IVV vs QQQ: which ETF won each year?

Yearly returns side by side, one winner per year — dividends included, priced as you'd actually buy them.

IVV tracks the S&P 500 IndexQQQ tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index

What did the last 10 years do to $10,000?

You invest $10,000 at the start of the window and touch nothing — dividends reinvested, the running year not counted.

IVV turned it into
$39,497
+14.72% per year on average · 2016–2025
QQQ turned it into
$59,045
+19.43% per year on average · 2016–2025
Difference
−$19,548
QQQ made more of the same money

IVV vs QQQ, year by year

Calendar-year total returns (dividends included) side by side, and who took the crown each year. A dash means the fund did not exist yet.

Years compared
27
where both funds were trading
IVV won
10
years
QQQ won
17
years
YearIVVQQQWinner
2026 (so far)+12.74%+20.83%QQQ
2025+17.85%+20.77%QQQ
2024+24.93%+25.58%QQQ
2023+26.31%+54.86%QQQ
2022-18.16%-32.58%IVV
2021+28.76%+27.42%IVV
2020+18.40%+48.41%QQQ
2019+31.25%+38.96%QQQ
2018-4.49%-0.13%QQQ
2017+21.75%+32.66%QQQ
2016+11.54%+7.10%IVV
2015+1.28%+9.44%QQQ
2014+13.57%+19.18%QQQ
2013+32.31%+36.63%QQQ
2012+16.06%+18.11%QQQ
2011+1.88%+3.48%QQQ
2010+15.10%+20.14%QQQ
2009+26.61%+54.68%QQQ
2008-37.01%-41.73%IVV
2007+5.29%+19.03%QQQ
2006+15.94%+7.14%IVV
2005+4.87%+1.57%IVV
2004+10.79%+10.54%IVV
2003+28.46%+49.67%QQQ
2002-21.53%-37.37%IVV
2001-11.96%-33.34%IVV
2000-6.08%-36.11%IVV
1999—+78.95%—

IVV vs QQQ in plain words

IVV tracks the S&P 500 Index while QQQ follows the Nasdaq-100 Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. IVV charges 0.03% a year in running costs and QQQ charges 0.18% — IVV is the cheaper fund to hold.

Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically. Across the 27 calendar years both funds were trading, IVV finished the year ahead 10 times and QQQ 17 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $39,497 in IVV versus $59,045 in QQQ by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested.

Fund facts: IVV vs QQQ

FactIVVQQQ
FundiShares Core S&P 500 ETFInvesco QQQ Trust
TracksS&P 500 IndexNasdaq-100 Index
Yearly cost (TER)0.03%0.18%
DividendsDistributing — dividends paid outDistributing — dividends paid out
Launched15 May 200010 Mar 1999
$10,000 investedWhat $10,000 in IVV becameWhat $10,000 in QQQ became

How bumpy the ride was: IVV vs QQQ

These head-to-head figures use only the 6,634 trading days both funds were listed: 19 May 2000 to 6 Oct 2026, roughly 26.3 years.

QQQ swung more than IVV: annualised volatility of 18.9% for IVV against 25.9% for QQQ, with IVV moving 1% or more on 26.9% of trading days and QQQ on 38.3%. Both had their worst day on 16 Mar 2020: IVV closed -11.57% and QQQ -11.98%.

QQQ had the deeper drawdown: it fell -80.45% from its peak on 1 Sept 2000 to a low on 9 Oct 2002, then closed back above the old peak on 1 Jul 2014, 140 months after the low; IVV fell -55.25% from its peak on 9 Oct 2007 to a low on 9 Mar 2009, then closed back above the old peak on 16 Aug 2012, 41 months after the low.

Day to day the two usually move together: the correlation of their daily returns is 0.86, and they closed in opposite directions on 14.4% of the 6,633 days measured. The widest single-day gap came on 3 Jan 2001, when IVV moved +4.98% and QQQ +16.84%.

MeasureIVVQQQ
Annualised volatility18.9%25.9%
Worst day-11.57% on 16 Mar 2020-11.98% on 16 Mar 2020
Best day+11.10% on 28 Oct 2008+16.84% on 3 Jan 2001
Days moving 1% or more26.9% of days38.3% of days
Deepest drawdown-55.25%-80.45%
Peak to trough9 Oct 2007 → 9 Mar 20091 Sept 2000 → 9 Oct 2002
Back above the old peak16 Aug 2012 · 41 months1 Jul 2014 · 140 months

Years IVV and QQQ parted ways

In 15 of the 26 completed calendar years both funds were trading, the two returns ended more than 5 points apart. The widest split was 2000: IVV returned -6.08% and QQQ -36.11%, a gap of 30.0 points. They rose together in 20 years and fell together in 6 years.

YearIVVQQQGap (IVV − QQQ)
2023+26.31%+54.86%-28.5 pts
2022-18.16%-32.58%+14.4 pts
2020+18.40%+48.41%-30.0 pts
2019+31.25%+38.96%-7.7 pts
2017+21.75%+32.66%-10.9 pts
2015+1.28%+9.44%-8.2 pts
2014+13.57%+19.18%-5.6 pts
2010+15.10%+20.14%-5.0 pts
2009+26.61%+54.68%-28.1 pts
2007+5.29%+19.03%-13.7 pts
2006+15.94%+7.14%+8.8 pts
2003+28.46%+49.67%-21.2 pts
2002-21.53%-37.37%+15.8 pts
2001-11.96%-33.34%+21.4 pts
2000-6.08%-36.11%+30.0 pts

How often IVV beat QQQ over any 12 months

Across the 305 rolling 12-month windows since May 2000, measured month-end to month-end, IVV finished ahead in 32.1% of them (98) and QQQ in 67.9% (207).

12-month windows
305
month-end to month-end, overlapping
IVV ahead
32.1%
98 of 305 windows
QQQ ahead
67.9%
207 of 305 windows

$200 a month into each, 2001–2025

Putting $200 into each fund at the start of every month from January 2001 to December 2025 (300 payments, $60,000 in total) would have grown to $329,542 in IVV and $640,181 in QQQ, leaving QQQ $310,638 ahead.

OutcomeIVVQQQ
Paid in$60,000$60,000
Value at the end of 2025$329,542$640,181
Gain on the money paid in+$269,542+$580,181
Gain in %+449.24%+966.97%

Each payment rides the return of the month it lands in, dividends reinvested. Only calendar years with all twelve months of data for both funds count, so the plan may start later than the shared history.

Frequently asked

Is IVV or QQQ better?

Across the 27 calendar years both funds were trading, IVV finished the year ahead 10 times and QQQ 17 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $39,497 in IVV versus $59,045 in QQQ by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested. Past returns don't promise future ones — but this is what actually happened.

What is the difference between IVV and QQQ?

IVV tracks the S&P 500 Index while QQQ follows the Nasdaq-100 Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. IVV charges 0.03% a year in running costs and QQQ charges 0.18% — IVV is the cheaper fund to hold. Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically.

Which is more volatile, IVV or QQQ?

QQQ swung more than IVV: annualised volatility of 18.9% for IVV against 25.9% for QQQ, with IVV moving 1% or more on 26.9% of trading days and QQQ on 38.3%. Both had their worst day on 16 Mar 2020: IVV closed -11.57% and QQQ -11.98%.

Which had the deeper drawdown, IVV or QQQ?

QQQ had the deeper drawdown: it fell -80.45% from its peak on 1 Sept 2000 to a low on 9 Oct 2002, then closed back above the old peak on 1 Jul 2014, 140 months after the low; IVV fell -55.25% from its peak on 9 Oct 2007 to a low on 9 Mar 2009, then closed back above the old peak on 16 Aug 2012, 41 months after the low.

How often did IVV beat QQQ over a 12-month period?

Across the 305 rolling 12-month windows since May 2000, measured month-end to month-end, IVV finished ahead in 32.1% of them (98) and QQQ in 67.9% (207).

What would $10,000 in IVV have become?

$10,000 invested in IVV at the start of 2016 grew to $39,497 by the end of 2025, with dividends reinvested — an average of 14.7% per year.

Related comparisons

More head-to-heads featuring IVV or QQQ.

Source: Yahoo Finance daily adjusted closes for the US primary listings, dividends reinvested. Prices through · refreshed 7 Oct 2026, 08:49 UTC. How every number is calculated.