Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) reached a new milestone, surpassing $1 trillion in net assets for the first time. This achievement makes it the first exchange-traded fund to ever cross that threshold.
While hitting the $1 trillion mark is largely symbolic—ETFs don’t receive accolades for size—it does mean incremental revenue gains for Vanguard and the funds that hold the company’s stock.
The milestone highlights the extraordinary rise of index funds and Vanguard’s pivotal role in popularizing them among all kinds of investors. Competitors like the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) and the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) aren’t far behind. By the end of the day, IVV’s net assets were just under $861 billion, while SPY had nearly $786 billion.
VOO wasn’t always the frontrunner. Just five years ago, it was the smallest of the three major S&P 500 ETFs, with roughly $225 billion in assets. Back then, SPY led the pack with about $360 billion.
Vanguard’s ETF surged ahead thanks to strong inflows from investors. Between June 2021 and May 2026, VOO attracted more than $400 billion in new money, compared with approximately $250 billion for IVV and $88 billion for SPY.
-Jermaine Filmore
Jermaine Filmore 