Invesco’s RSPH or iShares’ IBB: Which Healthcare ETF Is the Better Long-Term Buy?
Key Points
Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Health Care ETF offers a lower expense ratio and a higher dividend yield than iShares Biotechnology ETF.
iShares Biotechnology ETF provides concentrated biotech exposure while Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Health Care ETF covers the broader healthcare sector.
Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Health Care ETF has shown a lower maximum drawdown over the last five years compared to iShares Biotechnology ETF.
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Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Health Care ETF (NYSEMKT:RSPH) offers a broader, equal-weighted healthcare approach with lower historical volatility, while iShares Biotechnology ETF (NASDAQ:IBB) provides concentrated, market-cap-weighted exposure to the biotechnology industry.
Investors seeking healthcare exposure often choose between niche industry funds and broad-market strategies. While the Invesco fund tracks the wider S&P 500 healthcare universe with an equal-weighting methodology, the iShares fund focuses specifically on biotechnology, leading to different levels of concentration and risk.
Snapshot (cost & size)
| Metric | IBB | RSPH |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | iShares | Invesco |
| Share price | $207.41 (as of 2026-10-15) | $39.12 (as of 2026-10-15) |
| Expense ratio | 0.44% | 0.4% |
| 1-yr return (as of 2026-10-15) | 35.5% | 31.9% |
| Dividend yield | 0.2% | 0.6% |
| Beta | 0.72 | 0.78 |
| AUM | $10.5B | $904.7M |
Beta measures price volatility relative to the S&P 500; beta is calculated from monthly returns over the available fund history (up to five years). The 1-yr return represents total return over the trailing 12 months. Dividend yield is the trailing-12-month distribution yield.
The Invesco fund is slightly more affordable than the iShares fund, carrying an expense ratio of 0.4% compared to 0.44%. Additionally, the Invesco fund offers a higher payout, with a yield gap of 0.41 percentage points.
Performance & risk comparison
| Metric | IBB | RSPH |
|---|---|---|
| Max drawdown (5 yr) | (35.7%) | (21.9%) |
| Growth of $1,000 over 5 years (total return) | $1,337 | $1,360 |
What's inside
The Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Health Care ETF provides 100% exposure to the healthcare sector, holding 61 positions. Its largest positions include Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) at 2.70%, Illumina (NASDAQ:ILMN) at 2.02%, and Mettler-Toledo International (NYSE:MTD) at 1.97%. It was launched in 2006. Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Health Care ETF has paid $0.22 per share over the trailing 12 months, which on its recent ~$39.1 share price works out to a 0.6% yield.
The iShares Biotechnology ETF is more specialized, with 87% in biotechnology, 9% in life sciences tools and services, and 3% in pharmaceuticals. It holds 243 positions, and its top holdings include Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) at 8.66%, Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) at 8.12%, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) at 7.52%. It was launched in 2001. iShares Biotechnology ETF has paid $0.34 per share over the trailing 12 months, which on its recent ~$207.4 share price works out to a 0.2% yield.
For more guidance on ETF investing, check out the full guide at this link.
Which looks like the better buy
It has been a good year to own healthcare stocks. Both RSPH and IBB have delivered strong returns over the trailing 12 months, riding a wave of pharmaceutical dealmaking, GLP-1 drug enthusiasm, and a busy FDA approval calendar. The interesting question is not whether healthcare has rewarded investors (it has) but which approach to owning it makes more sense going forward.
RSPH's equal weighting works as a kind of insurance against concentration risk. No single company can drag the fund down on a bad quarter, which makes it easier to hold through turbulence without second-guessing the decision. IBB asks more of its investors. Biotechnology rewards conviction and punishes hesitation. It is a sector where the news cycle can move a fund dramatically in either direction within days. Those who have held IBB through the volatility have been well compensated recently, but the ride has not been smooth.
The fees are nearly identical. So for most long-term investors who want healthcare exposure without the stomach for biotech's wild swings, RSPH is the more dependable choice. IBB is the better fit for those who believe biotechnology's current momentum has further to run.
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Sara Appino has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amgen, Gilead Sciences, Illumina, Moderna, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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