What are retail ETFs?
Retail ETFs own companies that sell goods straight to shoppers: online sellers, warehouse clubs, discount chains, department stores and specialty shops. Four US-listed ETFs focus on the industry, and they overlap less than the label suggests. The two largest, XRT and RTH, have only 17.8% of their assets in common. The stocks shared most widely include Groupon, RealReal, Revolve, Kohl's, Victoria's Secret, Etsy, CarMax and Dollar Tree. Each appears in just two of the four funds, at small weights.
The two ordinary index funds take opposite approaches. XRT, from SPDR (State Street), tracks an S&P index drawn from the retail segment of a broad US stock market index. Its 75 holdings are spread fairly evenly: the top ten make up 16.13% of the fund, and the biggest, Groupon, is just 1.78%. VanEck's RTH tracks the MVIS US Listed Retail 25 Index and is far more concentrated. It has 71.53% in its top ten, led by Amazon at 20.2%, Walmart at 10.85% and Costco at 8.19%.
The other two are trading tools. Direxion's RETL is leveraged: it seeks three times (3x) the daily return of its index. ProShares' EMTY is inverse. It takes a short (-1x) position on the Solactive-ProShares Bricks and Mortar Retail Store Index, so it is designed to gain when store-based retailers fall. Its reported holdings are mostly repurchase agreements, a kind of short-term cash loan, rather than stocks.
The expense ratio is the yearly fee taken from fund assets. It is 0.35% for both XRT and RTH, the lowest in the group and the median for ordinary retail ETFs. EMTY charges 0.65% and RETL 0.96%. The money is concentrated too: of the roughly $661 million across all four funds, most sits in XRT (about $381 million) and RTH (about $248 million).
Retail ETF holdings: the stocks most funds own
The stocks that show up most often among the largest positions of the 4 biggest retail ETFs with holdings reports, from their latest N-PORT filings.
| Stock | Funds holding it | Typical weight |
|---|---|---|
| Groupon Inc | 2 of 4 | 1.44% |
| RealReal Inc | 2 of 4 | 1.27% |
| Revolve Group Inc | 2 of 4 | 1.18% |
| Kohl's Corp | 2 of 4 | 1.16% |
| Victoria's Secret & Co | 2 of 4 | 1.14% |
| Etsy Inc | 2 of 4 | 1.14% |
| CarMax Inc | 2 of 4 | 1.13% |
| Dollar Tree Inc | 2 of 4 | 1.11% |
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 retail ETFs, side by side
Swipe the table to see all 2 funds.
| XRT | RTH | |
|---|---|---|
| Net assets | $381.4M | $248.4M |
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.35% |
| Holdings | 75 | 25 |
| In the 10 largest | 16.13% | 71.53% |
| Biggest holding | Groupon Inc (1.78%) | Amazon.com Inc (20.2%) |
| Yield | 0.85% | 0.91% |
| 1-year return | +3.0% | +7.1% |
| 3 years, a year | +16.0% | +18.6% |
| 5 years, a year | +0.5% | +8.5% |
| Worst drop, past year | -13.5% | -8.9% |
| Launched | 2006 | 2001 |
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
XRT vs RTH
XRT has 75 holdings in fairly even amounts. Its top ten make up 16.13% of the fund, and its biggest holding, Groupon, is just 1.78%. RTH holds 25 stocks, with 71.53% in its top ten and 20.2% in Amazon alone. Only 17.8% of their assets overlap. Both charge 0.35%. As of October 27, 2026, RTH returned 7.1% over one year against 3% for XRT, and 8.5% against 0.5% over five years. Its worst drop during that year was also smaller (8.9% vs 13.5%). XRT may suit investors wanting wide exposure to smaller retailers. RTH may suit those comfortable concentrating in retail giants.
XRT vs RETL
RETL's stock holdings look much like XRT's, with Groupon and RealReal near the top of both. The difference is structure. RETL seeks three times (3x) the daily return of its index and resets every day, so over longer stretches its results can drift far from 3x. It charges 0.96% against XRT's 0.35%. As of October 27, 2026, RETL lost 11.9% over one year while XRT gained 3%. Over five years RETL lost 25.6%, while XRT gained 0.5%. RETL's worst drop that year was 38.1%, against 13.5%. XRT may suit long-term holders. RETL may suit only short-term traders who watch positions daily.
How much do the largest retail 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 retail 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).
How retail ETFs did in past market crashes
| Fund | 2008 crash | 2020 crash | 2022 drop |
|---|---|---|---|
| XRT | not yet launched | not yet launched | -35.4% |
| RTH | not yet launched | -23.2% | -19.7% |
| S&P 500 (SPY) | -55.2% | -33.7% | -24.5% |
Total return from the stock market’s peak to its low in each fall, distributions reinvested.
What drives retail ETFs?
Retailers live on consumer spending. When jobs are plentiful and wages rise, people buy more clothes, furniture and gadgets. When budgets tighten, they cut those first and keep buying groceries and household basics. Interest rates matter as well. Higher rates make credit cards and car loans costlier for shoppers and raise borrowing costs for retailers. Retail profit margins are often thin, so higher wages, shipping costs, tariffs on imported goods or unsold stock that must be marked down can hit earnings hard. The long shift from stores to online shopping adds pressure on chains that depend on foot traffic.
That split between needs and wants has shown up in past downturns. In the 2022 bear market, XRT fell 35.4%, deeper than the S&P 500's 24.5% drop, while RTH fell 19.7%. In the 2020 COVID crash, RTH fell 23.2%, against 33.7% for the S&P 500. The gap lines up with what each fund owns. RTH leans on a handful of very large companies such as Amazon, Walmart and Costco, which sell a lot of everyday goods. XRT spreads its money across smaller companies such as Groupon, RealReal and Warby Parker, whose shares tend to swing harder.
Retail ETFs with the lowest expense ratios
| # | Fund | Expense ratio | On $10,000 | Net assets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | XRT SPDR S&P Retail ETF | 0.35% | $35 a year | $381.4M |
| 2 | RTH VanEck Retail ETF | 0.35% | $35 a year | $248.4M |
Ordinary funds with at least $10 million in net assets. The median ordinary retail ETF charges 0.35% a year; leveraged and inverse funds usually charge more.
Do retail ETFs pay dividends?
2 of the 2 ordinary retail ETFs with a page here paid distributions over the last 12 months, with a median yield of 0.85%.
Distributions over the last 12 months divided by the price; funds with at least $25 million in net assets.
How to choose a retail ETF
- Fees: a tie between XRT and RTH. XRT and RTH both charge 0.35% a year, the lowest in the group, so cost does not separate them. The specialty funds cost more: EMTY charges 0.65% and RETL 0.96%.
- Retail giants or an even spread. RTH puts 71.53% of its money in its top ten holdings, with Amazon alone at 20.2%. XRT's top ten add up to 16.13%, and no single stock tops 1.8%, so smaller retailers count about as much as large ones.
- How each index picks its stocks. XRT holds 75 stocks from an S&P index built from the retail segment of a broad US market index. RTH tracks the MVIS US Listed Retail 25 Index, holding 25. Both draw on US-listed stocks; neither is a global fund.
- Size and trading costs. XRT has about $381 million in net assets and RTH about $248 million. RETL, at about $28 million, and EMTY, at about $3 million, are far smaller, which can mean wider gaps between buying and selling prices.
- RETL and EMTY behave very differently. RETL seeks 3x the daily return of its index and resets each day. Over five years to October 27, 2026, it lost 25.6% while XRT gained 0.5%. EMTY bets against store-based retailers at -1x. Both are trading tools.
What are the risks of retail ETFs?
- A fifth of RTH rides on Amazon. Amazon makes up 20.2% of RTH, and its top ten holdings make up 71.53%. A bad stretch for Amazon, Walmart or Costco moves the whole fund far more than the same news would move the evenly spread XRT.
- Smaller retailers swing harder. XRT, built from smaller names like Groupon and RealReal, was the bumpier plain fund in the year to October 27, 2026. Its volatility (how widely prices swing) was 20.8% versus 13.9% for RTH, and its worst drop was 13.5%.
- Shoppers' budgets set the pace. Holdings such as Kohl's and Victoria's Secret sell things shoppers can put off buying when money is tight. In the 2022 bear market, XRT fell 35.4%, against 24.5% for the S&P 500.
- Daily resets wear down RETL. RETL targets 3x the daily move, so in choppy markets its longer-term returns can fall well short of 3x. In the year to October 27, 2026, its volatility was 61.2% and its worst drop 38.1%.
- EMTY loses when stores rally. EMTY gains only when its bricks-and-mortar retail index falls, so a rising market works against it. It lost 11.1% over three years to October 27, 2026. Its small size, about $3 million, raises the risk that it closes.
Leveraged and inverse retail ETFs (3x)
These funds aim for a multiple, or the opposite, of one day’s return, and reset every day. Held for longer than a day, their results can drift far from that multiple, especially when prices swing. They are trading tools, not long-term holdings. Why leveraged ETFs decay →
List of all retail ETFs, by size
| # | Fund | Net assets | Cost | Yield | YTD | 1 yr | 5 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | XRT SPDR S&P Retail ETF | $381.4M | 0.35% | 0.85% | +3.1% | +3.0% | +0.5% |
| 2 | RTH VanEck Retail ETF | $248.4M | 0.35% | 0.91% | +6.8% | +7.1% | +8.5% |
| 3 | RETL Direxion Daily Retail Bull 3X Shares Leveraged | $27.9M | 0.96% | 0.83% | -8.2% | -11.9% | -25.6% |
| 4 | EMTY ProShares Decline of the Retail Store ETF Inverse | $3.0M | 0.65% | 2.3% | -3.7% | +1.6% | -4.3% |
Questions investors ask about retail ETFs
What is the largest retail ETF?
XRT, the SPDR S&P Retail ETF from State Street, is the largest retail ETF, with about $381 million in net assets. VanEck's RTH is next at about $248 million. Together the two hold most of the roughly $661 million in the group. The other two are much smaller: Direxion's 3x leveraged RETL has about $28 million and ProShares' inverse EMTY about $3 million.
What is the cheapest retail ETF?
XRT and RTH tie as the lowest-cost retail ETFs. Each has an expense ratio (the yearly fee, taken from fund assets) of 0.35%. The specialty funds cost more: ProShares' inverse EMTY charges 0.65% and Direxion's 3x leveraged RETL charges 0.96%. Because XRT and RTH charge the same, the real difference between them is what they own, not what they cost.
XRT vs RTH: what's the difference?
The main difference is concentration. XRT spreads its money across 75 holdings in fairly even amounts, and its biggest, Groupon, is 1.78%. RTH holds 25 stocks and puts 20.2% in Amazon, 10.85% in Walmart and 8.19% in Costco. Only 17.8% of their assets overlap, and both charge 0.35%. As of October 27, 2026, RTH returned 7.1% over one year against 3% for XRT, with a smaller worst drop (8.9% vs 13.5%).
Do retail ETFs pay dividends?
Yes, both ordinary retail ETFs pay dividends, though the amounts are small. RTH's yield was 0.91% and XRT's 0.85%. With yields that low, income is a small part of what these funds deliver; most of any return comes from share prices. The leveraged RETL and inverse EMTY are built around short-term bets on retail stocks, not income.
Do retail ETFs own Amazon, Etsy or Dollar Tree?
Yes, but in very different amounts. RTH holds Amazon as its largest position, at 20.2%, followed by Walmart, Costco, Home Depot and CVS Health. Etsy and Dollar Tree each appear in two of the four retail ETFs, at a median weight of about 1.1%, alongside names such as Kohl's, CarMax and Victoria's Secret. XRT's largest holdings are smaller companies such as Groupon and RealReal, each under 2%.
How many retail ETFs are there?
There are four US-listed retail ETFs. Two are ordinary index funds: XRT from SPDR (State Street) and RTH from VanEck. The other two are specialty funds. Direxion's RETL seeks 3x the daily return of its index, and ProShares' EMTY takes a -1x short position against bricks-and-mortar retailers. Between them they hold roughly $661 million, most of it in XRT and RTH.
What are leveraged and inverse retail ETFs?
They are trading tools rather than long-term holdings. Direxion's RETL seeks three times the daily return of its index and says it does not aim for that over any longer period. Because it resets daily, its results drift away from 3x. It lost 11.9% over one year to October 27, 2026, while XRT gained 3%. ProShares' EMTY takes -1x exposure to bricks-and-mortar retailers, so it rises when they fall and loses when they rally.
Is there a Vanguard retail ETF?
None of the four US-listed retail ETFs comes from Vanguard. They are issued by SPDR (State Street), VanEck, Direxion and ProShares. The two ordinary index funds in the group are XRT and RTH, which both charge 0.35% a year. XRT spreads its money across 75 holdings in fairly even amounts, while RTH concentrates on 25 stocks, led by Amazon at 20.2%.
Is there a Vanguard, Fidelity or Schwab retail ETF?
No. None of the three offers a retail ETF. The largest retail ETFs come from SPDR (State Street) (XRT) and VanEck (RTH), and customers of all three firms can buy other companies’ ETFs in their brokerage accounts.
