QQQ vs QQQM Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
QQQ and QQQM are the same Nasdaq-100 index in two different price wrappers. QQQ charges 0.20% for institutional liquidity and the deepest options market; QQQM charges 0.15% for long-term buy-and-hold investors. Invesco created QQQM precisely to give retail investors a cheaper alternative to QQQ without abandoning the flagship's institutional trading ecosystem.
QQQ vs QQQM is the simplest decision in ETF investing: if you trade or use options, use QQQ; if you buy and hold, use QQQM — same index, lower cost, same Invesco fund family.
QQQ holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. QQQ has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+21.77% vs +21.74% for QQQM).
- actively trade the Nasdaq-100 and need the world's most liquid ETF intraday
- use QQQ options for income generation, hedging, or tactical position management
- manage large institutional portfolios where bid-ask spread quality matters for execution costs
- are willing to pay the extra 0.05% for the deepest options market in the ETF universe
- want the same Nasdaq-100 exposure as QQQ at a 0.05% lower annual expense ratio
- are long-term buy-and-hold investors who don't need QQQ's institutional liquidity
- prefer to follow Invesco's own recommendation for retail investors in the Nasdaq-100
- are in retirement or taxable accounts where annual cost savings compound over decades
| Metric | QQQ | QQQM |
|---|---|---|
| ETF scorei | 81.0 | 81.0 |
| Latest closei | $721.45 | $296.91 |
| 1M returni | +0.75% | +0.70% |
| 6M returni | +24.24% | +24.21% |
| 1Y returni | +21.77% | +21.74% |
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 | QQQ | QQQM |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $12.24K (+22.4%) started 2025-09-18 | $12.23K (+22.3%) started 2025-09-18 |
| 5Y ago | $20.93K (+109.3%) started 2021-09-20 | $21.01K (+110.1%) started 2021-09-20 |
| 10Y ago | $70.75K (+607.5%) started 2016-09-19 | $26.36K (+163.6%) started 2020-10-13 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | QQQ | QQQM |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratioi | 0.18% | 0.15% |
| Total assets (AUM)i | $488.98B | $104.38B |
| Dividend yieldi | 0.42% | 0.44% |
| Trailing P/Ei | 29.41 | 29.39 |
| Betai | 1.24 | 1.24 |
| 52-week change | 21.77% | 21.74% |
| Metric | QQQ | QQQM |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y returni | +21.77% | +21.74% |
| 6M returni | +24.24% | +24.21% |
| 1M returni | +0.75% | +0.70% |
| 1Y Sharpe ratio | 0.87 | 0.88 |
| Betai | 1.24 | 1.24 |
| Dividend yieldi | 0.42% | 0.44% |
| 5Y CAGR | +15.24% | +15.29% |
Over the past year, QQQ and QQQM have moved strongly in the same direction (correlation of 1.00), 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 | QQQ | QQQM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +21.77% | +21.74% |
| CAGRi | +21.79% | +21.75% | |
| Volatilityi | 19.69% | 19.54% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.87 | 0.88 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.27 | 1.27 | |
| Max drawdowni | 11.96% | 11.96% | |
| Current drawdowni | 3.21% | 3.25% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 3.15% | 3.15% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 4.00% | 4.00% | |
| Max daily dropi | 4.80% | 4.78% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 6.79% | 6.75% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +103.05% | +103.53% |
| CAGRi | +15.24% | +15.29% | |
| Volatilityi | 22.98% | 22.82% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.54 | 0.54 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.77 | 0.78 | |
| Max drawdowni | 35.12% | 35.04% | |
| Current drawdowni | 3.21% | 3.25% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 9.18% | 9.15% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 13.59% | 13.56% | |
| Max daily dropi | 6.21% | 6.11% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 11.98% | 11.92% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +560.40% | +154.20% |
| CAGRi | +20.79% | +17.04% | |
| Volatilityi | 22.54% | 22.20% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.75 | 0.62 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.07 | 0.89 | |
| Max drawdowni | 35.12% | 35.04% | |
| Current drawdowni | 3.21% | 3.25% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 6.23% | 8.05% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 10.38% | 12.51% | |
| Max daily dropi | 11.98% | 6.11% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 16.20% | 11.92% |
| Category | QQQ | QQQM |
|---|---|---|
| Fund name | Invesco QQQ Trust | Invesco NASDAQ 100 ETF |
| Type | ETF | ETF |
| Expense ratioi | 0.18% | 0.15% |
| Total assets (AUM)i | $488.98B | $104.38B |
| Dividend yieldi | 0.42% | 0.44% |
- World's most traded ETF by dollar volume providing unmatched intraday execution
- Deepest options chain with the tightest bid-ask spreads of any equity ETF
- Settled benchmark — QQQ is the institutional reference for Nasdaq-100 exposure
- 0.15% expense ratio is 25% less than QQQ for the identical Nasdaq-100 index
- Same index, same holdings, same Invesco fund family as QQQ
- Designed explicitly for retail long-term investors — Invesco's direct recommendation for this use case
- 0.20% expense ratio is 33% more expensive than QQQM for the same index exposure
- For buy-and-hold investors, the expense ratio difference costs $500/year per $1M invested
- Invesco itself recommends retail long-term investors use QQQM instead
- Lower daily trading volume than QQQ — not suitable for institutional block trading
- Smaller options market if options strategies are desired
- Relatively new fund (2020) versus QQQ's 1999 history
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