Direct Answer
SPY is the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, the first exchange-traded fund listed in the United States. It launched on January 22, 1993 and seeks to track the S&P 500 Index. State Street reported a 0.0945% gross expense ratio as of September 6, 2026, approximately $817.3 billion in assets under management as of September 3, 2026, and 504 holdings as of September 3, 2026. Unlike VOO and IVV, SPY is structured as a unit investment trust rather than as an open-end fund, which affects how dividends are handled and how the fund compares at the expense-ratio level.
Source: State Street SPDR, State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY). verified September 7, 2026. This profile does not constitute a recommendation.
Fund Snapshot (as of September 2026)
| Fact | Value | As of / Source |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | State Street issuer page |
| Ticker | SPY | NYSE Arca listing |
| Issuer | State Street Global Advisors | State Street issuer page |
| Structure | Unit Investment Trust (UIT) | SEC filing / prospectus |
| Benchmark | S&P 500 Index | State Street issuer page |
| Inception date | January 22, 1993 | State Street issuer page |
| Gross expense ratio | 0.0945% | Sep 6, 2026: State Street |
| Assets under management | ~$817.3 billion | Sep 3, 2026: State Street |
| Number of holdings | 504 | Sep 3, 2026: State Street |
Volatile metrics (AUM, number of holdings, spread) change daily. Always verify current figures in the fund's product page or prospectus before making decisions.
What does SPY track?
SPY seeks to track the S&P 500 Index before fees and expenses. The S&P 500 is maintained by S&P Dow Jones Indices and is a market-capitalization-weighted index of approximately 500 large-cap U.S. publicly traded companies selected by an index committee. The index is not a fixed list of the 500 largest companies; membership depends on size, liquidity, domicile, public float and financial viability criteria set by the index provider.
Because SPY is a unit investment trust, it holds the S&P 500 constituent securities in proportion to their index weights. It does not use sampling or derivatives. UIT rules also restrict SPY from lending securities, which distinguishes it operationally from open-end ETF structures that may engage in securities lending.
SPY's unit investment trust structure
SPY is registered as a unit investment trust under the Investment Company Act of 1940, not as an open-end fund. This is historically significant: SPY's structure predates the modern open-end ETF wrapper that funds like VOO and IVV use.
Practical consequences of the UIT structure include:
- Dividend handling: SPY must hold dividend cash in a non-interest-bearing account until it distributes quarterly. Open-end ETFs can reinvest dividends in index securities immediately. This creates a small cash drag in rising markets.
- Securities lending: UITs are prohibited from lending their portfolio securities. Open-end ETFs can and often do lend securities, generating revenue that can partially offset fund expenses.
- No substitution: A UIT generally cannot substitute portfolio holdings outside its defined basket without regulatory approval, giving the trust less operational flexibility than an open-end fund.
The UIT structure does not make SPY a lower-quality fund for long-term holding, but investors who compare SPY's reported expense ratio with VOO or IVV should understand that the structural difference in dividend handling represents an additional implicit cost not captured in the stated expense ratio.
SPY's expense ratio and cost
State Street reported a 0.0945% gross expense ratio as of September 6, 2026. On a hypothetical constant $10,000 balance, that is approximately $9.45 per year in fund-level expenses before market movement.
SPY's expense ratio is higher than VOO (0.03% as of April 28, 2026) and IVV (0.03% as of 2026 reporting). The gap reflects SPY's legacy UIT structure, which carries trustee fees and other charges embedded in its trust indenture that were set in 1993. State Street has reduced fees over the years but remains above the open-end fund alternatives.
Total ownership cost also includes bid-ask spread (which can be advantageous for SPY given its exceptional trading volume), brokerage commissions if applicable, and tax consequences of distributions. Investors holding for decades face a meaningful compounding headwind from the extra 0.0645 percentage points relative to the 0.03% alternatives.
SPY vs. VOO vs. IVV
All three funds target the same S&P 500 benchmark. The choice among them is not primarily a question of which recently outperformed. Because they track the same index, long-run total-return differences are almost entirely explained by expense ratios and structural differences in dividend handling.
| Feature | SPY | VOO | IVV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Issuer | State Street | Vanguard | BlackRock iShares |
| Structure | Unit Investment Trust | Open-end ETF | Open-end ETF |
| Expense ratio (2026 verified) | 0.0945% | 0.03% | 0.03% |
| Inception | Jan 22, 1993 | Sep 7, 2010 | May 15, 2000 |
| Dividend reinvestment | Quarterly cash drag | Continuous | Continuous |
| Securities lending | Not permitted (UIT) | Permitted | Permitted |
Expense ratio sources: SPY: State Street, September 6, 2026; VOO: Vanguard, April 28, 2026; IVV: iShares, 2026 product page. For the comparison tool, see the ETF Cost Comparison Tool.
SPY liquidity and trading
SPY is consistently one of the most actively traded securities in U.S. equity markets. Its high average daily volume supports a liquid secondary market with a typically tight bid-ask spread, making it the dominant instrument for institutional short-term trading, hedging and tactical allocation.
Investors using SPY primarily as a long-term buy-and-hold vehicle should note that the trading-liquidity advantage matters less in that context, while the expense ratio difference from lower-cost alternatives compounds over time. For short-duration positioning, options market depth, and strategies that require rapid adjustment, SPY's liquidity characteristics may outweigh its higher expense ratio.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What does SPY track?
- SPY seeks to track the S&P 500 Index, a market-capitalization-weighted index of approximately 500 large U.S. publicly traded companies. State Street is the fund's sponsor and the fund is structured as a unit investment trust rather than as an open-end mutual fund.
- What is SPY's expense ratio?
- State Street reported a 0.0945% gross expense ratio for SPY as of September 6, 2026. This is higher than VOO and IVV (both 0.03% as of their respective verification dates) because of SPY's legacy structure and trustee fees. Always verify the current figure in the fund's prospectus.
- How is SPY different from VOO and IVV?
- SPY is a unit investment trust, while VOO and IVV are open-end mutual funds registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940. This structural difference means SPY cannot reinvest dividends until a quarterly distribution date, which can create a small cash drag relative to the benchmark during rising markets. SPY also has a higher expense ratio than VOO and IVV as of 2026 reporting. However, SPY's long track record and high trading volume make it the dominant instrument for institutional and short-term trading.
- When was SPY launched?
- SPY launched on January 22, 1993, making it the first exchange-traded fund listed in the United States.
References
- State Street Global Advisors, State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY). primary fund facts page, verified September 7, 2026.
- Nasdaq Trader, Nasdaq Trader Symbol Directory, listing status verification.
- SEC EDGAR, EDGAR: SPY registration and prospectus filings, for fund structure and legal documentation.