IVV vs QUAL: Correlation & Overlap
iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) and iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF (QUAL) show a very strong relationship: their 3-year correlation of weekly returns is 0.97. By holdings, the two funds overlap 44.3% by weight.
Data as of 2026-08-27 · refreshed every trading day · weekly returns · methodology
How correlated are IVV and QUAL?
Across a 3-year window, the weekly returns of IVV and QUAL correlate at 0.97, very strong, meaning they move nearly in lockstep. Recent behaviour matches the longer record: 0.93 over 1 year against 0.97 over 3. Stretching to 5 years gives 0.97, with an annualized covariance of 196.0 %².
Among the 122 assets we track against IVV, QUAL ranks #5 by 3-year correlation. Neither side won the trailing year by much: +20.7% against +19.7%. The link looks structural: the rolling one-year correlation barely moved, holding between 0.92 and 0.99.
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.
IVV vs QUAL: side by side
| IVV (iShares Core S&P 500 ETF) | QUAL (iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1-year return | +20.7% | +19.7% |
| 5-year return | +83.0% | +68.0% |
| Volatility (ann.) | 14.5% | 14.0% |
| Beta vs S&P 500 | 1.00 | 0.93 |
| Max drawdown (3Y) | -18.8% | -18.0% |
| Dividend yield | 1.09% | 0.86% |
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.15% |
| Assets under management | $869.2B | $46.5B |
| Sector / category | ETF · US Large Cap | ETF · US Style |
IVV, iShares's Large Blend fund, carries $869.2B under management, 503 holdings, a 0.03% expense ratio, a 1.09% trailing dividend yield. QUAL, iShares's Large Blend fund, carries $46.5B under management, 123 holdings, a 0.15% expense ratio, a 0.86% trailing dividend yield.
Portfolio overlap between IVV and QUAL
The two portfolios overlap heavily, with 117 holdings in common adding up to 44.3% of fund weight. Where correlation shows the co-movement, the overlap shows its source.
| Common holding | Weight in IVV | Weight in QUAL |
|---|---|---|
| AAPL | 6.96% | 6.62% |
| NVDA | 7.67% | 6.00% |
| MSFT | 5.57% | 7.51% |
| GOOGL | 3.03% | 1.93% |
| META | 1.91% | 3.75% |
| GOOG | 2.42% | 1.52% |
| LLY | 1.42% | 3.72% |
| BRK.B | 1.40% | 1.79% |
| XOM | 0.99% | 2.18% |
| JNJ | 0.98% | 2.13% |
| V | 0.96% | 3.26% |
| MA | 0.73% | 2.34% |
| WMT | 0.69% | 0.91% |
| COST | 0.64% | 1.09% |
| LRCX | 0.59% | 3.66% |
Largest positions held only by IVV: AMZN (3.85%), AVGO (2.54%), MU (1.60%), TSLA (1.47%), JPM (1.44%). Only by QUAL: CDE (0.12%), FN (0.09%), GGG (0.09%), UTHR (0.07%), RPM (0.05%).
Overlap = sum of the smaller of the two weights across common holdings, from issuer disclosures as of 2026-08-26. Top 15 common positions shown.
Year-by-year returns
| Year | IVV | QUAL |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -18.2% | -20.5% |
| 2023 | +26.3% | +30.9% |
| 2024 | +24.9% | +22.3% |
| 2025 | +17.8% | +12.7% |
| 2026 | +13.7% | +13.5% |
Calendar-year price returns; the current year is year-to-date as of the data date above.
Are IVV and QUAL good diversifiers for each other?
No: a correlation of 0.97 means IVV and QUAL tend to fall together, which is precisely when diversification is supposed to help. The 44.3% holdings overlap makes the redundancy concrete: much of it is the same book twice.
FAQ
What is the correlation between IVV and QUAL?
As of 2026-08-27, the correlation of weekly returns between IVV and QUAL is 0.97 over 3 years, 0.93 over 1 year and 0.97 over 5 years.
Is QUAL a good diversifier for IVV?
No: a correlation of 0.97 means IVV and QUAL tend to fall together, which is precisely when diversification is supposed to help. The 44.3% holdings overlap makes the redundancy concrete: much of it is the same book twice.
How much do IVV and QUAL overlap?
44.3% by weight, across 117 common holdings, based on issuer-disclosed portfolios as of 2026-08-26.
Use this data
$ curl https://www.pairbook.io/api/v1/pairs/ivv-vs-qual.json
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Related comparisons
Hubs: IVV correlations · QUAL correlations
