Do SPY and QQQ hold the same companies?

At least 39% of a half-and-half mix sits in companies held through both, led by NVDA, AAPL, MSFT. Funds publish only their largest positions, so this measurement reaches 42% of the money: the real overlap is at least this and cannot be smaller.

Do SPY and QQQ fall together?

Measured from 1999-03-10 to 2026-09-23, the worst fall on record was 55% for SPY and 83% for QQQ. Held half and half, the worst fall was 69%. Over the same window, essentially all of the movement travels in one shared direction.

What changes if both are held?

A half-and-half mix had volatility 22% over this window, against 19% for SPY and 27% for QQQ, and its worst fall was 69%. Inside that mix, QQQ carries 59% of the risk for half of the money.

How are these figures measured?

From daily closing prices supplied by Yahoo Finance, over 1999-03-10 to 2026-09-23 — 6,928 trading days, in USD — by the same engine that serves the app. Every figure describes what has already happened: nothing here forecasts returns or losses, and nothing here is advice.

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SPY vs QQQ overlap: how much of them is the same

Measured over 27 years of daily prices: what each one brings, and what changes when both are held.

Measured on 2026-09-23

At least 39% of the money lands in the same companies. In a half-and-half mix, essentially all of the movement travels in one shared direction.

The companies both of them hold

Company	Share of a half-and-half mix	Through
NVDA	8.3%	QQQ 4.3% · SPY 4.0%
AAPL	7.2%	QQQ 3.7% · SPY 3.5%
MSFT	5.8%	QQQ 3.0% · SPY 2.8%
GOOGL	5.7%	QQQ 3.0% · SPY 2.7%
AMZN	4.1%	QQQ 2.2% · SPY 1.9%
MU	3.2%	QQQ 2.4% · SPY 0.8%
AVGO	2.7%	QQQ 1.4% · SPY 1.3%
TSLA	2.2%	QQQ 1.5% · SPY 0.8%
AMD	1.7%	QQQ 1.7% — held through one of the two only
META	0.9%	SPY 0.9% — held through one of the two only

A fund publishes only its largest positions, so this measurement reaches 42% of the money. The share above is what is shared within that part: it is a floor, never the total overlap.

The worst falls on record

Holding	Worst fall	Volatility
SPY	55%	19%
QQQ	83%	27%
Both, half and half	69%	22%

Measured on the same window for all three rows, so they can be read against each other. A fall is peak to trough on daily closes.

Where the risk sits in a half-and-half mix

Holding	Money	Risk	Ratio
QQQ	50%	59%	1.18
SPY	50%	41%	0.82

The reading, in full

PORTFOLIO: SPY + QQQ
1999-03-10 to 2026-09-23 · 6,928 trading days · USD

2 holdings.
Essentially all of it is one shared direction, led by QQQ, SPY.

QQQ carries 59% of the risk on its own.
Volatility 22% · worst fall on record 69%.
Risk 21% → 16% over the last year, mostly because the holdings themselves got quieter.

Descriptive. No forecast, no advice. Every figure above is measured over the window named at the top.
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Questions people ask about this pair

Do SPY and QQQ hold the same companies?: At least 39% of a half-and-half mix sits in companies held through both, led by NVDA, AAPL, MSFT. Funds publish only their largest positions, so this measurement reaches 42% of the money: the real overlap is at least this and cannot be smaller.
Do SPY and QQQ fall together?: Measured from 1999-03-10 to 2026-09-23, the worst fall on record was 55% for SPY and 83% for QQQ. Held half and half, the worst fall was 69%. Over the same window, essentially all of the movement travels in one shared direction.
What changes if both are held?: A half-and-half mix had volatility 22% over this window, against 19% for SPY and 27% for QQQ, and its worst fall was 69%. Inside that mix, QQQ carries 59% of the risk for half of the money.
How are these figures measured?: From daily closing prices supplied by Yahoo Finance, over 1999-03-10 to 2026-09-23 — 6,928 trading days, in USD — by the same engine that serves the app. Every figure describes what has already happened: nothing here forecasts returns or losses, and nothing here is advice.

What this does not say

Every figure is measured on past daily prices over the window below. It is not a forecast of returns or losses.
The window starts when the younger fund began trading, so older crises may lie outside it.
The overlap is measured through published holdings only, and is a floor: the real figure is at least this, and cannot be smaller.
Which of two funds to hold depends on things not measured here — what you already own, costs at your broker, and your own tax position.

Measure it with what you actually hold

Change the split, add the rest of your portfolio, see what the pair does inside it: same engine, nothing saved on our side.

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Measured 1999-03-10 to 2026-09-23 over 6,928 trading days, in USD, from Yahoo Finance prices. Descriptive: this page reports what these two funds have done and how much of them is the same holding. It does not forecast returns or losses, it does not say which to hold, and it is not advice. How every figure is measured. Terms and privacy: /terms. If a figure looks wrong: [email protected].