SPY vs VOO: Which Should You Buy?
0.03% vs 0.09% fee, about 96% the same holdings.
Want to check another pair? Use the free ETF overlap tool.
For most investors it barely matters. SPY and VOO have returned within 0.1% a year of each other and overlap about 96% by weight. Pick SPY for the tighter 504-holding portfolio; pick VOO to own 505 instead. VOO is the cheaper of the two at 0.03% against 0.09%.
This is purely for informational purposes, not investment advice. Always consult a professional before making investment decisions.
SPY wins if...
You want the tighter portfolio: 504 holdings rather than 505.
VOO wins if...
You want maximum diversification: 505 holdings covering the broader market, tracking the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, at a lower 0.03% fee.
SPY vs VOO, side by side
The numbers that actually differ are highlighted.
| Metric | SPYState Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF | VOOVanguard S&P 500 ETF |
|---|---|---|
| Index tracked | — | Standard & Poor's 500 Index |
| Number of holdings | 504 | 505 |
| Expense ratio | 0.09% | 0.03% |
| Dividend yield | 1.00% | 1.07% |
| AUM | $797.95B | $1.00T |
| Top 10 concentration | 37.4% | 39.0% |
| 10-yr total return | 15.5% | 15.6% |
| 5-yr total return | 11.7% | 11.7% |
| Beta (vs S&P 500) | 1.01 | 1.01 |
| Max drawdown (10yr) | -33.7% | -34.0% |
| Market-cap coverage | Large cap | Large cap |
| Inception | 1993 | 2010 |
— means the figure is not reported for that fund.
SPY holds 504 positions. VOO holds 505, a broader slice of the same market.
How much do SPY and VOO overlap?
The single most decision-relevant fact, and the one most comparisons skip.
- Shared
- 95.6%
- VOO-only
- 4.4%
~96% identical by weight
501 weighted positions appear in both funds, and by weight about 96% of the two portfolios is the same exposure. Where a stock sits in both, the shared share is whichever weight is smaller. That is the part of a dollar that behaves identically in either fund.
The difference is VOO's remaining 1 positions, which SPY does not hold at all. They are smaller by weight, which is why the two track each other closely and drift apart only at the margins.
Growth of $10,000: SPY vs VOO
Growth of $10,000
10 years
Which should you choose?
- You want concentrated exposure: 504 holdings, not 505
- You want the wider net: 505 holdings against 504
- You want to track the Standard & Poor's 500 Index
- You want the lower fee: 0.03% against 0.09%
- You want the higher yield: 1.07% against 1.00%
Compare and track all ETFs in your sheet
Type =WISE("SPY","dividend yield","ttm") or =WISEFUNDS("SPY","expense ratio") in Excel or Google Sheets and the fund's data lands in your sheet, ready to be refreshed when you want.
Get The Add-in - FreeSPY vs VOO frequently asked questions
For most investors the choice barely matters: SPY and VOO have returned within 0.1% of each other per year and they overlap roughly 96% by weight. Compare the fee and the holdings count below and pick the one that matches how broad you want the exposure to be.
Yes, by about 96% by weight. 501 weighted positions appear in both funds. Because the largest positions dominate both portfolios, the two behave similarly day to day.
SPY holds 504 positions. VOO holds 505, a broader slice of the same market.
You can, but there is little reason to. At about 96% overlap, owning both mostly duplicates the same positions and adds little diversification.