ETF Versus

SPSM vs XLC

State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 600 Small Cap ETF vs State Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-10

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
XLC SPDR

State Street Communication Services Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLC) is an exchange-traded fund issued by SPDR that provides exposure to us sector - communication securities. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.08%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.23%. Launched in 2018, the fund has a 8-year track record.

AUM: $24.6B ER: 0.08% Yield: 1.23% Since: Jun 18, 2018

Quick Verdict

SPSM has a slightly lower expense ratio (0.03% vs 0.08%), saving about $99 per $10,000 over 10 years. Over the past year, SPSM has significantly outperformed with a 37.6% return vs 25.9%.

Key Metrics

Metric SPSM XLC
Expense Ratio 0.03% 0.08%
Dividend Yield 1.5% 1.2%
Fund Family SPDR SPDR
Category US Small Cap US Sector - Communication

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

55 76 97 118 139 160 2021-04 2022-07 2023-10 2025-01 2026-04
SPSM +18.5%
XLC +48.7%

Performance Comparison

Period SPSM XLC Difference
1 Month +4.27% -2.66% +6.93%
3 Months +2.71% -3.11% +5.82%
6 Months +11.44% +0.04% +11.40%
YTD +7.01% -2.57% +9.58%
1 Year +37.58% +25.85% +11.73%
3 Years +34.97% +94.19% -59.22%
5 Years +18.48% +48.66% -30.18%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period SPSM Fees XLC Fees You Save
$10,000 10 years $60 $159 $99
$10,000 20 years $258 $686 $427
$10,000 30 years $835 $2,212 $1,377
$50,000 10 years $299 $797 $497
$50,000 30 years $4,176 $11,061 $6,886
$100,000 30 years $8,352 $22,123 $13,771

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric SPSM XLC
Annualized Volatility 21.5% 20.7%
Max Drawdown -28.7% -47.2%
Sharpe Ratio 0.06 0.27

Dividend Comparison

Metric SPSM XLC
Annual Dividend (per share) $0.77 $1.40
Dividend Yield 1.52% 1.23%
Distribution Frequency Quarterly Quarterly

Top Holdings

0 of top 9 holdings overlap (0% overlap in top holdings)

SPSM Top Holdings

NameWeight
Viavi Solutions Inc.VIAV0.60%
FormFactor, Inc.FORM0.57%
Eastman Chemical CompanyEMN0.53%
Primoris Services CorporationPRIM0.53%
Element Solutions IncESI0.53%
Argan, Inc.AGX0.51%
Semtech CorporationSMTC0.51%
ESCO Technologies Inc.ESE0.50%
Match Group, Inc.MTCH0.49%
Viasat, Inc.VSAT0.48%

XLC Top Holdings

NameWeight
Meta Platforms, Inc.META13.83%
Alphabet Inc.GOOG6.65%
Live Nation Entertainment, Inc.LYV4.71%
Netflix, Inc.NFLX4.57%
The Walt Disney CompanyDIS4.50%
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.TTWO4.48%
EchoStar CorporationSATS4.47%
Omnicom Group Inc.OMC4.37%
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.WBD4.35%

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.

Choose SPSM if...

recent performance momentum matters to your strategy. Note that past performance doesn't guarantee future results.

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