{"id":24,"date":"2025-03-08T21:13:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-08T21:13:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/studentinvestors.org\/?p=24"},"modified":"2025-09-27T00:08:36","modified_gmt":"2025-09-27T00:08:36","slug":"not-all-sp-500-etfs-are-the-same","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/studentinvestors.org\/?p=24","title":{"rendered":"Not All S&P 500 ETFs Are the Same"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

After writing about the S&P 500, I thought I had it figured out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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SPY tracks the S&P 500.
The S&P 500 tracks the market.
So just buy SPY and you’re done, right?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

But then I did some more research.
And I found out there are actually lots of ETFs<\/strong> that track the S&P 500.
Not just SPY \u2014 there\u2019s VOO<\/strong>, IVV<\/strong>, SPLG<\/strong>, and more.
They all follow the same index, but they do it in different ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s what I learned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1. Different ETFs, same index<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

All of these ETFs track the same 500 companies<\/strong> \u2014 the S&P 500.
But they\u2019re managed by different companies<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ETF<\/th>Company<\/th>Full Name<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
SPY<\/strong><\/td>State Street<\/td>SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust<\/td><\/tr>
VOO<\/strong><\/td>Vanguard<\/td>Vanguard S&P 500 ETF<\/td><\/tr>
IVV<\/strong><\/td>BlackRock (iShares)<\/td>iShares Core S&P 500 ETF<\/td><\/tr>
SPLG<\/strong><\/td>State Street<\/td>SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Even though the index is the same, the ETFs have small differences in fees<\/strong>, dividends<\/strong>, structure<\/strong>, and even how you buy them<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2. Fees matter<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Each ETF charges something called an expense ratio<\/strong> \u2014 a small annual fee to manage the fund.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a comparison:<\/p>\n\n\n\n