Best Aerospace & Defense ETFs
Which aerospace & defense ETFs does ETF Copilot list today? As of October 28, 2026, ETF Copilot's Best Aerospace & Defense ETFs list holds five funds, largest first by assets: XLI, ITA, VIS, AIRR and XLB. Expense ratios across the five run from 0.08% to 0.69% a year, and their ETF Copilot overall scores run from 4.1 to 5.5.
Updated October 28, 2026
What stands out across Aerospace & Defense ETFs
Expense ratios across the 5 aerospace & defense ETFs listed run from 0.08% to 0.69% a year, a median of 0.09%. 2 of the 5 charge that lowest figure.
Across the 5 funds shown, ETF Copilot's overall scores run from 4.1 to 5.5 out of 10, with a median of 5.0.
Concentration varies widely among the 5 aerospace & defense ETFs listed: the ten largest holdings account for 31% of assets in the least concentrated fund and 76% in the most, a median of 38% across the list.
2 of 5 are more concentrated than the typical fund in their own category, on ETF Copilot's concentration measure.
The typical fund among the 5 aerospace & defense ETFs listed behaves like 42 equally weighted positions once holding weights are taken into account.
As of October 28, 2026, the largest fund on ETF Copilot's Best Aerospace & Defense ETFs list by assets is State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI).
What are the Best Aerospace & Defense ETFs? The 5 on this list
| # | Fund | ETF Copilot score | Expense ratio | Assets | Top 10 weight | Largest exposures |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLI) | 5.5/10 | 0.08% | $30.8B | 38% | Tech 4%, AI 1% |
| 2 | iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) | 5.2/10 | 0.37% | $12.0B | 76% | Tech 0% |
| 3 | Vanguard Industrials ETF (VIS) | 5.0/10 | 0.09% | $8.6B | 31% | Tech 4%, AI 1% |
| 4 | First Trust RBA American Industrial RenaissanceTM ETF (AIRR) | 4.6/10 | 0.69% | $8.4B | 33% | |
| 5 | State Street Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLB) | 4.1/10 | 0.08% | $8.1B | 59% |
ETF Copilot's 0–10 score rates a fund on value, growth, quality and risk against every US equity ETF we track. How the scores are built →
Expense ratio, dividend yield and assets under management are reported by the fund and refreshed daily. Every other figure on this page is computed by ETF Copilot.
Which Aerospace & Defense ETFs are compared head to head?
Every published head-to-head between two Aerospace & Defense ETFs, the most searched first.
- ITA vs XLI
- ITA vs VIS
- XLI vs VIS
- AIRR vs ITA
- AIRR vs VIS
- AIRR vs XLI
- AIRR vs XLB
- ITA vs XLB
- VIS vs XLB
- XLB vs XLI
- AIRR vs PPA
- ITA vs PPA
- PPA vs VIS
- PPA vs XLB
- PPA vs XLI
- AIRR vs SHLD
- ITA vs SHLD
- PPA vs SHLD
- SHLD vs VIS
- SHLD vs XLB
- SHLD vs XLI
- AIRR vs XAR
- ITA vs XAR
- PPA vs XAR
- SHLD vs XAR
- VIS vs XAR
- XAR vs XLB
- XAR vs XLI
- AIRR vs VAW
- ITA vs VAW
- PPA vs VAW
- SHLD vs VAW
- VAW vs VIS
- VAW vs XAR
- VAW vs XLI
- XLB vs VAW
- AIRR vs ITB
- ITA vs ITB
- ITB vs PPA
- ITB vs SHLD
- ITB vs VAW
- ITB vs VIS
- ITB vs XAR
- ITB vs XLB
- ITB vs XLI
- FIDU vs IYJ vs VIS vs XLI
Where is money going in Industrials & Materials?
In the week to October 28, 2026, Industrials & Materials moved +0.6% and saw -$497M of net fund flow, which ETF Copilot reads as price only — price moving without money following.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Price, 1 week | +0.6% |
| Net flow, 1 week | -$497M |
| Price, 1 month | +0.2% |
| Net flow, 1 month | -$790M |
Net fund flow is money into or out of the ETFs in this category, computed by ETF Copilot from daily fund assets. All 33 sectors side by side →
Cite this
ETF Copilot, “Best Aerospace & Defense ETFs”, as of October 28, 2026.
https://etf-copilot.com/best/aerospace-defense-etfs
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