DIA vs SPY Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
DIA and SPY both provide blue-chip U.S. equity exposure, but through fundamentally different methodologies. DIA tracks 30 price-weighted DJIA companies with monthly dividends; SPY tracks 500 market-cap weighted S&P 500 companies with unmatched liquidity. SPY's superior diversification, market-cap weighting, and liquidity make it the preferred equity index vehicle; DIA's monthly dividends and DJIA recognition attract specific investor segments.
DIA vs SPY is a comparison of the world's oldest iconic index (DJIA price-weighted, 30 companies) against the world's most used institutional benchmark (S&P 500 market-cap weighted, 500 companies) — SPY represents more modern, economically sound index methodology while DIA offers monthly dividends and blue-chip concentration.
SPY holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. SPY has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+11.46% vs +10.78% for DIA).
- prefer monthly dividend payments from an equity ETF to match monthly income needs or reinvestment schedules
- value concentrated exposure to the 30 most iconic U.S. blue-chip companies in the DJIA
- want lower technology sector weight than the S&P 500 with more industrials and consumer staples exposure
- are comfortable with price-weighting methodology that gives high-priced stocks disproportionate index influence
- prefer market-cap weighted S&P 500 exposure as the economically rational and institutionally dominant benchmark
- value the deepest options market and tightest bid-ask spreads for tactical equity market trading and hedging
- want 500-company diversification across all U.S. large-cap sectors rather than DIA's 30-company concentration
- are comfortable with quarterly dividend distribution and UIT structure in exchange for maximum institutional liquidity
| Metric | DIA | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| ETF scorei | 27.2 | 27.3 |
| Latest closei | $519.34 | $752.10 |
| 1M returni | +1.63% | -2.28% |
| 3M returni | -1.91% | -0.49% |
| 6M returni | +6.82% | +5.28% |
| 1Y returni | +10.78% | +11.46% |
The ETF score weights long-term returns and risk-adjusted performance most heavily, but still rewards low expense ratios, larger fund size, and broader diversification — so it can favor low-cost, broad, mega-cap funds over smaller thematic or actively-managed funds even when the latter have delivered stronger returns.
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | DIA | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $11.29K (+12.9%) started 2025-11-03 | $11.25K (+12.5%) started 2025-11-03 |
| 5Y ago | $17.14K (+71.4%) started 2021-11-03 | $18.54K (+85.4%) started 2021-11-03 |
| 10Y ago | $43.39K (+333.9%) started 2016-11-03 | $50.06K (+400.6%) started 2016-11-03 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | DIA | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratioi | 0.16% | 0.09% |
| Total assets (AUM)i | $43.86B | $809.22B |
| Dividend yieldi | 1.42% | 0.99% |
| Trailing P/Ei | 21.04 | 23.95 |
| Betai | 0.86 | 1.02 |
| 52-week change | 10.78% | 11.46% |
| Metric | DIA | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y returni | +10.78% | +11.46% |
| 6M returni | +6.82% | +5.28% |
| 3M returni | -1.91% | -0.49% |
| 1M returni | +1.63% | -2.28% |
| 1Y Sharpe ratio | 0.56 | 0.55 |
| Betai | 0.86 | 1.02 |
| Dividend yieldi | 1.42% | 0.99% |
| 5Y CAGR | +9.39% | +11.60% |
Over the past year, DIA and SPY have moved strongly in the same direction (correlation of 0.82), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | DIA | SPY |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +11.29% | +11.25% |
| CAGRi | +11.33% | +11.29% | |
| Volatilityi | 12.62% | 12.80% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.56 | 0.55 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.82 | 0.79 | |
| Max drawdowni | 9.76% | 8.88% | |
| Current drawdowni | 4.00% | 3.46% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 2.18% | 1.46% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 3.07% | 2.14% | |
| Max daily dropi | 2.18% | 2.58% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 4.35% | 3.82% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +56.62% | +73.03% |
| CAGRi | +9.39% | +11.60% | |
| Volatilityi | 14.81% | 17.17% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.38 | 0.47 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.54 | 0.67 | |
| Max drawdowni | 20.76% | 24.50% | |
| Current drawdowni | 4.00% | 3.46% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 4.30% | 5.59% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 6.05% | 8.45% | |
| Max daily dropi | 5.43% | 5.85% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 10.27% | 11.50% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +251.22% | +321.82% |
| CAGRi | +13.39% | +15.49% | |
| Volatilityi | 17.56% | 17.97% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.55 | 0.64 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.77 | 0.90 | |
| Max drawdowni | 36.70% | 33.72% | |
| Current drawdowni | 4.00% | 3.46% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 3.91% | 4.31% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 6.17% | 7.16% | |
| Max daily dropi | 12.76% | 10.94% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 18.87% | 17.97% |
| Category | DIA | SPY |
|---|---|---|
| Fund name | State Street SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust | State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust |
| Type | ETF | ETF |
| Expense ratioi | 0.16% | 0.09% |
| Total assets (AUM)i | $43.86B | $809.22B |
| Dividend yieldi | 1.42% | 0.99% |
- Monthly dividend payment schedule is unusual among equity ETFs and attractive to income investors who prefer monthly cash flow
- DJIA's 30 blue-chip companies are among the most financially sound and globally recognized corporations
- DJIA as a benchmark has global recognition and historical significance as one of the oldest equity indices
- Market-cap weighting is the most economically rational methodology, with weights reflecting actual market judgments about corporate value
- 500 holdings across all sectors provides true large-cap U.S. diversification versus DIA's 30 blue-chips
- World's most liquid ETF by trading volume — the deepest options market, tightest bid-ask spreads, and largest AUM of any ETF
- Price-weighting is economically irrational — a stock split (which doesn't change economic value) changes its index weight dramatically
- Only 30 holdings versus SPY's 500 creates far more concentration and less sector diversification
- Limited technology exposure — the DJIA has historically underweighted technology relative to the S&P 500, costing performance during tech-led markets
- 0.0945% expense ratio is higher than IVV's 0.03%, though lower than DIA's 0.16%
- UIT structure holds dividends as cash until quarterly distribution rather than reinvesting immediately
- S&P 500 concentration in megacap tech (AAPL, MSFT, NVDA, AMZN, GOOGL) means the index is heavily influenced by a few companies
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