QQQ vs SCHD: which ETF won each year?
Yearly returns side by side, one winner per year — dividends included, priced as you'd actually buy them.
QQQtracks the Nasdaq-100 Index
SCHDtracks the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index
QQQ tracks the Nasdaq-100 IndexSCHD tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index
What did the last 10 years do to $10,000?
You invest $10,000 at the start of the window and touch nothing — dividends reinvested, the running year not counted.
QQQ vs SCHD, year by year
Calendar-year total returns (dividends included) side by side, and who took the crown each year. A dash means the fund did not exist yet.
| Year | QQQ | SCHD | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | +20.16% | +17.51% | QQQ |
| 2025 | +20.77% | +4.34% | QQQ |
| 2024 | +25.58% | +11.66% | QQQ |
| 2023 | +54.86% | +4.54% | QQQ |
| 2022 | -32.58% | -3.26% | SCHD |
| 2021 | +27.42% | +29.88% | SCHD |
| 2020 | +48.41% | +15.03% | QQQ |
| 2019 | +38.96% | +27.29% | QQQ |
| 2018 | -0.13% | -5.56% | QQQ |
| 2017 | +32.66% | +20.85% | QQQ |
| 2016 | +7.10% | +16.45% | SCHD |
| 2015 | +9.44% | -0.30% | QQQ |
| 2014 | +19.18% | +11.68% | QQQ |
| 2013 | +36.63% | +32.88% | QQQ |
| 2012 | +18.11% | +11.39% | QQQ |
| 2011 | +3.48% | +5.31% | SCHD |
| 2010 | +20.14% | — | — |
| 2009 | +54.68% | — | — |
| 2008 | -41.73% | — | — |
| 2007 | +19.03% | — | — |
| 2006 | +7.14% | — | — |
| 2005 | +1.57% | — | — |
| 2004 | +10.54% | — | — |
| 2003 | +49.67% | — | — |
| 2002 | -37.37% | — | — |
| 2001 | -33.34% | — | — |
| 2000 | -36.11% | — | — |
| 1999 | +78.95% | — | — |
QQQ vs SCHD in plain words
QQQ tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index while SCHD follows the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. QQQ charges 0.18% a year in running costs and SCHD charges 0.06% — SCHD is the cheaper fund to hold.
Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically. Across the 16 calendar years both funds were trading, QQQ finished the year ahead 12 times and SCHD 4 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $59,045 in QQQ versus $29,781 in SCHD by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested.
Fund facts: QQQ vs SCHD
| Fact | QQQ | SCHD |
|---|---|---|
| Fund | Invesco QQQ Trust | Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF |
| Tracks | Nasdaq-100 Index | Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index |
| Yearly cost (TER) | 0.18% | 0.06% |
| Dividends | Distributing — dividends paid out | Distributing — dividends paid out |
| Launched | 10 Mar 1999 | 20 Oct 2011 |
Frequently asked
Is QQQ or SCHD better?
Across the 16 calendar years both funds were trading, QQQ finished the year ahead 12 times and SCHD 4 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $59,045 in QQQ versus $29,781 in SCHD by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested. Past returns don't promise future ones — but this is what actually happened.
What is the difference between QQQ and SCHD?
QQQ tracks the Nasdaq-100 Index while SCHD follows the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. QQQ charges 0.18% a year in running costs and SCHD charges 0.06% — SCHD is the cheaper fund to hold. Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically.
What would $10,000 in QQQ have become?
$10,000 invested in QQQ at the start of 2016 grew to $59,045 by the end of 2025, with dividends reinvested — an average of 19.4% per year.