State Street SPDR MSCI USA Climate Paris Aligned ETF (NZUS) is a ETF from State Street Investment Management and Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 (QQQ) is a ETF from Invesco (US). Over the past year NZUS returned +23.21% while QQQ returned +28.64%. Year to date, NZUS is up 5.91% versus a gain of 17.27% for QQQ.

Over three years, NZUS compounded at +20.81% per year against +24.88% for QQQ. Across the full 4-year window we track, NZUS has the edge at +14.42% annualized vs +13.08%. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

QQQ has been the more volatile fund, with annualized monthly volatility of 30.6% compared with 16.8% for NZUS. Lower volatility generally means a smoother ride, though it often comes with lower long-run returns.

The deepest peak-to-trough decline in our data was -21.0% for NZUS and -83.0% for QQQ. Drawdown depth is worth weighing if you expect to sell during market stress rather than ride it out.

The two funds' monthly returns correlate at 0.94. They move almost in lockstep, so holding both mostly duplicates the same exposure.

NZUS charges 0.10% per year while QQQ charges 0.18%. On a $10,000 position that is $10 vs $18 annually, a gap of $8 per year that compounds over a long holding period. On income, NZUS currently yields 0.88% against 0.41% for QQQ.