO | 2.39% |
| 10 | Lam Research Corp | LRCX | 2.39% |
| Fund | Holdings | As of |
|---|---|---|
| XLK | 74 | October 1, 2026 |
| IGV | 106 | October 1, 2026 |
| IYW | 149 | October 1, 2026 |
| VGT | 318 | August 31, 2026 |
| QQQ | 100 | Index definition (Invesco page) |
How does software compare with hardware-heavy funds?
IGV, the software fund, returned -5.7% over one year against 42.3% for XLK, a gap of 47.9 points. Over five years IGV returned 6.3% a year and XLK 22.6%. IGV also costs 0.38% a year against 0.08% for XLK, so the software fund cost more and returned less.
19. Five-year gap: 16.3 points a year in favor of XLK
XLK returned 22.6% a year and IGV returned 6.3%. IGV ranked 6th of 6 (WealthyBud data · 5-yr annualized total return · October 2, 2026).
20. Ten-year view: IGV 17.0% versus XLK 24.9%
Over ten years the software fund trailed the broad technology fund by 7.9 points a year, a narrower gap than the 16.3 points over five years (WealthyBud data · 10-yr annualized total return · October 2, 2026).
21. IGV costs $30 more per $10,000 each year
IGV charges 0.38% and XLK charges 0.08%. IGV also fell 43.0% at its worst against 31.2% for XLK, on month-end prices (WealthyBud data · expense ratio and max drawdown · October 2, 2026).
| Measure | IGV | XLK |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.38% | 0.08% |
| 1-yr total return | -5.7% | 42.3% |
| 5-yr total return (ann.) | 6.3% | 22.6% |
| 10-yr total return (ann.) | 17.0% | 24.9% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 26.8% | 24.0% |
| Max drawdown (month-end) | -43.0% | -31.2% |
| Holdings | 106 | 74 |
What this means for investors
Fees matter less than holdings. The fee gap across these funds is $30 per $10,000 a year, while the return gap over five years is 16.3 points a year. Check what the fund owns before you compare costs.
Expect big swings. 6 of the 6 funds moved more than SPY, and the deepest drawdown was 43.0% (month-end prices; lows within a month are not captured). Size a position for the fall you can sit through.
Count your overlap. The S&P 500 already holds 39.9% in technology, and XLK puts 39.4% in three stocks. For single-stock detail, see our tech stock statistics, our semiconductor ETF statistics and the thematic ETF statistics.
Past returns are not forecasts. These figures describe history. Which part of technology leads can change from one period to the next.
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