Compare/Updated Oct 26, 2026, refreshed every trading day
SPY vs SPYD
State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF against State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF: 4 years of returns, risk and today’s technical read, from Kavout’s own data.
SPY did better over the period from Oct 28, 2022 to Oct 23, 2026: $1,000 grew to $2,052, versus $1,485 for SPYD. SPY’s total return was 105.2%, compared with 48.5% for SPYD, and it also led over three years, 82.7% versus 60.3%. The difference matters because SPY provided substantially greater growth, while SPYD’s high-dividend strategy did not compensate investors for its weaker long-term performance. Risk was broadly similar: SPY’s 12-month volatility was 12.7% versus 12.2% for SPYD, but SPYD experienced the deeper worst drawdown, at -20.7% versus -18.8% for SPY. SPYD recently led over one month, six months, and YTD, but SPY’s stronger cumulative performance remains decisive. SPYD had the lower expense ratio, 0.07% versus 0.09%, while SPY offered much larger fund assets.
- 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.
- Price is above its 200-day average ($46); 50-day at $48.
- RSI 66, neutral. Supertrend says buy. ADX 34, so the trend is strong.
Head to head
Which has returned more, SPY or SPYD?
SPY beat SPYD in 25 of the last 48 months; SPYD won the other 23. The typical monthly gap was 2.71 points.
Total return by period
Which is riskier?
SPY: Feb 19, 2025 to Apr 8, 2025; SPYD: Feb 2, 2023 to Oct 27, 2023
- 0.612
- correlation of daily moves, 4 years
- 0.63
- SPY move per 1% in SPYD
- 0.202
- correlation, last 12 months
Month by month
Of the last 48 months. The typical gap was 2.71 points.
When did they diverge?
| Month | SPY | SPYD | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 2023 | +0.5% | -8.0% | +8.42 pts |
| March 2023 | +3.7% | -4.1% | +7.85 pts |
| October 2026 | -0.3% | +7.1% | -7.43 pts |
| September 2026 | -0.3% | -7.6% | +7.21 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
What do you actually own with SPY and SPYD?
- Expense ratio
- 0.07%
- Fund assets
- $8B
- Price
- $48.59
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