Clean Energy ETFs: solar and fuel-cell stocks or the power grid

What are clean energy ETFs?

Clean energy ETFs own companies that make equipment for low-carbon power, such as solar panels, fuel cells and wind turbines. Some also own utilities, electric-vehicle makers and companies that build and equip the power grid. This guide compares 12 US-listed funds. The stock they share most is solar-panel maker First Solar, held by seven of the 12. Fuel-cell maker Bloom Energy and Nextpower each appear in six. Electric-vehicle maker Rivian appears in five, and Eaton, Tesla and Itron in four each.

The funds differ more than their names suggest. Most track an index, which is a list of stocks chosen by fixed rules. PWER and VCLN are actively managed, meaning a manager picks the holdings. GRID follows the Nasdaq Clean Edge Smart Grid Infrastructure Index and mostly owns electrical-equipment and grid companies: Eaton, Schneider Electric, ABB, Quanta Services and Johnson Controls each make up about 8%. ICLN spreads across 123 stocks worldwide, led by First Solar and Chinese hydropower company China Yangtze Power. QCLN mixes Bloom Energy and Tesla with chipmakers Monolithic Power Systems and ON Semiconductor. PBW and PBD spread their money thinly, with about 20% and 12% in their ten largest holdings. KGRN owns only Chinese companies such as BYD and NIO. PWER holds steel and copper producers alongside First Solar. None of the 12 is leveraged, inverse or built on options.

Costs vary. The median expense ratio, the yearly fee taken from a fund's assets, is 0.59%. ICLN charges the least, at 0.38%. KGRN and PWER charge the most, at 0.79%.

The money is concentrated. The 12 funds hold about $16.6 billion, and 95.8% of it sits in the five largest: GRID, ICLN, QCLN, PBW and CNRG. GRID alone holds about $12.1 billion, so much of the money in this group is tied to grid equipment rather than solar or wind.

Clean energy ETF holdings: the stocks most funds own

The stocks that show up most often among the largest positions of the 12 biggest clean energy ETFs with holdings reports, from their latest N-PORT filings.

Typical weight is the median share of each fund’s assets in the stock, among the funds that hold it in their 25 largest positions.

The largest clean energy ETFs, side by side

Swipe the table to see all 5 funds.

The largest ordinary funds by net assets (leveraged and inverse funds are listed further down). Holdings from each fund’s latest N-PORT report; returns include reinvested distributions, as of Oct 27, 2026.

Head to head

How much do the largest clean energy ETFs overlap?

Owning two funds that hold the same stocks adds little diversification. Overlap here is the share of assets two funds have in common: for each stock both own, the smaller of its two weights, added up.

From each fund’s full holdings in its latest N-PORT report.

How have clean energy ETFs performed?

The five largest ordinary funds: growth from the start of the range, distributions reinvested. The dashed gray line is the S&P 500 (SPY).

Best-performing clean energy ETFs over the past year

Funds with at least $25 million in net assets; leveraged and inverse funds left out. Past returns don’t predict future returns.

How clean energy ETFs did in past market crashes

Total return from the stock market’s peak to its low in each fall, distributions reinvested.

What drives clean energy ETFs?

Clean energy companies earn money by making and installing power equipment. Their profits rise and fall with how much utilities, businesses and households spend on new projects. Many projects run on borrowed money, so higher interest rates raise their cost and can delay orders. Higher rates also weigh on the share prices of companies whose profits are expected years ahead. Tax credits, subsidies and tariffs shape demand and prices, and so does competition among manufacturers. Prices for electricity, natural gas and materials such as copper matter too. GRID's largest holdings, such as Eaton and ABB, supply electrical equipment for many uses, so they rely less on solar and wind demand.

Past downturns show how hard these funds can fall. In the 2020 COVID-19 crash, GRID fell 39%, ICLN 41.1%, CNRG 43.8% and QCLN 44%. All of them fell more than the S&P 500, which dropped 33.7%. In the 2008 financial crisis, QCLN dropped 68.6% against the S&P 500's 55.2%. The 2022 bear market, a long market decline, was mixed. CNRG fell 12.8% and ICLN 16.5%, less than the S&P 500's 24.5%. QCLN fell 24.9%, GRID 27.5% and PBW 38.4%.

Clean energy ETFs with the lowest expense ratios

Ordinary funds with at least $10 million in net assets. The median ordinary clean energy ETF charges 0.59% a year; leveraged and inverse funds usually charge more.

Do clean energy ETFs pay dividends?

12 of the 12 ordinary clean energy ETFs with a page here paid distributions over the last 12 months, with a median yield of 1.2%.

Distributions over the last 12 months divided by the price; funds with at least $25 million in net assets.

How to choose a clean energy ETF

• Fees range from 0.38% to 0.79%. ICLN charges 0.38% a year, Fidelity's FRNW 0.39% and CNRG 0.45%. GRID, the largest, charges 0.56%. At the other end, PBD charges 0.75% and KGRN and PWER 0.79%. Over many years, that gap adds up.
• Grid equipment or clean power makers. GRID owns grid and electrical-equipment companies such as Eaton, Schneider Electric and ABB. ICLN, ACES and VCLN lean on solar and fuel-cell companies such as First Solar, Enphase and Bloom Energy. GRID and ICLN share only 2.6% of assets.
• A few big bets or a wide spread. GRID and QCLN hold 58% and 59% of their assets in their ten largest stocks, and SMOG holds 57%. PBW puts about 20% there and PBD about 12%, so no single company drives their results.
• Index rules or a manager's picks. Most, such as ICLN and FRNW, track an index built on fixed rules. PWER and VCLN are actively managed, so a manager chooses. PWER holds steel and copper producers such as Steel Dynamics and Hudbay Minerals, plus refiner Valero.
• Global holdings or China only. ICLN, FRNW and SMOG hold many non-US companies, such as China Yangtze Power, Vestas Wind Systems, Iberdrola and Enel. KGRN holds only Chinese companies, including BYD, NIO and XPeng, which adds country and currency risk.
• Fund size and trading costs. GRID holds about $12.1 billion and ICLN about $2.3 billion. VCLN holds about $5.5 million and PWER about $11.4 million. Small funds can have wider bid-ask spreads, the gap between what traders pay and receive, and are likelier to close.

What are the risks of clean energy ETFs?

• Steep swings within a single year. Volatility measures how widely a fund's price moves. As of October 27, 2026, PBW's one-year volatility was 42.6% and QCLN's 41.5%. During that year, PBW fell as much as 47.1% from a high, ACES 40.5% and CNRG 39.9%.
• A few stocks show up everywhere. First Solar sits in seven of the 12 funds and Bloom Energy in six, so owning several funds adds less variety than it seems. Bloom Energy alone is 9.2% of QCLN, and GRID's top ten make up 58%.
• Long stretches of losses. Every fund with a five-year record except GRID lost money over the five years to October 27, 2026. In the year to that date, the median fund lost 5.1% and ACES lost 25.3%.
• Policy and interest-rate sensitivity. Many of these companies rely on tax credits, subsidies and trade rules that governments can change. Their customers' projects often run on borrowed money, so higher interest rates can delay orders and weigh on share prices.
• Single-country risk in China funds. KGRN owns only Chinese companies such as BYD, NIO and XPeng, so Chinese government policy, trade disputes and currency moves all affect it. It lost 30.9% in the year to October 27, 2026. ICLN also puts 7.8% in China Yangtze Power.

List of all clean energy ETFs, by size

All 12 clean energy ETFs, compared →

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