ETF Versus

IWF vs XLK

iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF vs State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-02

IWF iShares

iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to large-cap U.S. growth stocks with above-average earnings potential. It charges a moderate expense ratio of 0.18%. The fund offers a modest dividend yield of 0.39%. Launched in 2000, the fund has a 26-year track record.

AUM: $108.0B ER: 0.18% Yield: 0.39% Since: May 22, 2000
XLK

State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) is an exchange-traded fund 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 0.57%. Launched in 1998, the fund has a 28-year track record.

AUM: $82.2B ER: 0.08% Yield: 0.57% Since: Dec 16, 1998

Quick Verdict

XLK is significantly cheaper at 0.08% vs 0.18% expense ratio, saving you approximately $198 per $10,000 invested over 10 years. Over the past year, XLK has significantly outperformed with a 29.7% return vs 18.2%.

Key Metrics

Metric IWF XLK
Expense Ratio 0.18% 0.08%
Dividend Yield 0.4% 0.6%
Fund Family iShares N/A
Category US Large Cap Growth US Sector - Technology

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

80 108 136 164 192 220 2021-04 2022-06 2023-09 2024-12 2026-04
IWF +71.3%
XLK +95.1%

Performance Comparison

Period IWF XLK Difference
1 Month -4.73% -3.32% -1.41%
3 Months -8.83% -6.51% -2.32%
6 Months -8.48% -5.23% -3.25%
YTD -8.83% -6.51% -2.32%
1 Year +18.20% +29.73% -11.53%
3 Years +75.80% +78.96% -3.16%
5 Years +71.26% +95.13% -23.87%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period IWF Fees XLK Fees You Save
$10.000 10 years $357 $159 $198
$10.000 20 years $1.529 $686 $844
$10.000 30 years $4.912 $2.212 $2.699
$50.000 10 years $1.786 $797 $989
$50.000 30 years $24.558 $11.061 $13.497
$100.000 30 years $49.116 $22.123 $26.993

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric IWF XLK
Annualized Volatility 21.4% 24.7%
Max Drawdown -33.1% -34.0%
Sharpe Ratio 0.40 0.49

Dividend Comparison

Metric IWF XLK
Annual Dividend (per share) $1.69 $0.77
Dividend Yield 0.39% 0.57%
Distribution Frequency Quarterly Quarterly

Top Holdings

4 of top 9 holdings overlap (44% overlap in top holdings)

IWF Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA12.82%
Apple Inc.AAPL11.79%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT8.78%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO4.81%
Amazon.com, Inc.AMZN4.61%
Tesla, Inc.TSLA3.57%
Meta Platforms, Inc.META3.28%
Alphabet Inc.GOOG2.83%
Eli Lilly and CompanyLLY2.62%

XLK Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA15.50%
Apple Inc.AAPL13.63%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT10.05%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO5.37%
Micron Technology, Inc.MU3.39%
Palantir Technologies Inc.PLTR2.98%
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.AMD2.95%
Cisco Systems, Inc.CSCO2.73%
Applied Materials, Inc.AMAT2.42%
Lam Research CorporationLRCX2.38%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose XLK if...

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

Choose XLK if...

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

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