Compare/Updated Oct 26, 2026, refreshed every trading day
VOO vs SPY
Vanguard S&P 500 ETF against State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF: 4 years of returns, risk and today’s technical read, from Kavout’s own data.
QQQ did better by a wide margin: $1,000 invested on Oct 28, 2022 would be worth $2,565, versus $2,065 for VOO and $2,052 for SPY. QQQ also led over three years (+97.2%), one year (+16.9%), and YTD (+15.1%), reflecting stronger exposure to growth-oriented companies. That outperformance came with materially higher risk: 20.0% volatility and a -22.8% worst drawdown, compared with 12.7% volatility and drawdowns of -18.7% for VOO and -18.8% for SPY. VOO and SPY delivered nearly identical results, but VOO edged SPY over the full period while charging a lower expense ratio (0.03% versus 0.09%). In short, QQQ offered the highest growth but greater downside, while VOO provided the more cost-efficient broad-market option.
- Price is above its 200-day average ($665); 50-day at $705.
- RSI 42, neutral. Supertrend says sell. ADX 14, so the trend is weak.
- Price is above its 200-day average ($725); 50-day at $767.
- RSI 42, neutral. Supertrend says sell. ADX 14, so the trend is weak.
Head to head
Which has returned more, VOO or SPY?
VOO beat SPY in 32 of the last 48 months; SPY won the other 16. The typical monthly gap was 0.02 points.
Total return by period
Which is riskier?
Both: Feb 19, 2025 to Apr 8, 2025
- 0.998
- correlation of daily moves, 4 years
- 0.98
- VOO move per 1% in SPY
- 0.999
- correlation, last 12 months
Month by month
Of the last 48 months. The typical gap was 0.02 points.
When did they diverge?
| Month | VOO | SPY | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 2026 | +2.7% | +2.4% | +0.23 pts |
| September 2024 | +2.2% | +2.1% | +0.07 pts |
| November 2024 | +5.9% | +6.0% | -0.07 pts |
| December 2024 | -2.3% | -2.4% | +0.07 pts |
Where the numbers come from. 1000 daily adjusted closes per fund from the Kavout market-data API, dividends included. Signals and indicators are Kavout’s own, refreshed nightly. Every figure is calculated from those adjusted closes.
Holdings and fees
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