SPYM vs VUG: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF

SPYMANYSE Arca

Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF

VUGANYSE Arca

Overlap

56.3%by weight

Expense ratio

SPYM −0.01pt a year

SPYM0.02%VUG0.03%

Avg volume · 30D

SPYM 1.9×the volume

SPYM12.1MVUG6.32M

10Y return · a year

VUG +2.4pt

SPYM+15.7%VUG+18.1%

SPYM vs VUG Performance

Oct 28, 2021 – Oct 28, 2026

+80.7%SPYM+75.1%VUG

Expense ratio: SPYM 0.02%, better; VUG 0.03%
Fund size: SPYM $183B; VUG $392B
1Y total return: SPYM +13.7%, better; VUG +6.6%
Yield (12M): SPYM 1.00%, better; VUG 0.39%
Holdings: SPYM 508; VUG 136
Avg volume (30D): SPYM 12.1M sh, better; VUG 6.32M sh
NAV per share: SPYM $90.06; VUG $88.44
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for SPYM, VUG, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	SPYM	VUG
Cost30% weight	A99	A96
Mission25% weight	A100	A99
Risk15% weight	C51	C50
Tradability15% weight	A72	B65
Holdings10% weight	B57	D29
Durability5% weight	A79	A91

Where each fund ranks

How we build Categories ›

Different Categories. Their Grades do not compare head to head.

S&P 500⁠

Category · 14 funds

See all 14 ›

SPYM ranks 1st of 14 funds in the S&P 500 Category.

Rank 1ASPYMState Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETFScore 82
Rank 2AIVViShares Core S&P 500 ETFScore 79

US Growth Index⁠

Category · 35 funds

See all 35 ›

VUG ranks 2nd of 35 funds in the US Growth Index Category.

Rank 1ASPYGState Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETFScore 83
Rank 2AIMCGiShares Morningstar Mid-Cap Growth ETFScore 78
Rank 2ASCHGSchwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETFScore 78
Rank 2AVUGVanguard Morningstar Growth ETFScore 78
Rank 5AILCGiShares Morningstar Growth ETFScore 77

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

SPYMAState Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF

VUGAVanguard Morningstar Growth ETF

In short

SPYM State Street's budget-priced S&P 500 tracker: the same 500 large caps as its famous sibling, for 0.02% a year, the lowest fee in its S&P 500 peer group. Running since 2005 and now one of the category's giants.

VUG Three basis points buys roughly 170 US large-cap growth names. Running since 2004, over $100 billion in assets, and it tracks its index about as closely as an index fund can.

Stated mandate

SPYM The fund seeks to track the total return of the S&P 500 Index before fees and expenses, providing broad exposure to U.S. large-cap equities.

VUG The fund seeks to track a benchmark index measuring the investment return of large-capitalization growth stocks.

Why people hold it

SPYM 0.02% a year, the cheapest fee in its S&P 500 cohort, against a 0.15% median for the group. Two dollars a year per $10,000 invested.
Same S&P 500 index as State Street's flagship SPY (0.09%), for a fraction of the fee, and a basis point under VOO and IVV.
Tracks the index tightly: gaps between fund and benchmark are among the smallest in its peer group, which is the whole job of an index wrapper.
Live since 2005, now one of the largest and most heavily traded funds in the category. Distributions land quarterly.

VUG 0.03% a year against a 0.18% median for its growth peer group. A rival tracking the same declared index charges 0.36%, twelve times more for the same shopping list.vanguard.com
One of the largest and most heavily traded funds in US large-cap growth, and among the tightest index implementations in that group. Deep volume tends to mean thin spreads.
Trading since January 2004, so the record spans full market cycles rather than a backtest. Distributions land quarterly.

Worth knowing

SPYM The S&P 500 is cap-weighted, so the biggest US companies drive most of the move. Equal-weight takes on the same index (RSP) spread that bet differently.
About 500 US large caps and nothing else: no mid caps, no small caps, no international.
The fee edge over VOO and IVV is one basis point. Same index, so trading costs and platform access matter as much as the sticker fee.

VUG Cap-weighted, so the biggest mega-caps dominate the top of the book. That makes it one of the more concentrated portfolios in this cohort.vanguard.com
A style sleeve, not the whole market: growth screens only, large caps only. When growth is out of favor it can swing harder than a total-market fund.
SPYG and SCHG sit at 0.04%, so the price edge is a rounding error. The real gap is how each index defines a growth stock.

Full SPYM profile⁠

Full VUG profile⁠

SPYM vs VUG Holdings

Holdings as of Oct 27, 2026

How SPYM and VUG differ

Overlap by weight

56.3%

Shared holdings make up 97.6% of VUG and 56.4% of SPYM.

Level by level

Holdings113 in both56.3%
Sector11 Sectors71.0%
Countryby domicile97.6%
Asset classEquity100%

Sector

Sector weights in SPYM and VUG, widest gap first
Sector	More in SPYMMore in VUG	SPYM	VUG
Technology	VUG +22.6 points	37.6%	60.2%
Financials	SPYM +8.2 points	12.1%	3.9%
Health Care	SPYM +5.7 points	9.9%	4.2%
Communication	VUG +5.5 points	9.2%	14.7%
Consumer Staples	SPYM +3.7 points	5.0%	1.3%
Industrials	SPYM +3.6 points	8.0%	4.4%
Energy	SPYM +3.4 points	3.7%	0.3%
Utilities	SPYM +2.0 points	2.0%	0.0%
Materials	SPYM +1.3 points	1.7%	0.4%
Real Estate	SPYM +0.9 points	1.8%	0.9%
Consumer Discretionary	VUG +0.8 points	9.0%	9.8%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in SPYM and VUG, widest gap first
Country	More in SPYMMore in VUG	SPYM	VUG
United States	VUG +2.4 points	97.6%	100.0%
Ireland	SPYM +1.2 points	1.2%	0.0%
Other countries (6)	SPYM +1.2 points	1.2%	0.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

SPYM37.9%
VUG63.1%

Securities held

SPYM506
VUG135

Asset class

SPYM: Equity
VUG: Equity

Holdings

Only in SPYM393
In both113
Only in VUG22

Only in SPYM

393 securities, 43.5% of SPYM by weight

Berkshire Hathaway Inc Class B1.54%
Micron Technology Inc1.54%
JPMorgan Chase & Co1.34%
Exxonmobil Holdings Corp1.15%
Johnson & Johnson0.97%
Walmart Inc0.81%
AbbVie Inc0.77%
Chevron Corp0.69%
Cisco Systems Inc0.66%
Procter & Gamble Co/The0.56%
UnitedHealth Group Inc0.56%
Coca Cola Co/The0.54%
Merck & Co. Inc.0.52%
Bank of America Corp0.50%
Home Depot Inc0.48%
Caterpillar Inc0.48%
Philip Morris International0.48%
Rtx Corp0.40%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc0.39%
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc0.38%
Wells Fargo & Co0.38%
Amgen Inc0.36%
Intl Business Machines Corp0.36%
Linde PLC0.35%
Morgan Stanley0.33%
Citigroup Inc0.31%
Salesforce Inc0.31%
Analog Devices Inc0.30%
Gilead Sciences Inc0.30%
Qualcomm Inc0.29%
Walt Disney Co/The0.29%
Pepsico Inc0.28%
Conocophillips0.27%
Abbott Laboratories0.27%
Verizon Communications Inc0.27%
Union Pacific Corp0.27%
Nextera Energy Inc0.26%
Pfizer Inc0.26%
American Express Co0.25%
BlackRock Inc0.25%
Deere & Co0.24%
Accenture PLC Class A0.23%
Schwab (Charles) Corp0.22%
Danaher Corp0.22%
Eaton Corp PLC0.22%
At+t Inc0.22%
S+p Global Inc0.21%
Uber Technologies Inc0.20%
Progressive Corp0.20%
Marathon Petroleum Corp0.20%

Only in VUG

22 securities, 2.4% of VUG by weight

Cloudflare Inc0.33%
Snowflake Inc0.32%
Space Exploration Technologies Corp0.26%
Astera Labs Inc0.18%
Rocket Lab Corp0.14%
Waste Connections Inc0.13%
CoreWeave Inc0.11%
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc0.11%
Atlassian Corp0.10%
ROBLOX Corp0.10%
MongoDB Inc0.09%
Zscaler Inc0.09%
LPL Financial Holdings Inc0.09%
HEICO Corp0.06%
Insmed Inc0.06%
Tradeweb Markets Inc0.05%
AST SpaceMobile Inc0.05%
HEICO Corp0.04%
SLBBH11420.04%
Cerebras Systems Inc0.04%
Symbotic Inc0.03%
Venture Global Inc0.03%

Weight gaps

The 100 widest of 113 Holdings in both funds.

Holding weights in SPYM and VUG, widest gap first
Holding	More in SPYMMore in VUG	SPYM	VUG
NVIDIA CorpNVDA	VUG +5.59 points	7.90%	13.49%
Apple IncAAPL	VUG +4.93 points	7.58%	12.51%
Microsoft CorpMSFT	VUG +3.77 points	5.98%	9.75%
Alphabet Inc Class AGOOGL	VUG +2.35 points	2.81%	5.16%
Meta Platforms Inc Class AMETA	VUG +2.13 points	2.10%	4.23%
Broadcom IncAVGO	VUG +1.97 points	2.37%	4.34%
Alphabet Inc Class CGOOG	VUG +1.83 points	2.26%	4.09%
Advanced Micro DevicesAMD	VUG +1.35 points	1.31%	2.66%
Eli Lilly & CoLLY	VUG +1.05 points	1.55%	2.60%
Tesla IncTSLA	VUG +0.98 points	1.67%	2.65%
Intel CorpINTC	VUG +0.77 points	0.68%	1.45%
Lam Research CorpLRCX	VUG +0.66 points	0.45%	1.11%
Applied Materials IncAMAT	VUG +0.63 points	0.47%	1.10%
Amazon.com IncAMZN	VUG +0.57 points	3.69%	4.26%
Visa Inc Class A SharesV	VUG +0.55 points	1.04%	1.59%
Sandisk CorpSNDK	VUG +0.42 points	0.28%	0.70%
Costco Wholesale CorpCOST	VUG +0.42 points	0.67%	1.09%
Palantir Technologies Inc APLTR	VUG +0.41 points	0.69%	1.10%
Mastercard Inc AMA	VUG +0.41 points	0.75%	1.16%
Kla CorpKLAC	VUG +0.41 points	0.29%	0.70%
Palo Alto Networks IncPANW	VUG +0.40 points	0.48%	0.88%
Netflix IncNFLX	VUG +0.38 points	0.40%	0.78%
Seagate Technology HoldingsSTX	VUG +0.36 points	0.22%	0.58%
Ge Vernova IncGEV	VUG +0.35 points	0.34%	0.69%
Marvell Technology IncMRVL	VUG +0.33 points	0.31%	0.64%
Arista Networks IncANET	VUG +0.32 points	0.28%	0.60%
Oracle CorpORCL	VUG +0.32 points	0.33%	0.65%
Crowdstrike Holdings Inc ACRWD	VUG +0.31 points	0.40%	0.71%
Amphenol Corp Class AAPH	VUG +0.29 points	0.28%	0.57%
Western Digital CorpWDC	VUG +0.25 points	0.19%	0.44%
Welltower IncWELL	VUG +0.20 points	0.26%	0.46%
Corning IncGLW	VUG +0.19 points	0.15%	0.34%
Boeing Co/TheBA	VUG +0.19 points	0.22%	0.41%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals IncVRTX	VUG +0.17 points	0.20%	0.37%
Tjx Companies IncTJX	VUG +0.17 points	0.24%	0.41%
Booking Holdings IncBKNG	VUG +0.17 points	0.17%	0.34%
Intuitive Surgical IncISRG	VUG +0.17 points	0.24%	0.41%
Quanta Services IncPWR	VUG +0.15 points	0.13%	0.28%
Fortinet IncFTNT	VUG +0.15 points	0.17%	0.32%
Vertiv Holdings Co AVRT	VUG +0.15 points	0.12%	0.27%
Lumentum Holdings IncLITE	VUG +0.15 points	0.11%	0.26%
Robinhood Markets Inc AHOOD	VUG +0.15 points	0.11%	0.26%
Equinix IncEQIX	VUG +0.15 points	0.14%	0.29%
Howmet Aerospace IncHWM	VUG +0.14 points	0.12%	0.26%
Servicenow IncNOW	VUG +0.14 points	0.25%	0.39%
Bloom Energy Corp ABE	VUG +0.14 points	0.09%	0.23%
Applovin Corp Class AAPP	VUG +0.13 points	0.11%	0.24%
Cadence Design Sys IncCDNS	VUG +0.14 points	0.13%	0.27%
Datadog Inc Class ADDOG	VUG +0.13 points	0.14%	0.27%
Starbucks CorpSBUX	VUG +0.12 points	0.18%	0.30%
Teradyne IncTER	VUG +0.12 points	0.07%	0.19%
Synopsys IncSNPS	VUG +0.12 points	0.13%	0.25%
Doordash Inc ADASH	VUG +0.11 points	0.10%	0.21%
Comfort Systems Usa IncFIX	VUG +0.11 points	0.07%	0.18%
Coherent CorpCOHR	VUG +0.10 points	0.07%	0.17%
Monolithic Power Systems IncMPWR	VUG +0.10 points	0.09%	0.19%
Ecolab IncECL	VUG +0.10 points	0.11%	0.21%
Motorola Solutions IncMSI	VUG +0.10 points	0.12%	0.22%
O Reilly Automotive IncORLY	VUG +0.10 points	0.11%	0.21%
Hilton Worldwide Holdings InHLT	VUG +0.09 points	0.12%	0.21%
Marriott International Class AMAR	VUG +0.09 points	0.13%	0.22%
Airbnb Inc Class AABNB	VUG +0.09 points	0.11%	0.20%
Moody’s CorpMCO	VUG +0.09 points	0.11%	0.20%
Ciena CorpCIEN	VUG +0.09 points	0.07%	0.16%
Transdigm Group IncTDG	VUG +0.09 points	0.09%	0.18%
Fastenal CoFAST	VUG +0.09 points	0.09%	0.18%
Cintas CorpCTAS	VUG +0.08 points	0.12%	0.20%
Ww Grainger IncGWW	VUG +0.08 points	0.09%	0.17%
Targa Resources CorpTRGP	VUG +0.08 points	0.10%	0.18%
Coinbase Global Inc Class ACOIN	VUG +0.08 points	0.05%	0.13%
Chipotle Mexican Grill IncCMG	VUG +0.08 points	0.05%	0.13%
Monster Beverage CorpMNST	VUG +0.07 points	0.10%	0.17%
Take Two Interactive SoftwreTTWO	VUG +0.08 points	0.05%	0.13%
Carvana CoCVNA	VUG +0.07 points	0.06%	0.13%
Autozone IncAZO	VUG +0.07 points	0.08%	0.15%
Block IncXYZ	VUG +0.07 points	0.06%	0.13%
Dexcom IncDXCM	VUG +0.07 points	0.04%	0.11%
Idexx Laboratories IncIDXX	VUG +0.06 points	0.07%	0.13%
Veeva Systems Inc Class AVEEV	VUG +0.07 points	0.07%	0.14%
Autodesk IncADSK	VUG +0.06 points	0.08%	0.14%
Workday Inc Class AWDAY	VUG +0.06 points	0.06%	0.12%
Yum Brands IncYUM	VUG +0.06 points	0.06%	0.12%
Super Micro Computer IncSMCI	VUG +0.06 points	0.03%	0.09%
Mettler Toledo InternationalMTD	VUG +0.06 points	0.05%	0.11%
Old Dominion Freight LineODFL	VUG +0.06 points	0.05%	0.11%
Live Nation Entertainment InLYV	VUG +0.06 points	0.04%	0.10%
Vulcan Materials CoVMC	VUG +0.06 points	0.05%	0.11%
West Pharmaceutical ServicesWST	VUG +0.06 points	0.04%	0.10%
Axon Enterprise IncAXON	VUG +0.06 points	0.05%	0.11%
Msci IncMSCI	VUG +0.05 points	0.07%	0.12%
Verisign IncVRSN	VUG +0.05 points	0.04%	0.09%
Texas Instruments IncTXN	SPYM +0.05 points	0.41%	0.36%
Reddit Inc Class ARDDT	VUG +0.05 points	0.03%	0.08%
Ares Management Corp AARES	VUG +0.05 points	0.04%	0.09%
Verisk Analytics IncVRSK	VUG +0.04 points	0.04%	0.08%
Flex LtdFLEX	VUG +0.04 points	0.04%	0.08%
Las Vegas Sands CorpLVS	VUG +0.04 points	0.01%	0.05%
McDonald’s CorpMCD	SPYM +0.03 points	0.27%	0.24%
Fair Isaac CorpFICO	VUG +0.03 points	0.02%	0.05%
Tko Group Holdings IncTKO	VUG +0.02 points	0.02%	0.04%

All 505 SPYM holdings⁠All 166 VUG holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

SPYM vs VUG Cost

Overpaying VUG vs SPYM

$212

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

SPYM 0.02%
$426
VUG 0.03%
$638

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

SPYM 0.02%
VUG 0.03%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	SPYM	VUG	Overpaying
10	$37	$55	$18
20	$144	$216	$72
30	$426	$638	$212

Expense ratio

0.02%SPYM, cheaper
0.03%VUG

Different Categories, so each fee sits in its own Category’s range.

SPYM among 14 S&P 500 funds

SPYM0.02%

0.02%0.45%

Middle half of S&P 500 funds
Median 0.09%

SPYM cheapest of 14 funds

VUG among 35 US Growth Index funds

VUG0.03%

0.03%0.70%

Middle half of US Growth Index funds
Median 0.18%

VUG cheapest of 35 funds

SPYM vs VUG Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 28, 2026

Yield (12M): SPYM 1.00%, better; VUG 0.39%
Payout (12M): SPYM $0.91; VUG $0.35
Last payment: SPYM $0.24; VUG $0.09
Ex-dividend: SPYM Sep 11, 2026; VUG Sep 28, 2026
Paid on: SPYM Sep 15, 2026; VUG Sep 30, 2026
Frequency: SPYM Quarterly; VUG Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

SPYMQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll SPYM payments⁠

VUGQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll VUG payments⁠

SPYM vs VUG Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

SPYM
VUG

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: SPYM 12.4%, betterVUG 16.9%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: SPYM 1.37, betterVUG 1.21
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: SPYM −24.5%, betterVUG −35.6%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: SPYM 1.01VUG 1.27; Market = 1

SPYM and VUG in the news

All news⁠

Head-to-Head
SPYM leads IWF by 9.4 percentage points in 2026. They are not the same bet
Oct 21, 2026SPYM
Head-to-Head
Own iShares Core S&P 500 ETF, IVV, unless you want the heavier growth bet in Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF, VUG
Oct 16, 2026VUG
Deep Dive
SPY trailed the S&P 500 by 0.14 percentage points over the past year, more than triple the gap at cheaper rivals
Oct 13, 2026SPYM
Deep Dive
VOO shares its portfolio with other Vanguard 500 index fund share classes
Oct 10, 2026SPYM
Best ETFs
The cheap large-cap growth pick is the S&P 500 list
Updated Oct 2, 2026VUG
Best ETFs
The cheap S&P 500 funds tied this year. Equal weight did not.
Updated Oct 2, 2026SPYM

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