What Is SPYG? SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF
Short answer
SPYG is the large-cap growth slice of the S&P 500, holding the index members with the strongest sales growth, earnings change, and price momentum. In practice that means a tech-heavy, megacap-concentrated portfolio (NVIDIA, Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Broadcom) at a rock-bottom 0.04% expense ratio. It pairs with its value sibling SPYV, which holds the other half of the index, and competes with Vanguard's VUG, a broader CRSP-based large-cap growth fund. All three are cheap, passive growth options; SPYG stays inside the S&P 500 universe while VUG casts a wider net.
SPYG is issued by State Street Global Advisors (SPDR) and tracks S&P 500 Growth Index. It charges a 0.04% expense ratio, holds approximately approximately $49 billion in assets under management, yields about approximately 0.5%, and launched in September 25, 2000.
What is SPYG?
SPYG is the large-cap growth slice of the S&P 500, holding the index members with the strongest sales growth, earnings change, and price momentum. In practice that means a tech-heavy, megacap-concentrated portfolio (NVIDIA, Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Broadcom) at a rock-bottom 0.04% expense ratio. It pairs with its value sibling SPYV, which holds the other half of the index, and competes with Vanguard's VUG, a broader CRSP-based large-cap growth fund. All three are cheap, passive growth options; SPYG stays inside the S&P 500 universe while VUG casts a wider net.
SPYG is issued by State Street Global Advisors (SPDR) and tracks S&P 500 Growth Index, so a single ticker gives you the whole basket of underlying holdings weighted by the index's methodology rather than by any active stock-picking.
SPYG holdings: what's actually inside
SPYG is weighted toward its largest constituents. As of early 2026, the top holdings are:
| Rank | Ticker | Company | % of SPYG | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NVDA | NVIDIA Corp | 14.4% | |
| 2 | MSFT | Microsoft Corp | 7.9% | |
| 3 | AAPL | Apple Inc | 6.2% | |
| 4 | GOOGL | Alphabet Inc Class A | 6.1% | |
| 5 | AVGO | Broadcom Inc | 5.5% | |
| 6 | GOOG | Alphabet Inc Class C | 4.9% | |
| 7 | MU | Micron Technology Inc | 3.6% | |
| 8 | AMZN | Amazon.com Inc | 3.6% | |
| 9 | META | Meta Platforms Inc | 3.6% | |
| 10 | BRK.B | Berkshire Hathaway Inc Class B | 2.5% |
The remaining holdings make up the balance of the fund, with weights tapering off below the top names. Because the index reconstitutes on a rolling basis, the roster stays current without active management. Each ticker above links to its individual stock guide in Walnut.
The bottom line on SPYG
SPYG is a cheap, straightforward way to overweight the growth style within the S&P 500, but it is highly concentrated in a few megacap technology stocks. That concentration is the source of both its recent strength and its sensitivity to any pullback in big tech.
More on SPYG
Whether SPYG is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, concentration, and what would have to be true for it to outperform from here in is SPYG a buy?
SPYG yields approximately 0.5% as of early 2026, paid by passing through the dividends of its underlying holdings. For the payout schedule, history, and how the distributions are taxed, see SPYG dividend: yield and schedule.
Build a portfolio around SPYG with Walnut
Use SPYG as your core holding, then let Walnut's AI propose thematic satellites: AI infrastructure, dividend growth, clean energy, whatever you believe in. Connect your broker, build the basket in conversation, track it as one unit.
FAQ
What is SPYG?
+
SPYG is the SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETF, run by State Street. It tracks the S&P 500 Growth Index, holding the roughly 150 large-cap U.S. companies within the S&P 500 that screen highest on sales growth, earnings change, and price momentum. The fund is heavily weighted toward technology and communication services.
What is SPYG's expense ratio?
+
SPYG charges an expense ratio of 0.04%, which is among the lowest in the large-cap growth category. On a $10,000 investment that works out to about $4 per year in fund fees. The low cost is one of the main reasons investors choose it over pricier active growth funds.
SPYG vs SPYV vs VUG?
+
SPYG holds the growth half of the S&P 500 while SPYV holds the value half, so the two are designed as complementary slices of the same index. VUG is Vanguard's large-cap growth ETF, which tracks a broader CRSP index and reaches beyond the S&P 500 universe, making it more diversified across names. All three are cheap and passive; the choice depends on how concentrated and how S&P-500-specific you want the exposure to be. Walnut is informational, not investment advice.
What does SPYG hold?
+
SPYG holds about 150 large-cap U.S. growth stocks, with more than half its weight in technology. The largest positions are megacaps like NVIDIA, Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Broadcom, Amazon, and Meta Platforms. Because it is market-cap weighted, the top 10 names make up a large share of the entire fund.
Does SPYG pay a dividend?
+
Yes, SPYG pays a quarterly dividend, but the yield is small at roughly 0.5%. Growth companies tend to reinvest profits rather than return cash to shareholders, so the income is modest compared with value or dividend-focused ETFs. Most of the expected return from SPYG comes from price appreciation rather than dividends.
Is SPYG a good investment?
+
SPYG offers low-cost, diversified exposure to the growth style within the S&P 500, but it is concentrated in a handful of megacap technology stocks, which raises both its upside and its risk. Whether it fits depends on your goals, time horizon, and how much technology exposure you already hold elsewhere. Walnut is informational, not investment advice.
How concentrated is SPYG in technology?
+
SPYG is very technology-heavy, with roughly half of its assets in the technology sector and a large additional slice in communication services names like Alphabet and Meta. A single stock, NVIDIA, has at times made up more than 14% of the fund. This concentration means SPYG's performance is closely tied to the fortunes of a few large companies.
How is the S&P 500 Growth Index built?
+
S&P scores every S&P 500 company on three growth factors, sales growth, the ratio of earnings change to price, and 12-month price momentum, and assigns the most growth-oriented companies to the S&P 500 Growth Index. Some companies sit in both the growth and value indexes when their characteristics are mixed. SPYG then weights those growth members by market capitalization.
How do I compare SPYG to similar ETFs?
+
Put a few fields side by side: the expense ratio (fees compound over decades), the index or strategy it tracks, the top holdings and how much they overlap with what you already own, the dividend yield, and the AUM, liquidity, and bid-ask spread that affect trading costs. For index funds, tracking error (how closely it follows its index) and tax efficiency matter too. SPYG's figures are above; the full method is in Walnut's guide on how to compare ETFs.
Related ETFs
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Holdings weights and fund statistics on this page are approximations stamped to early 2026; verify current figures against State Street Global Advisors (SPDR)'s fund page or your broker before investing.