ETF Versus

ITOT vs LQD

iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF vs iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-02

ITOT iShares

iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF (ITOT) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to the total U.S. stock market across all capitalizations. It charges a very low expense ratio of 0.03%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.12%. Launched in 2004, the fund has a 22-year track record.

AUM: $77.6B ER: 0.03% Yield: 1.12% Since: Jan 20, 2004
LQD iShares

iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF (LQD) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to investment-grade U.S. corporate bonds. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.14%. The fund offers a high dividend yield of 4.53%. Launched in 2002, the fund has a 24-year track record.

AUM: $29.2B ER: 0.14% Yield: 4.53% Since: Jul 22, 2002

Quick Verdict

ITOT is significantly cheaper at 0.03% vs 0.14% expense ratio, saving you approximately $218 per $10,000 invested over 10 years. Over the past year, ITOT has significantly outperformed with a 17.2% return vs 0.0%. Income investors may prefer LQD for its higher yield (4.5% vs 1.1%).

Key Metrics

Metric ITOT LQD
Expense Ratio 0.03% 0.14%
Dividend Yield 1.1% 4.5%
Fund Family iShares iShares
Category US Total Market US Investment Grade Corporate

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

75 93 111 129 147 165 2021-04 2022-06 2023-09 2024-12 2026-04
ITOT +52.8%
LQD -16.4%

Performance Comparison

Period ITOT LQD Difference
1 Month -4.55% -2.04% -2.51%
3 Months -3.83% -1.36% -2.47%
6 Months -2.08% -2.59% +0.51%
YTD -3.83% -1.36% -2.47%
1 Year +17.17% +0.00% +17.17%
3 Years +57.97% -1.16% +59.13%
5 Years +52.82% -16.40% +69.22%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period ITOT Fees LQD Fees You Save
$10.000 10 years $60 $278 $218
$10.000 20 years $258 $1.194 $935
$10.000 30 years $835 $3.841 $3.005
$50.000 10 years $299 $1.391 $1.092
$50.000 30 years $4.176 $19.203 $15.027
$100.000 30 years $8.352 $38.406 $30.054

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric ITOT LQD
Annualized Volatility 17.4% 8.7%
Max Drawdown -26.2% -27.9%
Sharpe Ratio 0.32 -0.89

Dividend Comparison

Metric ITOT LQD
Annual Dividend (per share) $1.61 $4.92
Dividend Yield 1.13% 4.53%
Distribution Frequency Quarterly Monthly

Top Holdings

ITOT Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA6.59%
Apple Inc.AAPL5.91%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT4.29%
Amazon.com, Inc.AMZN3.15%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO2.31%
Alphabet Inc.GOOG2.07%
Meta Platforms, Inc.META1.86%
Tesla, Inc.TSLA1.65%
Berkshire Hathaway Inc.BRK.B1.39%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose ITOT if...

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

Choose ITOT if...

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

Choose LQD if...

you prioritize dividend income and want higher regular distributions from your portfolio.

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