What is the expense ratio of IJR vs SPSM?

IJR has an expense ratio of 0.06%, while SPSM has an expense ratio of 0.03%.

IJR vs SPSM

iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF vs State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 600 Small Cap ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-10

IJR iShares

iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF (IJR) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to small-cap U.S. equities with higher growth potential and volatility. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.06%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.23%. Launched in 2000, the fund has a 26-year track record.

AUM: $96.3B ER: 0.06% Yield: 1.23% Since: May 22, 2000

SPSM SPDR

State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 600 Small Cap ETF (SPSM) is an exchange-traded fund issued by SPDR that provides exposure to small-cap U.S. equities with higher growth potential and volatility. It charges a very low expense ratio of 0.03%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.52%. Launched in 2013, the fund has a 13-year track record.

AUM: $14.6B ER: 0.03% Yield: 1.52% Since: Jul 8, 2013

Quick Verdict

SPSM has a slightly lower expense ratio (0.03% vs 0.06%), saving about $60 per $10,000 over 10 years. Both funds have delivered similar 1-year returns (38.1% vs 37.6%), tracking closely.

Key Metrics

Metric	IJR	SPSM
Expense Ratio	0.06%	0.03%
Dividend Yield	1.2%	1.5%
Fund Family	iShares	SPDR
Category	US Small Cap	US Small Cap

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

IJR +18.7%

SPSM +18.5%

Performance Comparison

Period	IJR	SPSM	Difference
1 Month	+4.49%	+4.27%	+0.22%
3 Months	+2.82%	+2.71%	+0.11%
6 Months	+11.61%	+11.44%	+0.17%
YTD	+7.20%	+7.01%	+0.19%
1 Year	+38.09%	+37.58%	+0.51%
3 Years	+35.49%	+34.97%	+0.52%
5 Years	+18.67%	+18.48%	+0.19%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment	Period	IJR Fees	SPSM Fees	You Save
$10,000	10 years	$120	$60	$60
$10,000	20 years	$515	$258	$257
$10,000	30 years	$1,664	$835	$828
$50,000	10 years	$598	$299	$299
$50,000	30 years	$8,318	$4,176	$4,142
$100,000	30 years	$16,637	$8,352	$8,285

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric	IJR	SPSM
Annualized Volatility	21.6%	21.5%
Max Drawdown	-28.9%	-28.7%
Sharpe Ratio	0.06	0.06

Dividend Comparison

Metric	IJR	SPSM
Annual Dividend (per share)	$1.60	$0.77
Dividend Yield	1.23%	1.52%
Distribution Frequency	Quarterly	Quarterly

Top Holdings

9 of top 10 holdings overlap (90% overlap in top holdings)

IJR Top Holdings

Name	Weight
BLK CSH FND TREASURY SL AGENCYXTSLA	1.29%
Viavi Solutions Inc.VIAV	0.60%
FormFactor, Inc.FORM	0.57%
Eastman Chemical CompanyEMN	0.53%
Primoris Services CorporationPRIM	0.53%
Element Solutions IncESI	0.53%
Argan, Inc.AGX	0.51%
Semtech CorporationSMTC	0.50%
ESCO Technologies Inc.ESE	0.50%
Match Group, Inc.MTCH	0.48%

SPSM Top Holdings

Name	Weight
Viavi Solutions Inc.VIAV	0.60%
FormFactor, Inc.FORM	0.57%
Eastman Chemical CompanyEMN	0.53%
Primoris Services CorporationPRIM	0.53%
Element Solutions IncESI	0.53%
Argan, Inc.AGX	0.51%
Semtech CorporationSMTC	0.51%
ESCO Technologies Inc.ESE	0.50%
Match Group, Inc.MTCH	0.49%
Viasat, Inc.VSAT	0.48%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose SPSM if...

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

Either works if...

you just need broad us small cap exposure. Both are solid options — pick whichever your brokerage offers commission-free.

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