- The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF is now the largest ETF in the world.
- It surpassed the long running leader, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF.
- In January, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF pulled in 25% of all ETF inflows.
This new asset leader has been by far the fastest growing ETF in recent years.
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have revolutionized investing, making it easier for investors to access the markets and build diversified portfolios all within one investment that trades like an individual stock.
The concept was first brought to market in the United States in 1993 by State Street Global Advisors who introduced the SPDR S&P 500 Trust ETF, an ETF that contained the holdings of the S&P 500 and tracked its performance.
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF has been the largest ETF on the market since then, growing in assets as more investors flocked to ETFs.
But this week, after more than 30 years, a new ETF has taken over the top spot as the world’s largest ETF, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO).
According to several data providers, including ETF Database, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has $632.2 billion in assets under management, surpassing the SPDR S&P 500 ETF, which has $630.4 billion. The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:IVV) is third at $609.1 billion.
Vanguard ETF Pulling in One-Quarter of all ETF Assets
The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has been steadily closing the gap in recent years as the fastest-growing ETF. In 2024, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF had the most inflows of any ETF, pulling in $116.1 billion, followed by the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF with $86.8 billion. The iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (NASDAQ:IBIT) was third with $37.2 billion in inflows.
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF was further down the list with about $22.5 billion in inflows in 2024.
It is a similar pattern so far in 2025, as the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF brought in some $21.6 billion in inflows in January alone. That accounted for about 25% of the $86 billion in inflows that the entire market saw in January. The next closest had just $3.8 billion in inflows in January, according to ETF.com.
Part of the appeal for Vanguard is its low fees. The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has a miniscule expense ratio of 0.03%, which is well below the SPDR S&P 500 ETF expense ratio of 0.09%.
With its low fees, it has gained a huge following among individual retail investors while the SPDR ETF is favored by institutional investors.