HYG vs SPY: Correlation
Measured on weekly returns over the past three years, iShares iBoxx High Yield Corporate Bond ETF (HYG) and SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) carry a correlation of 0.69, a strong link.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are HYG and SPY?
Over the past 3 years, HYG and SPY moved with a correlation of 0.69, which is strong. Little has changed lately, as the 1-year reading of 0.74 lands near the 3-year figure. Over 5 years the correlation is 0.74, and the annualized covariance of weekly returns is 47.0 %².
Among the 46 assets we track against HYG, SPY ranks #19 by 3-year correlation. Correlation aside, the last 12 months split them widely, with SPY ahead by 16.0 points (+4.6% versus +20.6%). The rolling one-year correlation moved between 0.56 and 0.85 over the past three years, a moderate range. Note the risk asymmetry: SPY runs 3.1 times the annualized volatility of the other leg, so equal-weighting the two is not an equal-risk position.
How is this computed?
Pearson correlation on weekly returns: ρ(A,B) = cov(rA, rB) / (σA · σB), over windows of 52, 156 and 260 weeks. Covariance is annualized (×52) and expressed in %². Full definitions on the methodology page.
HYG vs SPY: side by side
| HYG (iShares iBoxx High Yield Corporate Bond ETF) | SPY (SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +4.6% | +20.6% |
| 5-year return | +19.9% | +82.4% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 4.7% | 14.5% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 0.22 | 1.00 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -4.6% | -18.8% |
| Dividend yield | 5.94% | 1.01% |
| Expense ratio | 0.49% | 0.09% |
| Assets under management | $17.1B | $795.3B |
| Sector / category | ETF · Bonds | ETF · US Large Cap |
HYG is a High Yield Bond fund from iShares: $17.1B under management, a 0.49% expense ratio, a 5.94% trailing dividend yield. SPY is a Large Blend fund from State Street Investment Management: $795.3B under management, 504 holdings, a 0.09% expense ratio, a 1.01% trailing dividend yield.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | HYG | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -11.0% | -18.2% |
| 2023 | +11.5% | +26.2% |
| 2024 | +8.0% | +24.9% |
| 2025 | +8.6% | +17.7% |
| 2026 | +2.5% | +13.7% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are HYG and SPY good diversifiers for each other?
Somewhat, no more. With 0.69 correlation, most large moves hit both names, and the diversification benefit stays modest.
FAQ
What is the correlation between HYG and SPY?
As of 2026-08-27, the correlation of weekly returns between HYG and SPY is 0.69 over 3 years, 0.74 over 1 year and 0.74 over 5 years.
Is SPY a good diversifier for HYG?
Somewhat, no more. With 0.69 correlation, most large moves hit both names, and the diversification benefit stays modest.
What does a correlation of 0.69 mean?
On the −1 to +1 scale, 0.69 describes how much the two returns move together: +1 is lockstep, 0 is independence, negative values mean opposite directions. It says nothing about which performed better.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/hyg-vs-spy.json
Embed this badge (it refreshes with the data), with attribution:
[](https://www.pairbook.io/pair/hyg-vs-spy/)
Free with attribution; caching and terms are described in the API documentation.
Related comparisons
Hubs: HYG correlations · SPY correlations
