ETF Versus

VGT vs XLK

Vanguard Information Technology Index Fund ETF Shares vs State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-10

VGT Vanguard

Vanguard Information Technology Index Fund ETF Shares (VGT) is an exchange-traded fund issued by Vanguard that provides exposure to us sector - technology securities. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.09%. The fund offers a modest dividend yield of 0.41%. Launched in 2004, the fund has a 22-year track record.

AUM: $111.1B ER: 0.09% Yield: 0.41% Since: Jan 26, 2004
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. Both funds have delivered similar 1-year returns (45.9% vs 46.8%), tracking closely.

Key Metrics

Metric VGT XLK
Expense Ratio 0.09% 0.08%
Dividend Yield 0.4% 0.5%
Fund Family Vanguard SPDR
Category US Sector - Technology US Sector - Technology

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

80 107 134 161 188 215 2021-04 2022-07 2023-10 2025-01 2026-04
VGT +95.4%
XLK +102.2%

Performance Comparison

Period VGT XLK Difference
1 Month +1.18% +1.60% -0.42%
3 Months -2.85% -2.80% -0.05%
6 Months -1.56% +0.06% -1.62%
YTD -1.62% -1.13% -0.49%
1 Year +45.89% +46.81% -0.92%
3 Years +97.36% +93.34% +4.02%
5 Years +95.36% +102.25% -6.89%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period VGT 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 VGT XLK
Annualized Volatility 25.1% 24.7%
Max Drawdown -35.5% -34.0%
Sharpe Ratio 0.48 0.51

Dividend Comparison

Metric VGT XLK
Annual Dividend (per share) $3.06 $0.77
Dividend Yield 0.41% 0.54%
Distribution Frequency Quarterly Quarterly

Top Holdings

10 of top 10 holdings overlap (100% overlap in top holdings)

VGT Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA18.07%
Apple Inc.AAPL15.84%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT10.39%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO4.34%
Micron Technology, Inc.MU2.37%
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.AMD1.65%
Cisco Systems, Inc.CSCO1.63%
Palantir Technologies Inc.PLTR1.57%
Applied Materials, Inc.AMAT1.54%
Lam Research CorporationLRCX1.53%

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?

Either works if...

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

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