SPY vs VOO: Which S&P 500 ETF Should You Buy?

Fund data from the State Street SPY fact sheet and Vanguard fact sheet F0968, both as of June 30, 2026, plus the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust prospectus (January 2026) and the VOO summary prospectus (April 28, 2026) on SEC EDGAR, fetched October 7, 2026. Trading volume, bid-ask spreads and options data are omitted because these documents do not report them for both funds. For education only, not investment advice.

Sources: State Street SPY fact sheet (PDF); Vanguard VOO fact sheet (PDF); SPY prospectus; VOO summary prospectus. Annual cost is our arithmetic from the stated expense ratios.

What is the difference between SPY and VOO?

Both funds own the stocks of the S&P 500, so their portfolios are nearly identical. The differences are cost and structure. SPY is a unit investment trust launched in 1993 that charges 0.0945% a year. VOO, launched in 2010, is the ETF share class of Vanguard 500 Index Fund and charges 0.03%.

SPY’s fact sheet notes it “was the very first exchange traded fund listed in the United States.” Its audited net assets were $680.3 billion on September 30, 2025. VOO’s ETF share class held $979.0 billion on June 30, 2026, inside a Vanguard 500 Index Fund of $1,675.0 billion across all share classes. The dates differ, so treat the sizes as a rough guide.

Which costs less, SPY or VOO?

VOO is cheaper. Its 0.03% expense ratio works out to $3.00 a year on $10,000, against $9.45 for SPY at 0.0945%, by WealthyBud arithmetic. SPY’s fee is mostly the trustee’s 0.0492% and a 0.0301% S&P license fee, per its prospectus.

Neither figure includes brokerage commissions or the bid-ask spread you pay when you trade. VOO’s prospectus puts the cost of $10,000 held 10 years, with a 5% yearly return, at $39. SPY’s prospectus does not publish the same example.

How have SPY and VOO performed?

VOO has returned slightly more. Over 10 years to June 30, 2026, VOO’s NAV gained 15.47% a year and SPY’s 15.35%, against 15.51% for the index, per the issuers’ fact sheets. That 0.12-point yearly gap compounds. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

At those 10-year rates, $10,000 would have grown to about $42,140 in VOO and $41,704 in SPY (WealthyBud arithmetic on average annual NAV returns, before taxes). The gap is larger than the 0.0645-point fee difference alone. Both funds had their best quarter ending June 30, 2020 (SPY 20.44%, VOO 20.54%) and their worst ending March 31, 2020 (SPY -19.60%, VOO -19.63%).

Is SPY or VOO more tax-efficient?

Neither has a clear edge beyond fees. Ten-year returns after taxes on distributions to December 31, 2025 were 14.21% for SPY and 14.32% for VOO, per their prospectuses. That gap is about the same as the pre-tax gap, so it reflects cost, not taxes.

Both prospectuses calculate after-tax returns at the highest historical federal income tax rates and exclude state and local taxes. The figures do not apply inside an IRA or 401(k). SPY’s prospectus also notes it assumed a December 31 reinvestment price for its last 2025 distribution, so its 2025 figure may differ slightly from actual.

What do SPY and VOO hold?

They hold the same index. SPY listed 504 holdings and VOO 506 as of June 30, 2026. Both had about 38% in information technology. SPY’s largest positions were NVIDIA at 7.50% and Apple at 6.57% of assets, close to VOO’s weights.

SPY’s five largest holdings as of June 30, 2026, per State Street:

• NVIDIA: 7.50%
• Apple: 6.57%
• Microsoft: 4.29%
• Amazon: 3.61%
• Alphabet Class A: 3.24%

SPY’s top 10 made up 36.3% of assets, listing Alphabet’s two share classes separately; Vanguard reported 37.9% for VOO’s top 10 with Alphabet combined. Largest sectors on both fact sheets (GICS):

• Information Technology: SPY 38.0%, VOO 38.0%
• Financials: SPY 11.8%, VOO 11.8%
• Communication Services: SPY 9.7%, VOO 9.7%
• Consumer Discretionary: SPY 9.3%, VOO 9.3%
• Health Care: SPY 8.9%, VOO 8.9%

How does SPY's trust structure differ from VOO?

SPY’s trust has fixed rules. Its prospectus says it provides no dividend reinvestment service, pays dividends quarterly, and is scheduled to terminate by January 22, 2118 at the latest. VOO’s summary prospectus sets no such end date and lists no Vanguard fee on reinvested dividends. Brokers may reinvest dividends for either fund.

• SPY pays dividends on the last business day of April, July, October and January, per its prospectus.
• SPY’s prospectus states that “no dividend reinvestment service is provided by the Trust,” though broker-dealers may offer one.
• Only large institutions can create or redeem SPY directly, in blocks of 50,000 units; everyone else trades on an exchange.
• SPY’s trust is scheduled to end on January 22, 2118, or 20 years after the death of the last of eleven named persons, whichever comes first.

For the mutual fund version of VOO, see VOO vs VFIAX. For the whole U.S. market, compare VOO vs VTI. Fund pages with price history: SPY and VOO.

Should you buy SPY or VOO?

For most long-term investors, VOO is the better default because it costs 0.03% instead of 0.0945% for the same index. SPY can still make sense if you already hold it in a taxable account, where selling would realize capital gains. Both trade at any brokerage with no fund minimum, so new money can go to either.

VOO fits you if:

• You plan to hold for years and want the lower 0.03% fee.
• You are starting a new position or investing inside an IRA or 401(k).
• You want a fund whose ETF and mutual fund share classes share one portfolio.

SPY fits you if:

• You already own it in a taxable account with large unrealized gains.
• You want the oldest U.S.-listed ETF, with a record back to January 22, 1993.

An S&P 500 fund leaves out small and mid-size U.S. companies, international stocks and bonds. See index fund statistics and stock market returns statistics for the long-run picture.

Frequently asked questions

Key takeaways

• SPY and VOO both track the S&P 500 Index and hold about 500 stocks.
• VOO costs 0.03% a year; SPY costs 0.0945%, per their 2026 prospectuses.
• 10-year NAV returns to June 30, 2026: VOO 15.47% a year, SPY 15.35%.
• SPY is a unit investment trust with no in-house dividend reinvestment; VOO is an open-end fund share class.
• In taxable accounts, weigh capital gains before switching from SPY to VOO.