SPDR ETFs: List, Differences & How to Choose

SPDR ETFs: What You Are Comparing

SPDR ETFs cover a wide range of investment exposures. Some are designed as broad portfolio building blocks, while others deliberately emphasize a market segment, investment style, industry, sector, or bond category.

That means “SPDR ETF” describes the product family, not one investment strategy.

SPY and SPYM both provide S&P 500 exposure. SPTM reaches more broadly across the U.S. stock market. SPDW focuses on developed markets outside the United States. SPEM focuses on emerging markets. SPAB provides broad U.S. bond exposure. XLK, XLF, XLE, and other Select Sector SPDR funds intentionally focus on individual sectors.

Start with the portfolio job. Then compare funds designed to perform that job.

SPDR ETFs: Selected Funds and Research Categories

The searchable table below highlights selected State Street SPDR ETFs that illustrate different portfolio roles. It is not a complete fund list, ranking, or recommendation.

SPY vs. SPYM: Same S&P 500, Different ETF Vehicles

SPY and SPYM both seek to provide exposure to the S&P 500. That means their basic market exposure is similar: large U.S. companies represented in the index.

But sharing a benchmark does not make two ETFs identical.

Investors can compare:

• current expense ratios,
• fund structure,
• bid-ask spreads,
• trading volume and liquidity,
• share price and fractional-share availability,
• recurring-investment support,
• and how the ETF will actually be used.

SPY has an unusually long history and is structured as a unit investment trust. SPYM is part of State Street's portfolio ETF lineup.

A long-term household investor may weigh costs and implementation differently from an institutional or active trader who places greater value on trading liquidity and options activity.

The important point is that the benchmark answers what market you own, while the ETF structure and trading characteristics help answer how you own it.

Why Older Articles May Still Call SPYM “SPLG”

Investors researching State Street's lower-cost S&P 500 ETF may encounter older articles, screenshots, or portfolio records that refer to SPLG.

State Street changed the ticker for the SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF from SPLG to SPYM effective October 31, 2025.

That is an important reminder: ticker symbols and product names can change even when the investment itself continues.

Before placing a trade, verify the ticker against the issuer's current fund page instead of relying on an older article or saved screenshot.

SPTM vs. SPY or SPYM: Broader U.S. Market Coverage

SPY and SPYM focus on the S&P 500, which represents large U.S. companies.

SPTM follows a broader U.S. stock-market benchmark that includes large-, mid-, and small-cap companies.

That does not automatically make one approach better. It changes the market exposure.

An investor who already owns a broad U.S. market fund should check whether adding SPY or SPYM simply increases the weight of large companies already held.

Likewise, someone using SPY or SPYM as the U.S. stock core may intentionally add a mid-cap or small-cap ETF, but should decide that allocation deliberately rather than assuming more tickers automatically mean more diversification.

International SPDR ETFs: Developed and Emerging Markets

State Street's ETF lineup also includes international stock funds.

SPDW focuses on developed markets outside the United States, while SPEM focuses on emerging markets.

Splitting developed and emerging markets into separate ETFs gives an investor control over the relative allocation, but it also adds another portfolio decision.

Before combining international funds, compare:

• which countries are included,
• developed versus emerging-market exposure,
• company-size coverage,
• and whether another fund in the portfolio already contains those markets.

SPDR Bond ETFs: Duration and Credit Still Matter

SPAB is a broad U.S. aggregate-bond ETF. State Street also offers Treasury, corporate, high-yield, short-term, intermediate-term, and long-term bond strategies.

The word “bond” does not make those funds interchangeable.

Compare:

• duration,
• maturity,
• credit quality,
• government versus corporate exposure,
• yield sources,
• and the role the fund is supposed to play in the portfolio.

A high-yield corporate bond fund can behave very differently from a Treasury fund during market stress.

Choosing the bond ETF with the highest current yield without comparing those risks can unintentionally turn a defensive allocation into a credit or duration bet.

Sector SPDR Funds: An Intentional Tilt, Not New Diversification

The Select Sector SPDR lineup divides major portions of the S&P 500 into sectors such as technology, financials, energy, healthcare, utilities, and consumer categories.

Examples include:

• XLK — Technology,
• XLF — Financials,
• XLE — Energy,
• XLV — Health Care,
• XLI — Industrials,
• XLU — Utilities,
• XLP — Consumer Staples,
• XLY — Consumer Discretionary,
• XLB — Materials,
• XLRE — Real Estate,
• and XLC — Communication Services.

If an investor already owns SPY, SPYM, or another S&P 500 fund, those sector stocks are already represented in the portfolio.

Adding a sector ETF therefore increases the weight of that sector. It does not create exposure to an entirely new market.

A Practical SPDR Sector-Overlap Example

Suppose a hypothetical portfolio has 70% of its assets in an S&P 500 ETF.

The investor then adds another 10% position in XLK because technology companies have recently performed well.

The resulting technology exposure is not merely that 10%.

The S&P 500 ETF already contains technology companies. The XLK position sits on top of that existing exposure.

The proper question is therefore:

How much of the entire portfolio will be exposed to technology after combining the broad fund and the sector fund?

If the investor intentionally wants that overweight, the sector ETF can serve that purpose. But it should be called a deliberate concentration decision, not additional diversification.

Compare SPDR ETF Costs Without Changing the Investment Question

Compare expenses only after narrowing the choices to ETFs that serve the same portfolio role.

SPY and SPYM both provide S&P 500 exposure, so a cost comparison between them is meaningful.

Comparing the fee on an S&P 500 ETF with the fee on a technology, high-yield bond, or emerging-market ETF does not answer the same investment question.

The expense ratio is an annual percentage charged inside the fund. ETF investors should also consider:

• bid-ask spreads,
• brokerage costs where applicable,
• recurring-purchase support,
• fractional-share availability,
• and tax consequences if replacing an existing holding.

Use the investment fee calculator when you want to test how recurring annual expenses can affect long-term results.

State Street / SPDR Mistakes Worth Catching

• Buying SPY and SPYM as though they provide different stock-market exposure.
• Searching for SPLG without realizing its ticker changed to SPYM.
• Adding a sector ETF without counting the same sector already held inside an S&P 500 fund.
• Using the number of ETF tickers as a measure of diversification.
• Adding mid-cap or small-cap funds without checking whether a broader U.S. stock fund already includes them.
• Choosing international funds without checking whether emerging markets are already included elsewhere.
• Choosing a bond ETF primarily because its yield is higher.
• Comparing fees between funds that provide completely different exposures.

Your SPDR ETF Research Checklist

1. Write down the portfolio role before searching for a ticker.
2. Verify the current fund name and ticker on State Street's website.
3. Identify the benchmark or active investment strategy.
4. Compare U.S., international, sector, and company-size exposure.
5. Review the largest holdings.
6. Check overlap with ETFs and mutual funds already owned.
7. For sector funds, calculate the sector exposure already inside broad-market funds.
8. For bond ETFs, compare duration and credit quality.
9. Compare the current expense ratio and trading costs.
10. Check recurring-investment and fractional-share support at your brokerage.
11. Consider taxes before replacing an appreciated taxable holding.

Keep the checklist with your investment notes so future portfolio decisions use the same criteria. Diversification can reduce concentration risk, but it cannot guarantee a profit or prevent losses.

Build the Allocation Before Picking the Brand

SPDR offers broad stock funds, international funds, bonds, sectors, dividends, factors, and other strategies.

That variety is useful only after the investor knows what the portfolio actually needs.

Decide the intended allocation to U.S. stocks, international stocks, bonds, and any deliberate specialty positions first.

Then compare SPDR ETFs with other funds that perform the same portfolio job.

Use asset allocation for beginners to define the mix, the diversification guide to evaluate overlap and concentration, and the ETF and mutual fund companies comparison when researching competing providers.