For years, if you wanted the Nasdaq-100 in a single ticker, the default answer was QQQ. In July 2026, BlackRock changed the math. Its new iShares Nasdaq 100 ETF, ticker IQQ, tracks the exact same index at a 0.12% fee, waived to 0.10% through July 2027. That is the lowest sticker price on the Nasdaq-100, below QQQ's 0.20% and even below QQQM at 0.15%.
The launch is part of a broader fee war. State Street entered the same benchmark around the same time, so three of the largest fund companies are now competing to hold the identical 100 stocks for the lowest price. For investors, cheaper is genuinely good. The useful question is how much this actually changes, and for whom.
What BlackRock Launched
IQQ holds the Nasdaq-100, the roughly 100 largest non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq. That is the same index QQQ and QQQM track, so IQQ owns the same names in the same proportions: Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, and the rest of the mega-cap technology cohort, plus the recently added SpaceX. Same index means the pre-fee returns are effectively identical across all three funds.
What differs is cost and scale. IQQ pulled in about $239 million in its first two weeks, a solid start but a rounding error next to QQQ, which routinely trades over a billion dollars a day and has built one of the deepest options markets of any ETF. IQQ is the newcomer competing on price; QQQ is the incumbent competing on liquidity.
The Nasdaq-100 Fee Ladder
Here is where the three funds now sit. All hold the same index, so this table is really just a cost and liquidity comparison.
| Fund | Issuer | Expense ratio | Cost per $10,000/yr | Best known for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IQQ | iShares (BlackRock) | 0.12% (0.10% waived) | $10–$12 | Lowest fee |
| QQQM | Invesco | 0.15% | $15 | Buy-and-hold sibling of QQQ |
| QQQ | Invesco | 0.20% | $20 | Liquidity and options market |
The gaps are real but small in dollar terms. On a $10,000 position, IQQ's waived fee saves about $10 a year versus QQQ and $5 versus QQQM. Scale that to $100,000 and it is roughly $100 a year versus QQQ. Meaningful over decades of compounding, but not a number that should trigger a panicked switch.
The Switching Trap in Taxable Accounts
This is the part that trips people up. The fee savings only matter if capturing them does not cost you more than they are worth, and in a taxable brokerage account it often does.
If you already hold QQQ in a taxable account and it has gained value, selling it to buy IQQ realizes a capital gain, and the tax bill on that gain can be many times larger than years of fee savings. In a tax-advantaged account like an IRA or 401(k), there is no such cost, so switching to the cheaper fund is clean. And for new contributions, simply directing them to the lower-fee fund captures the savings with no downside. The distinction between new money and existing taxable positions matters more than the headline fee gap.
A cheaper Nasdaq-100 fund is a win for investors, and IQQ at 0.10% is a genuinely low number. But three funds holding the same 100 stocks will deliver the same returns before fees, so this is a cost-and-liquidity decision, not a performance one. For new money in a tax-advantaged account, the cheapest option is an easy default. For an existing taxable QQQ position, the tax cost of switching usually outweighs the fee saving, so staying put is often the cheaper move overall. And if you actively trade options, QQQ's liquidity is the feature you are paying the extra basis points for.
The bigger picture is worth keeping in view. The Nasdaq-100 is a concentrated bet on large-cap technology, whichever wrapper you use. Before optimizing which 0.10%-versus-0.20% version to own, it is worth being clear on how much Nasdaq concentration fits your plan at all. Our VOO vs QQQ comparison covers that tradeoff, and JEPQ vs QQQ covers the income-versus-growth version of the same question.
Common Questions
What is IQQ, the iShares Nasdaq 100 ETF?
IQQ is BlackRock's iShares Nasdaq 100 ETF, which began trading in July 2026. It tracks the same Nasdaq-100 index as QQQ and QQQM, so it holds the same roughly 100 largest non-financial Nasdaq companies in the same weights. Its distinction is cost: a 0.12% expense ratio, currently waived to 0.10% through July 2027. That undercuts QQQ at 0.20% and QQQM at 0.15%.
Is IQQ cheaper than QQQ?
Yes. IQQ charges 0.12%, waived to 0.10% through July 2027, versus QQQ at 0.20%. On a $10,000 position that is roughly $10 to $12 a year for IQQ against $20 for QQQ. IQQ is also cheaper than QQQM's 0.15%. All three hold the identical Nasdaq-100 index, so the fee is the main difference, though QQQ keeps far deeper liquidity and a large options market that active traders value.
Should I switch from QQQ to IQQ?
It depends on the account. In a tax-advantaged account like an IRA or 401(k), moving to a lower-fee fund carries no tax cost, so the decision is mostly about the fee gap and whether you value QQQ's liquidity. In a taxable account, selling QQQ to buy IQQ can trigger capital gains taxes that dwarf the small annual fee savings, which often makes switching counterproductive. For new money, starting in the cheaper fund is straightforward. This is educational information, not personalized advice.
What is the difference between IQQ, QQQ, and QQQM?
All three track the Nasdaq-100 and hold the same stocks. QQQ (Invesco, 0.20%) is the original, with enormous trading volume and the deepest options market, which is why traders use it. QQQM (Invesco, 0.15%) is Invesco's lower-cost version built for buy-and-hold investors. IQQ (iShares, 0.12% waived to 0.10%) is BlackRock's new entrant and the cheapest of the three. For a long-term holder the returns before fees are effectively identical, so cost and liquidity are the deciding factors.