THE LONG GAME
2016 — 2025
← Back to the arenaTHE FUNDS ENTER THE ARENA · 20 ETFs

ETFs Arena

Twenty popular ETFs. One decade. The same benchmark. See how the biggest funds stack up against SPX, ranked by their annualized returns over 2016–2025.

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20 RANKED ETFs · JAN 2016 – DEC 2025Gold marker = SPX · Bars = 10Y / year
SPX · S&P 500SPY ETF · THE BENCHMARK
+14.71%10Y / YEAR
  1. Vanguard logoVGT
    LegendaryVanguard Information Technology ETFU.S. technology
    +22.55% ten-year annualized return+7.84 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  2. State Street logoXLK
    LegendaryState Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETFU.S. technology
    +22.34% ten-year annualized return+7.63 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  3. Invesco QQQ logoQQQ
    LegendaryInvesco QQQ ETFNasdaq-100
    +19.43% ten-year annualized return+4.72 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  4. iShares logoIWF
    LegendaryiShares Russell 1000 Growth ETFU.S. large-cap growth
    +17.92% ten-year annualized return+3.21 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  5. Vanguard logoVUG
    EpicVanguard Growth ETFU.S. large-cap growth
    +17.45% ten-year annualized return+2.74 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  6. State Street logoSPYM
    RareState Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETFU.S. large cap
    +14.81% ten-year annualized return+0.10 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  7. iShares logoIVV
    RareiShares Core S&P 500 ETFU.S. large cap
    +14.78% ten-year annualized return+0.07 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  8. Vanguard logoVOO
    RareVanguard S&P 500 ETFU.S. large cap
    +14.78% ten-year annualized return+0.07 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  9. State Street logoSPY
    RareState Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF TrustU.S. large cap
    +14.71% ten-year annualized return+0.00 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).

  10. Defeated Underperformers

    State Street logoGLD
    CommonSPDR Gold SharesGold
    +14.56% ten-year annualized return−0.15 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  11. Vanguard logoVTI
    CommonVanguard Total Stock Market ETFU.S. total market
    +14.25% ten-year annualized return−0.46 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  12. Vanguard logoVTV
    CommonVanguard Value ETFU.S. large-cap value
    +11.67% ten-year annualized return−3.04 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  13. iShares logoIJH
    CommoniShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETFU.S. mid cap
    +10.67% ten-year annualized return−4.04 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  14. Vanguard logoVEA
    CommonVanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETFDeveloped markets
    +8.74% ten-year annualized return−5.97 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  15. Vanguard logoVXUS
    CommonVanguard Total International Stock ETFInternational stocks
    +8.55% ten-year annualized return−6.16 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  16. iShares logoIEMG
    CommoniShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETFEmerging markets
    +8.35% ten-year annualized return−6.36 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  17. iShares logoIEFA
    CommoniShares Core MSCI EAFE ETFDeveloped markets
    +8.29% ten-year annualized return−6.42 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  18. Vanguard logoVWO
    CommonVanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETFEmerging markets
    +8.16% ten-year annualized return−6.55 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  19. Vanguard logoBND
    CommonVanguard Total Bond Market ETFU.S. bonds
    +2.00% ten-year annualized return−12.71 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).
  20. iShares logoAGG
    CommoniShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETFU.S. bonds
    +1.97% ten-year annualized return−12.74 pp vs SPX
    Read the performance source (opens in a new tab).

Ranks and rarity badges follow the investor leaderboard’s ten-year return rules. Figures are annualized USD total returns at net asset value (NAV), after fund expenses and with distributions reinvested, before personal taxes and trading costs. Gaps are percentage points (pp) per year. Equal published returns share a rank. Select any ETF to read its source.Logo credits.

How we choose and rank the 20 ETFs

“Popular” means large by assets under management. This roster is the 20 largest U.S.-listed ETFs in the September 3, 2026 fund-size snapshot, excluding overseas listings. Selection is by fund size; leaderboard order is by performance. This is a fixed snapshot, not a live feed.

All returns cover January 2016 through December 2025. Each row links to an issuer performance page, report, factsheet, prospectus, or reproduced performance disclosure. Issuers update these destinations, so their latest figures may cover a different period from this fixed leaderboard. Fund names reflect the historical records.

SPX is represented here by SPY’s published 14.71% annualized NAV return. The investor leaderboard compounds rounded annual SPY market returns, so its benchmark can differ slightly. SPY appears once in the ranked roster and again in the pinned benchmark row for reference.

Legendary: at least 3 pp ahead of SPX per year. Epic: at least 1 pp. Rare: at or above SPX. Common: below SPX. A badge is left unrated if source rounding straddles a boundary. Badges describe past returns, not risk or suitability; bond, gold, international, and sector funds have different investment objectives.

SPYM was formerly SPLG and tracked other U.S. large-cap indexes before adopting the S&P 500 in January 2020. GLD is a physically backed gold trust. Historical performance does not guarantee future returns.

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