5 Best Schwab ETFs to Buy in 2025
You don’t have to study individual stocks to generate long-term returns from the stock market. Exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, allow you to follow benchmarks like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite, but you can also follow granular trends like artificial intelligence, fintech and software.
Investors can create brokerage accounts with many firms, but if you want a wide selection of ETFs, only a few companies can compete with Charles Schwab. The broker has been around since 1971 and offers low-cost ETFs to its customers. As you’ll see below, however, ETFs from Vanguard and Fidelity have been giving Schwab ETFs a run for their money.
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These funds present several advantages over buying individual stocks and mutual funds. “Investing in ETFs can be an efficient way to diversify your portfolio and gain broad exposure to the assets within the ETF instead of purchasing each of the assets individually,” says Keith Jones, a certified financial planner at Empower. “You may prefer ETFs if you actively trade investments and want to be able to buy and sell ETFs throughout the market day. ETFs may also be right for you if it’s a priority to reduce your tax burden.”
You’ll likely find a Schwab ETF that aligns with your portfolio goals and risk tolerance. Some Schwab ETFs focus on decent yields with lower volatility. Other Schwab ETFs aim to maximize returns but come with increased risk.
Investors who are looking for ETFs that can outperform the stock market during bullish cycles may like this list. However, there is also an ETF at the end that attracts investors due to its higher yield and relative stability. With that in mind, these are some of the top Schwab ETFs to consider:
| Schwab ETF | Expense Ratio | 5-Year Average Annual Return* |
| Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETF (ticker: SCHG) | 0.04% | 19.2% |
| Schwab U.S. Large-Cap ETF (SCHX) | 0.03% | 16.9% |
| Schwab 1000 ETF (SCHK) | 0.05% | 16.6% |
| Schwab U.S. Broad Market ETF (SCHB) | 0.03% | 16.5% |
| Schwab Fundamental International Equity ETF (FNDF) | 0.05% | 15.0% |
*Annualized and based on net asset value, as of May 12 close.
Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETF (SCHG)
The Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETF prioritizes large-cap growth stocks. Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) are the top three holdings, and the fund’s top 10 holdings make up 54% of its total assets. SCHG shares have more than doubled over the past five years, registering an annualized 19.2% return by net asset value during that stretch.
Many of the ETFs that outperform the stock market in the long run are filled with tech stocks. SCHG is no exception to the rule, with 48% exposure to the tech sector. Communication services (13%), consumer discretionary (12.5%) and health care (9.3%) are the next three top sectors. SCHG has $40 billion in total assets and a 0.04% expense ratio, or $4 annually per $10,000 invested. The ETF also has a 0.4% 30-day SEC yield.
While the returns are good, you can find higher returns with the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) and the Fidelity MSCI Information Tech ETF (FTEC). Both of these funds give investors more exposure to the Magnificent Seven stocks. VGT has an annualized 20.2% return over the past five years, while FTEC has delivered an annualized 20.4%.
However, those Vanguard and Fidelity funds are more vulnerable to market downturns. They have deeper year-to-date losses than SCHG amid tariff concerns and economic uncertainty. If those concerns continue to become less prevalent, SCHG may find itself trailing once again, but it remains a stable option.
Schwab U.S. Large-Cap ETF (SCHX)
This fund follows a similar playbook to SCHG, but it offers more diversification. SCHX prioritizes large-cap stocks and allocates its capital across 748 equity holdings. The technology sector represents about 32% of the fund’s total assets, and its top 10 holdings make up 32% of the portfolio.
So, as you may have guessed, the Magnificent Seven stocks dominate the top 10 spots, a trend with many top-performing ETFs. While these high-flying stocks have been off to a rough start in 2025, their long-term returns have helped SCHX deliver an annualized 16.9% return over the past five years. SCHX has a 0.03% expense ratio and a 1.3% 30-day SEC yield. The fund has $53.1 billion in assets.
SCHX’s five-year returns lag behind the Fidelity Enhanced Large Cap Growth ETF (FELG), which has an 18.5% annualized return over half a decade. Meanwhile, the Vanguard Growth ETF (VUG) has an annualized 17.9% return over the past five years. All three funds are down year to date, but SCHX has smaller losses and has nearly broken even as of May 12.
[READ: 5 Best BlackRock ETFs to Buy Now]
Schwab 1000 ETF (SCHK)
The Schwab 1000 ETF gives investors exposure to the 1,000 largest U.S. stocks by market capitalization. The Magnificent Seven stocks are in the top 10 holdings, with Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) and Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.B) also making the list.
The top 10 get 32% of the ETF’s total assets. Under the same management team as SCHX and SCHG, SCHK has a 0.05% expense ratio and a 30-day SEC yield of 1.3%. The fund has a five-year annualized return of 16.6%.
Most of its assets go into the tech sector, which makes up 31.6% of the fund. SCHK also emphasizes financials (14.3%), consumer discretionary (10.6%) and health care (10%). SCHK’s returns fall slightly short of Vanguard Large-Cap ETF’s (VV) five-year gains. That fund has returned an annualized 16.9%. The Fidelity Enhanced Large Cap Core ETF (FELC) has outperformed them both, though, with a 17.3% annualized return over five years.
Schwab U.S. Broad Market ETF (SCHB)
The Schwab U.S. Broad Market ETF has produced an annualized 16.5% return over the past five years. It has a very affordable 0.03% expense ratio and pays a 1.3% 30-day SEC yield. SCHB has $32.4 billion in total assets that are spread across about 2,400 holdings. This diversification makes the fund less vulnerable to market downturns than high-growth ETFs.
Despite having a large portfolio, the fund still puts the Magnificent Seven in the top 10 holdings, which represent 30% of total assets. Approximately 31% of all assets are in tech stocks, while financials (14%), health care (10%) and consumer discretionary (11%) are the fund’s other sector targets.
The Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI) also has a 16.5% annualized return over the past five years. That ETF holds about 3,600 stocks, but the Magnificent Seven stocks inevitably make up a large chunk of the fund’s total assets as well.
Schwab Fundamental International Equity ETF (FNDF)
The Schwab Fundamental International Equity ETF allows investors to diversify out of U.S. stocks. The fund focuses on large value stocks and allocates almost 98% of its assets to non-U.S. equities. FNDF has a 0.25% expense ratio, which is higher than the other funds on the list. However, it also comes with an appealing 3.3% SEC yield. In total, the fund has $15.3 billion in assets.
FNDF has delivered an annualized 15% return by net asset value over the past five years. It’s also up by nearly 13% year to date, showing that the fund isn’t as rattled by U.S. tariffs as home country-focused benchmarks like the S&P 500.
The fund is also well diversified, with 924 equity holdings as of mid-May. The top 10 holdings only make up 12% of its total assets. It has outperformed the Vanguard Total International Stock ETF (VXUS), which has produced an annualized 11.3% return over the past half a decade with a lower expense ratio of 0.05%. VXUS is also very diversified among roughly 8,500 stocks, and it’s up 11.6% year to date with the resurgence of international stocks.
Meanwhile, the Fidelity Fundamental Developed International ETF (FFDI), traded on the Cboe BZX Exchange, has produced a 14.6% NAV return year to date, beating both FNDF and VXUS. However, FFDI holds fewer stocks, at about 93 as of May 9, and it has a much shorter history. The Fidelity ETF launched on Nov. 19, 2024, but it’s a smaller fund ($14 million and counting) that may be worth monitoring.
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5 Best Schwab ETFs to Buy in 2025 originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 05/13/25: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.