25 MOST POPULAR ETFs: COMPARE WHAT THEY OWN BEFORE YOU INVEST
What you'll learn:
There are thousands of ETFs to choose from, but a handful of familiar names show up again and again. You may have heard of VOO, SPY, VTI, or QQQ and wondered: What do they actually own, and how different are they?
Some give you a slice of hundreds or thousands of companies. Others focus on technology, dividends, smaller businesses, or companies outside the United States. A popular ETF can be a useful starting point for research, but its name alone does not tell you whether it fits your goals.
Below, we compare 25 popular ETFs that trade on U.S. exchanges, including their top 10 holdings by weight. And if your student wants to see how these funds behave before investing real money, they can practice building a portfolio with ETFs in the KidVestors stock market simulator.
What is an ETF?
An exchange-traded fund, or ETF, pools investors’ money into a collection of investments. You buy and sell shares of that fund on a stock exchange, much like you would buy and sell a company’s stock.
Think of it like buying a basket of groceries. Instead of picking out each item separately, you buy the basket. With a stock ETF, that basket might include pieces of Apple, Microsoft, hundreds of other companies, or a much smaller group of businesses.
ETFs can also own bonds and other assets, but this guide focuses on stock ETFs.
An ETF can track an index or be actively managed
An index ETF follows a defined group of investments using a set of rules. For example, an S&P 500 ETF aims to follow an index of about 500 leading U.S. companies. Its manager works to track that index, rather than independently deciding which stocks will outperform.
An actively managed ETF has investment professionals making decisions about what the fund owns based on its strategy. That strategy might focus on growth, income, or another goal. Active management does not guarantee better results.
Here is the simple difference: an index fund follows a recipe; an active fund gives the manager more room to choose the ingredients.
How we selected these most popular ETFs
“Popular” can mean different things: the most money invested, the most shares traded, or the funds attracting the most new investors.
This is a curated comparison of 25 widely held, established stock ETFs, selected for their substantial assets and coverage of commonly used investing categories. Each had more than $40 billion in reported assets when we researched on October 5, 2026. It is not a ranked list of the 25 largest ETFs or the 25 most traded ETFs. Bond and commodity funds are outside this stock-focused comparison.
All 25 trade on U.S. exchanges. However, a U.S. listing does not mean a fund owns only U.S. companies. VXUS, VEA, and VWO, for example, give investors access to stocks outside the United States.
Popular ETFs comparison chart: What does each fund own?
Start with what the fund invests in. That tells you more than whether its ticker happens to be familiar.
“Growth” generally means companies with stronger expected business growth.
“Value” generally means companies priced relatively low compared with measures such as earnings or assets. Neither label promises that a stock will rise.
ETF | Fund name | What it invests in | Management |
VOO | Vanguard S&P 500 ETF | U.S. S&P 500 stocks | Index |
IVV | iShares Core S&P 500 ETF | U.S. S&P 500 stocks | Index |
SPY | State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF | U.S. S&P 500 stocks | Index |
VTI | Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF | Broad U.S. stock market | Index |
QQQ | Invesco QQQ Trust Series I | Nasdaq-100 nonfinancial companies | Index |
QQQM | Invesco NASDAQ 100 ETF | Nasdaq-100 nonfinancial companies | Index |
VUG | Vanguard Morningstar Growth ETF | U.S. growth stocks | Index |
VTV | Vanguard Morningstar Value ETF | U.S. value stocks | Index |
SCHD | Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF | U.S. dividend-paying stocks | Index |
VYM | Vanguard High Dividend Yield Index ETF | U.S. stocks with higher dividend yields | Index |
VIG | Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF | U.S. companies with a record of dividend increases | Index |
IWM | iShares Russell 2000 ETF | Smaller U.S. companies in the Russell 2000 | Index |
VB | Vanguard Morningstar Small-Cap ETF | Smaller U.S. companies | Index |
VO | Vanguard Morningstar Mid-Cap ETF | Medium-size U.S. companies | Index |
VXUS | Vanguard Total International Stock ETF | Stocks outside the U.S., developed and emerging markets | Index |
VEA | Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF | Developed-market stocks outside the U.S. | Index |
VWO | Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF | Emerging-market stocks | Index |
XLK | State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF | S&P 500 technology companies | Index |
VGT | Vanguard Information Technology ETF | U.S. information technology companies | Index |
SMH | VanEck Semiconductor ETF | Semiconductor companies and equipment makers | Index |
XLF | State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF | S&P 500 financial companies | Index |
XLE | State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | S&P 500 energy companies | Index |
JEPI | JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF | U.S. stocks plus an options-linked income strategy | Active |
RSP | Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF | S&P 500 stocks with an equal-weight approach | Index |
SCHX | Schwab U.S. Large-Cap ETF | Large U.S. companies | Index |
Compare popular ETFs by their top 10 holdings and weights
A fund’s holdings are the investments inside it. A holding’s weight tells you how much of the fund it represents.
For example, if Apple has a 7% weight, roughly $7 of every $100 invested in that fund is exposed to Apple. You own shares of the ETF, rather than receiving separate Apple shares.
The tables below list the 10 largest reported positions in descending order. Percentages represent each position’s share of the fund, not its share of the top 10 alone.
Data note: Holdings were last researched on October 5, 2026, using dated Stock Analysis holdings snapshots. The dates vary by fund and are shown in each row. These are snapshots, not live allocations. Alphabet’s different share classes appear separately where reported. Cash or liquidity positions are retained when they appear in the top 10; their source identifiers are shown rather than treating them as company stocks.
ETF / holdings date | Largest holdings, 1–5 | Largest holdings, 6–10 |
VOO — Aug 31, 2026 |
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IVV — Oct 2, 2026 |
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SPY — Oct 2, 2026 |
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VTI — Aug 31, 2026 |
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QQQ — Oct 2, 2026 |
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QQQM — Oct 2, 2026 | NVIDIA 8.43%; Apple 7.28%; Microsoft 5.75%; Micron Technology, 5.01%; Advanced Micro Devices, 4.27% | Amazon.com, 4.06%; Meta Platforms, 3.24%; Alphabet 3.01%; Tesla, 2.91%; SpaceX 2.81% |
VUG — Aug 31, 2026 | NVIDIA 13.62%; Apple 12.49%; Microsoft 10.12%; Alphabet 5.34%; Amazon.com, 4.76% | Alphabet 4.21%; Broadcom 4.10%; Meta Platforms, 3.39%; Tesla, 2.79%; Eli Lilly and Company 2.64% |
VTV — Aug 31, 2026 | Micron Technology, 3.94%; JPMorgan Chase & Co. 3.47%; Berkshire Hathaway 2.88%; ExxonMobil 2.43%; Johnson & Johnson 2.33% | Walmart 1.67%; AbbVie 1.65%; Bank of America 1.44%; Cisco Systems, 1.43%; Chevron 1.42% |
SCHD — Oct 3, 2026 | Texas Instruments 4.89%; QUALCOMM 4.61%; Procter & Gamble Company 4.16%; Chevron 4.14%; Coca-Cola Company 4.12% | Merck & Co., 4.04%; UnitedHealth Group 3.95%; ConocoPhillips 3.91%; Verizon Communications 3.88%; Amgen 3.86% |
VYM — Aug 31, 2026 | Broadcom 6.93%; JPMorgan Chase & Co. 3.83%; ExxonMobil 2.69%; Johnson & Johnson 2.58%; AbbVie 1.83% | Cisco Systems, 1.76%; Bank of America 1.65%; Chevron 1.54%; Merck & Co., 1.47%; Caterpillar 1.46% |
VIG — Aug 31, 2026 | Microsoft 4.68%; Apple 4.51%; Broadcom 4.35%; JPMorgan Chase & Co. 4.07%; Eli Lilly and Company 3.90% | ExxonMobil 2.85%; Johnson & Johnson 2.73%; Visa 2.50%; Mastercard 2.03%; Walmart 1.96% |
IWM — Oct 2, 2026 | Twist Bioscience 0.41%; Moog 0.37%; 10x Genomics, 0.36%; JFrog Ltd. 0.35%; BrightSpring Health Services, 0.34% | UMB Financial 0.32%; Glaukos 0.31%; MaxLinear, 0.31%; Viasat, 0.31%; Hut 8 Corp. 0.31% |
VB — Aug 31, 2026 | Liquidity position (SLCMT1142) 0.94%; Moderna, 0.62%; Natera, 0.54%; Revolution Medicines, 0.51%; Credo Technology Group Holding Ltd 0.46% | Twilio 0.44%; EMCOR Group, 0.40%; Jabil 0.40%; TechnipFMC 0.38%; Illumina, 0.38% |
VO — Aug 31, 2026 | Marathon Petroleum 1.04%; Valero Energy 1.02%; Vertiv Holdings Co 0.95%; Phillips 66 0.94%; Howmet Aerospace 0.93% | Cloudflare, 0.93%; Seagate Technology Holdings 0.89%; Quanta Services, 0.87%; SLB 0.86%; Constellation Energy 0.85% |
VXUS — Aug 31, 2026 | Taiwan Semiconductor 3.97%; Samsung Electronics 1.90%; Liquidity position (SLCMT1142) 1.83%; SK hynix 1.46%; ASML Holding 1.42% | Tencent Holdings 0.78%; HSBC Holdings 0.76%; Roche Holding 0.67%; Liquidity position (MKTLiq) 0.65%; Royal Bank of Canada 0.62% |
VEA — Aug 31, 2026 | Samsung Electronics 2.61%; SK hynix 2.01%; ASML Holding 1.96%; Liquidity position (SLBBH1142) 1.24%; HSBC Holdings 1.05% | Roche Holding 0.92%; Royal Bank of Canada 0.86%; Novartis 0.85%; Shell 0.77%; Nestlé 0.75% |
VWO — Aug 31, 2026 | Taiwan Semiconductor 14.72%; Liquidity position (SLCMT1142) 3.17%; Tencent Holdings 2.90%; Alibaba 2.19%; MediaTek 1.47% | Liquidity position (MKTLiq) 1.21%; Delta Electronics, 0.90%; China Construction Bank 0.86%; Hon Hai Precision Industry 0.77%; Reliance Industries 0.73% |
XLK — Oct 2, 2026 | NVIDIA 15.51%; Apple 13.34%; Microsoft 10.53%; Advanced Micro Devices, 5.13%; Broadcom 4.63% | Micron Technology, 4.41%; Intel 3.29%; Cisco Systems, 2.45%; Lam Research 2.41%; Palantir Technologies 2.41% |
VGT — Aug 31, 2026 | NVIDIA 17.74%; Apple 15.80%; Microsoft 11.52%; Broadcom 4.52%; Micron Technology, 4.18% | Advanced Micro Devices, 2.95%; Cisco Systems, 1.71%; Palantir Technologies 1.61%; Intel 1.54%; Lam Research 1.49% |
SMH — Oct 3, 2026 | NVIDIA 19.14%; Taiwan Semiconductor 9.24%; Advanced Micro Devices, 5.57%; Broadcom 5.07%; Micron Technology, 4.78% | Applied Materials, 4.73%; KLA 4.65%; Intel 4.61%; Texas Instruments 4.61%; Lam Research 4.52% |
XLF — Oct 2, 2026 | Berkshire Hathaway 12.39%; JPMorgan Chase & Co. 11.69%; Visa 8.14%; Mastercard 5.91%; Bank of America 4.63% | Goldman Sachs Group, 3.48%; Wells Fargo & Company 3.22%; Morgan Stanley 3.01%; Citigroup 2.85%; American Express Company 2.11% |
XLE — Oct 2, 2026 | ExxonMobil 23.69%; Chevron 17.87%; ConocoPhillips 6.66%; Marathon Petroleum 4.91%; Valero Energy 4.85% | Phillips 66 4.71%; Williams Companies, 4.36%; EOG Resources, 3.87%; SLB 3.77%; Kinder Morgan, 3.18% |
JEPI — Oct 2, 2026 | Microsoft 2.04%; NVIDIA 1.97%; Apple 1.92%; Meta Platforms, 1.88%; Amazon.com, 1.86% | Trane Technologies 1.85%; Lam Research 1.79%; Alphabet 1.74%; Mastercard 1.74%; Johnson & Johnson 1.72% |
RSP — Oct 2, 2026 | Everpure, 0.29%; Moderna, 0.29%; Illumina, 0.27%; CrowdStrike Holdings, 0.26%; Synopsys, 0.25% | Cadence Design Systems, 0.25%; Datadog, 0.25%; NetApp, 0.25%; Revvity, 0.25%; Advanced Micro Devices, 0.25% |
SCHX — Oct 3, 2026 |
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What the most popular ETFs have in common, and where they differ
VOO, IVV, and SPY: Similar baskets from different providers
VOO, IVV, and SPY all follow the S&P 500. Their holdings are therefore very similar. Owning all three generally adds much less variety than you might expect from buying three different funds.
Small differences in the tables can reflect different reporting dates, prices, cash balances, and how the funds operate. Do not interpret a difference between an August snapshot and an October snapshot as proof that two funds following the same index have fundamentally different strategies.
VTI includes a mix of small, medium, and large U.S. companies, while SCHX focuses on large U.S. companies. RSP invests in companies in the S&P 500, but it regularly adjusts its investments to put about the same amount of money into each company. That means the biggest companies have less control over how the fund performs than they would in a typical S&P 500 ETF.
QQQ, QQQM, and VUG: Growth with plenty of overlap
QQQ and QQQM both follow the Nasdaq-100, which includes 100 of the largest non-financial companies listed on Nasdaq. They are not simply “the entire Nasdaq,” and they are not exclusively technology funds.
VUG focuses on U.S. growth stocks. It can share many holdings with the Nasdaq-100 funds while using a different selection process.
The takeaway is to look inside the basket. If several ETFs all put substantial weight in the same companies, buying more fund names may still leave your portfolio dependent on those businesses.
SCHD, VYM, VIG, and JEPI: Different approaches to income
A dividend is money a company distributes to shareholders. An ETF can pass income from its investments along to its own shareholders.
SCHD and VYM focus on dividend-paying stocks, while VIG emphasizes companies with a record of increasing their dividends. These are different approaches, even though all three involve dividends.
JEPI is actively managed. It combines a stock portfolio with an options-linked income strategy, using investments called equity-linked notes. In everyday terms, it seeks income partly by giving up some potential benefit from a strongly rising market. That adds risks and complexity beyond simply owning dividend-paying stocks.
A higher payout does not automatically mean a better investment. The share price can fall, payments can change, and what you earn overall matters more than the payment alone.
IWM, VB, and VO: Companies beyond the biggest household names
IWM and VB focus on smaller companies, while VO focuses on medium-size companies.
These funds can introduce businesses that play a much smaller role in large-company ETFs. However, smaller-company funds are not automatically safer because their largest individual positions have low weights. Their businesses may be more sensitive to financing costs and economic slowdowns.
VXUS, VEA, and VWO: Investing beyond the United States
VXUS covers both developed and emerging markets outside the U.S. VEA focuses on developed markets, while VWO focuses on emerging markets.
That means adding VEA and VWO to VXUS can create overlap rather than three completely separate baskets.
International investing also introduces factors such as currency changes, different regulations, and political developments. The ETF may trade in U.S. dollars while its underlying investments operate in other currencies.
XLK, VGT, SMH, XLF, and XLE: A closer focus on one industry
XLK and VGT focus on information technology, SMH focuses on semiconductors, XLF focuses on financial companies, and XLE focuses on energy companies.
These funds let investors explore a particular part of the economy. But a sector fund can move sharply when that industry struggles.
For example, owning a broad-market fund alongside a technology fund may increase your exposure to companies you already own. It does not necessarily spread your money into a new area.
How to compare popular ETFs to invest in
Before choosing a fund, ask a few practical questions:
What is my goal? Money for a child’s future, retirement, and a purchase next year may need very different approaches. Stock ETFs can lose value, so the time you have before needing the money matters.
What does the fund actually own? Read its strategy and holdings. A familiar name is not enough.
How much overlaps with my other investments? If you already own a fund with Apple, Microsoft, and NVIDIA, adding another fund with those same major holdings increases your exposure to them.
What does it cost? An ETF’s expense ratio is its annual operating cost expressed as a percentage. A 0.03% expense ratio works out to about $3 a year per $10,000 invested; 0.30% works out to about $30. The cost is reflected in the fund’s value rather than arriving as a separate annual bill. These examples assume a constant balance, and other trading or account costs may apply.
How concentrated is it? A fund with hundreds of holdings can still have a large share of its money in a few companies. Check the weights, not just the number of investments.
Do I understand the strategy? An active income fund and a broad index fund can behave very differently. You should be able to explain what you own in a sentence or two.
Practice building an ETF portfolio in the KidVestors app
Reading about ETFs is helpful. Seeing them in a portfolio makes the lesson more concrete.
With the KidVestors stock market simulator, students can practice building a portfolio using ETFs and stocks with virtual money. They can explore funds from this guide, compare their movements, and connect those results to the businesses inside them.
Try this learning activity: compare a broad-market ETF with a technology-focused ETF over the same period. Before checking the results, ask your student which companies the funds share and why they might move together.
Then discuss what happened. Did a short-term gain prove that one fund is always better? Did adding a second ETF actually introduce different investments?
The goal is to learn how to make thoughtful decisions, not to assume a simulated winning streak predicts real investing success.
As students navigate KidVestors and learn financial literacy and investing, they can also earn real cash and stock rewards through the platform’s learning and rewards features. Those rewards are separate from simulated portfolio returns.
Families can invest for their kids while they learn
Students can practice investing while their families take steps toward their future.
Through KidVestors, families can access investment account options for their children and themselves, including education savings, general investing, and retirement accounts, depending on eligibility.
A parent might contribute to a child’s future while that child learns what a fund is, why its value changes, and how to compare investments. That gives families a shared starting point for money conversations.
Real investment accounts and the stock market simulator are separate, although within the same platform. The family investing service uses managed investment portfolios; this article does not mean every ETF listed here can be individually selected in those accounts.
Explore the KidVestors app to help students learn, practice building a portfolio, and earn real cash and stock rewards while your family invests for the future.
Frequently asked questions about popular ETFs
What is the most popular ETF?
It depends on how you measure popularity. VOO, IVV, SPY, and VTI are among the largest U.S.-listed stock ETFs by assets. A ranking based on daily trading activity or new investor contributions can look different. There is no single answer that applies to every measure.
Are popular ETFs good for beginners?
Some broad-market ETFs can be easier to understand than choosing individual stocks because they spread exposure across many companies. But popularity alone does not make a fund suitable. Check its investments, costs, risks, and how long you plan to invest.
Are all ETFs index funds?
No. Some ETFs track an index, while others are actively managed. ETF describes how the investment fund is structured and traded; index describes an investing approach.
What does “top 10 holdings by weight” mean?
It means the fund’s 10 largest investment positions, ordered by the percentage of the fund each represents. A 10% weight means roughly $10 of every $100 in the fund is exposed to that position. The remaining money is spread across its other holdings.
Why does Alphabet appear twice in some ETF holdings?
Alphabet has multiple publicly traded share classes. GOOGL represents Class A shares, and GOOG represents Class C shares. An ETF may own both, so they can appear as separate positions even though they belong to the same company.
Do ETFs pay dividends?
Many stock ETFs distribute income they receive from their investments. The amount and payment schedule vary. Dividends are not guaranteed, and receiving a dividend does not prevent the ETF’s share price from falling.
Can you lose money investing in an ETF?
Yes. If the investments inside a fund fall in value, the fund can fall too. Spreading money across different holdings can reduce dependence on one investment, but it does not eliminate the possibility of losses.
Should I buy several popular ETFs?
Only if they serve a purpose in your portfolio. Several funds may hold many of the same companies. More ticker symbols do not necessarily mean more diversification.
Can a U.S.-listed ETF hold international stocks?
Yes. The exchange tells you where the fund’s shares trade, not where every company inside the fund is based. VXUS, VEA, and VWO are examples of U.S.-listed funds focused on international stocks.
Can students practice investing in ETFs with KidVestors?
Yes. Students can use the KidVestors stock market simulator to practice building portfolios with virtual money. Separately, they can earn real cash and stock rewards as they progress through the platform’s learning and rewards features.
Can families invest for their kids through KidVestors?
Yes. Families can access investment account options for their children and themselves through KidVestors. Available account types depend on eligibility, and the managed investing service is separate from selecting individual ETFs in the simulator.
This article is for financial education only and is not investment advice. Fund holdings and strategies can change, and an ETF’s popularity does not guarantee future results.
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