ETF Versus

IEMG vs XLK

iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF vs State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-10

IEMG iShares

iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to stocks in emerging market economies with higher growth potential. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.09%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 2.49%. Launched in 2012, the fund has a 14-year track record.

AUM: $144.0B ER: 0.09% Yield: 2.49% Since: Oct 18, 2012
XLK SPDR

State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) is an exchange-traded fund issued by SPDR that provides exposure to us sector - technology securities. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.08%. The fund offers a modest dividend yield of 0.54%. Launched in 1998, the fund has a 28-year track record.

AUM: $90.3B ER: 0.08% Yield: 0.54% Since: Dec 16, 1998

Quick Verdict

Both funds have nearly identical expense ratios (0.08% vs 0.09%), so fees are not a differentiator here. IEMG has edged ahead over the past year (48.0% vs 46.8%). Income investors may prefer IEMG for its higher yield (2.5% vs 0.5%).

Key Metrics

Metric IEMG XLK
Expense Ratio 0.09% 0.08%
Dividend Yield 2.5% 0.5%
Fund Family iShares SPDR
Category Emerging Markets US Sector - Technology

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

65 95 125 155 185 215 2021-04 2022-07 2023-10 2025-01 2026-04
IEMG +15.3%
XLK +102.2%

Performance Comparison

Period IEMG XLK Difference
1 Month +2.68% +1.60% +1.08%
3 Months +4.57% -2.80% +7.37%
6 Months +12.30% +0.06% +12.24%
YTD +7.54% -1.13% +8.67%
1 Year +47.97% +46.81% +1.16%
3 Years +50.82% +93.34% -42.52%
5 Years +15.31% +102.25% -86.94%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period IEMG Fees XLK Fees You Save
$10,000 10 years $179 $159 $20
$10,000 20 years $771 $686 $85
$10,000 30 years $2,486 $2,212 $273
$50,000 10 years $896 $797 $99
$50,000 30 years $12,428 $11,061 $1,366
$100,000 30 years $24,855 $22,123 $2,732

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric IEMG XLK
Annualized Volatility 18.3% 24.7%
Max Drawdown -38.5% -34.0%
Sharpe Ratio 0.00 0.51

Dividend Comparison

Metric IEMG XLK
Annual Dividend (per share) $1.85 $0.77
Dividend Yield 2.49% 0.54%
Distribution Frequency Semi-Annual or Annual Quarterly

Top Holdings

0 of top 10 holdings overlap (0% overlap in top holdings)

IEMG Top Holdings

NameWeight
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited!tpe/233011.69%
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.!krx/0059305.24%
Tencent Holdings Limited!hkg/07003.20%
SK hynix Inc.!krx/0006602.96%
Alibaba Group Holding Limited!hkg/99882.14%
China Construction Bank Corporation!hkg/09390.81%
Delta Electronics, Inc.!tpe/23080.79%
HDFC Bank Limited!nse/HDFCBANK0.77%
Reliance Industries Limited!nse/RELIANCE0.68%
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.!tpe/23170.61%

XLK Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA15.30%
Apple Inc.AAPL13.10%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT9.49%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO5.76%
Micron Technology, Inc.MU3.96%
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.AMD3.22%
Cisco Systems, Inc.CSCO2.74%
Lam Research CorporationLRCX2.69%
Applied Materials, Inc.AMAT2.63%
Palantir Technologies Inc.PLTR2.49%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose IEMG if...

you prioritize dividend income and want higher regular distributions from your portfolio.

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