iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF (QUAL)
$224.93−0.79%close of Oct 16, 2026
iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF (QUAL) is an exchange-traded fund (ETF) run by iShares (BlackRock). This fund owns large and medium sized US companies with strong profits, steady earnings and low debt. It charges 0.15% a year. From July 2013 to October 2026 it returned about 13.6% a year, and its worst drop was −34.1%.
Written by the Tactfolio research team. Fund facts checked October 17, 2026. Prices through October 16, 2026.
- Yearly fee
- 0.15%
- about $15 on $10,000
- 1-year return
- 18.1%
- to Oct 16, 2026
- Return per year
- 13.6%
- since July 2013
- Worst drop
- −34.1%
- since 2013
- Below its high
- −1.2%
- now
- Volatility
- 17.0%
- yearly swings
- Issuer
- iShares (BlackRock)
- Tracks
- MSCI USA Sector Neutral Quality Index
- Started trading
- July 16, 2013
- Type
- US stocks, ETF
- Holdings
- 118 holdings as of October 15, 2026
- Expense ratio
- 0.15% a year
How has QUAL done since 2013?#
From July 2013 to October 2026, QUAL returned about 13.6% a year. The S&P 500 returned about 14.0% a year over the same dates. Say you put in $10,000 at the start. It would have been worth about $54,193 at the end, with every dividend reinvested.
| Period | QUAL | S&P 500 (SPY) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 month | 3.5% | 1.5% |
| 3 months | 2.1% | 1.9% |
| 6 months | 10.5% | 9.3% |
| Year to date | 13.9% | 12.8% |
| 1 year | 18.1% | 16.8% |
| 3 years per year | 19.4% | 22.0% |
| 5 years per year | 11.7% | 12.8% |
| 10 years per year | 14.6% | 15.4% |
| Since 2013 per year | 13.6% | 14.0% |
Periods longer than a year show the return per year (CAGR). Prices through October 16, 2026. Figures use daily closing prices adjusted for splits, with dividends reinvested. They do not include taxes or the cost of buying and selling. Past results do not tell you what will happen next.
QUAL returns by month and year#
QUAL rose in 105 of its 160 months (66%). Its best month was April 2020, at 12.3%. Its worst was March 2020, at −11.4%.
| Year | Total | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 13.9% | 1.9 | 1.2 | −6.2 | 8.1 | 4.0 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 1.2 | ||
| 2025 | 12.7% | 3.0 | −1.0 | −5.7 | −0.9 | 4.5 | 3.5 | 0.7 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.6 |
| 2024 | 22.3% | 2.3 | 6.5 | 2.8 | −4.5 | 5.6 | 3.2 | 0.6 | 3.5 | 1.2 | −1.6 | 5.0 | −3.6 |
| 2023 | 30.9% | 7.2 | −2.7 | 4.8 | 1.7 | 0.7 | 6.4 | 3.8 | −0.4 | −5.1 | −1.5 | 8.7 | 4.7 |
| 2022 | −20.5% | −6.9 | −4.1 | 4.0 | −8.3 | −0.2 | −9.0 | 9.2 | −5.1 | −9.8 | 8.3 | 7.7 | −5.6 |
| 2021 | 26.9% | −2.8 | 3.2 | 5.0 | 4.8 | 1.0 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 2.8 | −6.4 | 7.7 | −0.6 | 3.5 |
| 2020 | 17.0% | −0.7 | −8.3 | −11.4 | 12.3 | 5.6 | 0.2 | 5.0 | 6.9 | −3.1 | −2.6 | 11.3 | 3.7 |
| 2019 | 33.9% | 8.3 | 4.4 | 2.5 | 3.8 | −6.6 | 7.1 | 1.4 | −1.8 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 4.5 | 2.8 |
| 2018 | −5.7% | 4.6 | −2.9 | −1.3 | −1.3 | 2.7 | 0.0 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 1.1 | −7.6 | 0.9 | −8.5 |
| 2017 | 22.3% | 1.2 | 4.7 | 0.0 | 0.6 | 1.5 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 2.7 | 2.9 | 3.6 | 1.3 |
| 2016 | 8.7% | −4.6 | 0.6 | 5.9 | −0.4 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 3.1 | −0.2 | −0.1 | −2.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 |
| 2015 | 5.5% | −1.7 | 6.0 | −1.6 | 0.2 | 1.5 | −1.8 | 2.9 | −5.4 | −1.3 | 8.7 | 0.4 | −1.7 |
| 2014 | 11.3% | −4.2 | 4.9 | −0.5 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 0.6 | −0.8 | 4.4 | −0.8 | 2.7 | 2.3 | −0.6 |
| 2013 | 13.5% | −0.1 | −2.1 | 3.8 | 4.9 | 4.1 | 2.3 |
Each month runs from the last close of the month before. The first month counts from the first close.
How risky is QUAL compared with the S&P 500?#
Measured from October 2021 to October 2026, on the days both traded.
- Beta 0.98. When the S&P 500 moved 1% in a day, QUAL tended to move about 0.98%.
- Correlation 0.98. QUAL mostly moved with the S&P 500.
- Up and down months. In months the S&P 500 rose, QUAL rose 97% as much on average. In months it fell, QUAL fell 101% as much.
| Measure | QUAL | S&P 500 (SPY) |
|---|---|---|
| Return per year | 11.6% | 12.8% |
| Volatility | 17.3% | 17.1% |
| Worst drop | −28.2% | −24.5% |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.72 | 0.79 |
| Sortino ratio | 1.05 | 1.15 |
| Calmar ratio | 0.41 | 0.52 |
Volatility is how much the price swings in a year. The Sharpe ratio is return per unit of volatility, the Sortino ratio counts only the falls, and the Calmar ratio is the return per year over the worst drop. Higher ratios mean more return for the risk taken.
Is QUAL above its 200-day average?#
QUAL closed 6.7% above its 200-day average on October 16, 2026. A rule that holds QUAL only above that average would hold it today.
- vs 200-day average
- +6.7%
- above it
- 50-day vs 200-day
- +5.9%
- trend rising
- vs 52-week high
- −1.2%
- high of $227.72
A moving average is the average close over the last so many days. Trend rules such as the 10-month moving average strategy hold a fund only while it is above one. You can build that rule for QUAL and backtest it in a minute.
What was QUAL’s worst drop?#
A drawdown is how far a fund falls from its last high point. QUAL’s worst fall was −34.1%, from February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020. It got back to that high on August 12, 2020. On October 16, 2026 it was 1.2% below its highest close.
| Drop | From the high | To the bottom | Back to the high |
|---|---|---|---|
| −34.1% | Feb 19, 2020 | Mar 23, 202033 days | Aug 12, 20205 months |
| −28.2% | Dec 29, 2021 | Oct 14, 20229 months | Dec 11, 202314 months |
| −20.5% | Sep 21, 2018 | Dec 24, 20183 months | Apr 5, 20193 months |
| −18.0% | Dec 4, 2024 | Apr 8, 20254 months | Jul 23, 20253 months |
| −11.5% | Jul 20, 2015 | Aug 25, 201536 days | Oct 28, 20152 months |
Big drops are normal for some funds. They matter because selling during a drop locks in the loss.
What does QUAL hold?#
This fund owns large and medium sized US companies with strong profits, steady earnings and low debt. It keeps its mix of industries close to the overall market. Its value still goes up and down with US stocks.
It tracks the MSCI USA Sector Neutral Quality Index. It had 118 holdings as of October 15, 2026, according to iShares (BlackRock).
What is the QUAL expense ratio?#
QUAL charges 0.15% a year. An expense ratio is the yearly fee a fund takes to run itself. On $10,000, a 0.15% fee comes to about $15 a year. Of the 162 ETFs on Tactfolio, 42% charge more.
You never get a bill for it. The fund takes the fee out of its own value a little each day.
Which Tactfolio strategies hold QUAL?#
No classic strategy holds QUAL yet. You can add it to your own rules in the builder and see how they would have done.
How does QUAL compare with similar ETFs?#
Funds that can stand in for QUAL:
- USMV: iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF, 0.15% a year
- SPYM: State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 ETF, 0.02% a year
- IVV: iShares Core S&P 500 ETF, 0.03% a year
- VOO: Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, 0.03% a year
See all 8 QUAL alternatives, compared on the same dates as QUAL.
Test QUAL in your own rules#
Tactfolio is a platform where you build rules-based investing strategies, backtest them on decades of real prices, share them, and run them automatically in your own Alpaca account. Open the builder, add QUAL, and see how a rule such as “hold it only above its 200-day average” would have done. Strategies run on daily prices and hold US stocks and ETFs only.
The details#
Prices come from Tactfolio’s stored daily prices for QUAL and SPY. Each close is adjusted for splits, and dividends are reinvested on the day the fund pays them out. CAGR is the steady yearly return that turns the starting value into the ending value. Volatility is the yearly standard deviation of daily returns. Beta and correlation compare daily returns with the S&P 500 over the same dates.
Fund facts come from iShares (BlackRock). We checked them on October 17, 2026. Read what a backtest simulates and how to read drawdown and CAGR for more on these measures.
Common questions#
What is the expense ratio of QUAL?#
QUAL charges 0.15% a year, according to iShares (BlackRock) as of October 17, 2026. That is about $15 a year for every $10,000 you hold.
When did QUAL start trading?#
QUAL started trading on July 16, 2013. It is run by iShares (BlackRock).
What does QUAL track?#
QUAL tracks the MSCI USA Sector Neutral Quality Index. This fund owns large and medium sized US companies with strong profits, steady earnings and low debt.
How much has QUAL returned per year?#
From July 2013 to October 2026, QUAL returned about 13.6% a year with dividends reinvested. Its worst drop was −34.1%. Past returns do not tell you what it will do next.
Is QUAL above its 200-day moving average?#
On October 16, 2026, QUAL closed 6.7% above its 200-day moving average. This page updates after each US market close.
Which strategies use QUAL?#
None of Tactfolio’s classic strategies hold QUAL yet. You can test it in your own rules in the builder.