Best REIT ETFs for 2026 and How to Invest
The iShares U.S. Real Estate ETF invests in domestic real estate stocks and REITs. The ETF, managed by BlackRock, had nearly $4.7 billion in AUM across 61 real estate holdings in mid-2026, led by the following five:
- Welltower: 11.1% portfolio weighting
- Prologis: 9.0%
- Simon Property Group (SPG -3.37%): 4.7%.
- Digital Realty (DLR +0.66%): 4.4%
- Equinix: 4.4%
Those are five of the largest REITs, operating across several property types, including industrial, data centers, healthcare, and retail. Overall, the ETF’s 10 largest holdings make up over 50% of its portfolio, providing investors with similar diversification to that of Vanguard’s ETF, even though it has fewer holdings.
One drawback of this REIT ETF is its expense ratio. At 0.38%, it’s well above the industry average, so it has slightly underperformed its benchmark over the years as the higher fee has eaten into its returns.
The higher fee also eats into the REIT ETF’s dividend income. It has a 2.2% dividend yield (as of mid-2026, over the trailing 12-month period).