ETF Versus

ITOT vs SPY

iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF vs State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust

Last updated: 2026-04-02

ITOT iShares

iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF (ITOT) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to the total U.S. stock market across all capitalizations. It charges a very low expense ratio of 0.03%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.12%. Launched in 2004, the fund has a 22-year track record.

AUM: $77.6B ER: 0.03% Yield: 1.12% Since: Jan 20, 2004
SPY State Street

State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) is an exchange-traded fund issued by State Street that provides exposure to large-cap U.S. equities across growth and value styles. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.09%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.13%. Launched in 1993, the fund has a 33-year track record.

AUM: $636.7B ER: 0.09% Yield: 1.13% Since: Jan 22, 1993

Quick Verdict

ITOT has a slightly lower expense ratio (0.03% vs 0.09%), saving about $119 per $10,000 over 10 years. Both funds have delivered similar 1-year returns (17.2% vs 16.8%), tracking closely.

Key Metrics

Metric ITOT SPY
Expense Ratio 0.03% 0.09%
Dividend Yield 1.1% 1.1%
Fund Family iShares State Street
Category US Total Market US Large Cap Blend

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

80 99 118 137 156 175 2021-04 2022-06 2023-09 2024-12 2026-04
ITOT +52.8%
SPY +61.2%

Performance Comparison

Period ITOT SPY Difference
1 Month -4.55% -4.54% -0.01%
3 Months -3.83% -4.09% +0.26%
6 Months -2.08% -2.09% +0.01%
YTD -3.83% -4.09% +0.26%
1 Year +17.17% +16.80% +0.37%
3 Years +57.97% +59.45% -1.48%
5 Years +52.82% +61.25% -8.43%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period ITOT Fees SPY Fees You Save
$10.000 10 years $60 $179 $119
$10.000 20 years $258 $771 $512
$10.000 30 years $835 $2.486 $1.650
$50.000 10 years $299 $896 $597
$50.000 30 years $4.176 $12.428 $8.252
$100.000 30 years $8.352 $24.855 $16.503

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric ITOT SPY
Annualized Volatility 17.4% 17.1%
Max Drawdown -26.2% -25.4%
Sharpe Ratio 0.32 0.38

Dividend Comparison

Metric ITOT SPY
Annual Dividend (per share) $1.61 $7.38
Dividend Yield 1.13% 1.13%
Distribution Frequency Quarterly Quarterly

Top Holdings

9 of top 9 holdings overlap (100% overlap in top holdings)

ITOT Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA6.59%
Apple Inc.AAPL5.91%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT4.29%
Amazon.com, Inc.AMZN3.15%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO2.31%
Alphabet Inc.GOOG2.07%
Meta Platforms, Inc.META1.86%
Tesla, Inc.TSLA1.65%
Berkshire Hathaway Inc.BRK.B1.39%

SPY Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA7.58%
Apple Inc.AAPL6.66%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT4.91%
Amazon.com, Inc.AMZN3.64%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO2.62%
Alphabet Inc.GOOG2.40%
Meta Platforms, Inc.META2.24%
Tesla, Inc.TSLA1.87%
Berkshire Hathaway Inc.BRK.B1.57%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose ITOT if...

you want the lowest fees and plan to buy and hold long-term. Over decades, the expense ratio difference compounds significantly.

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