SPUS and HLAL are the two most popular Shariah-compliant ETFs in the United States. Both aim to give Muslim investors broad US equity exposure while maintaining full Shariah compliance — but they differ significantly in methodology, holdings, cost, and performance. We compared them using real data from the Halal Terminal API.
SPUS tracks a Shariah-filtered S&P 500 (broader, lower cost). HLAL tracks the FTSE USA Shariah Index (slightly different methodology, more concentrated). Both are fully compliant — your choice depends on cost sensitivity vs methodology preference.
Head-to-Head Comparison
| Metric | SPUS | HLAL |
|---|---|---|
| Full Name | SP Funds S&P 500 Sharia ETF | Wahed FTSE USA Shariah ETF |
| Index Tracked | S&P 500 Shariah Index | FTSE USA Shariah Index |
| Screening Standard | S&P Dow Jones Shariah | FTSE Shariah (Yasaar Ltd) |
| Expense Ratio | 0.49% | 0.50% |
| AUM | ~$1.1B | ~$380M |
| Holdings | ~235 | ~190 |
| Compliance Rate | 100% | 100% |
| Purification Rate | 1.2% | 1.4% |
| Dividend Yield | ~0.9% | ~0.7% |
| Inception Date | Dec 2019 | Jul 2019 |
| 1-Year Return | +28.4% | +26.8% |
| 3-Year Return | +42.1% | +38.7% |
| Top Holding | AAPL (~15%) | AAPL (~14%) |
Methodology Differences
SPUS: S&P Shariah Methodology
SPUS uses the S&P Dow Jones Shariah screening methodology, which uses market-cap-based denominators for financial ratios. Thresholds are:
- Debt / Market Cap < 33%
- Cash + Interest-bearing securities / Market Cap < 33%
- Accounts Receivable / Market Cap < 33%
- Impermissible revenue < 5%
HLAL: FTSE Shariah Methodology
HLAL uses the FTSE Shariah methodology (advised by Yasaar Ltd), which uses total-assets-based denominators with more generous limits:
- Debt / Total Assets < 50%
- Cash + Interest-bearing securities / Total Assets < 50%
- Accounts Receivable / Total Assets < 50%
- Impermissible revenue < 5%
Practical difference: FTSE's 50% threshold is more lenient than S&P's 33% market-cap threshold for most stocks. However, during market downturns when market caps fall, S&P's market-cap-based approach can cause stocks to fail screening that still pass FTSE's asset-based approach. SPUS may have slightly more turnover during volatile markets.
Holdings Overlap
We compared both ETFs using the Halal Terminal ETF comparison endpoint:
curl -X POST https://api.halalterminal.com/api/etf/compare \
-H "X-API-Key: YOUR_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"symbols": ["SPUS", "HLAL"]}'Key findings:
- ~85% overlap in holdings by weight — both hold the same mega-cap tech stocks
- Top 10 holdings are nearly identical: AAPL, MSFT, NVDA, AMZN, META, GOOGL, AVGO, TSLA, UNH, LLY
- SPUS has ~45 more holdings than HLAL, giving slightly broader diversification
- Sector weights are similar: both are heavily overweight Technology (~45%) and Healthcare (~15%)
Which Should You Choose?
| Choose SPUS If... | Choose HLAL If... |
|---|---|
| You want broader diversification (235 vs 190 holdings) | You prefer the FTSE Shariah methodology |
| You want slightly lower purification (1.2% vs 1.4%) | You want Wahed's brand and ecosystem |
| You prioritize higher AUM and liquidity ($1.1B vs $380M) | You like FTSE's asset-based thresholds (more stable in downturns) |
| You want closer S&P 500 tracking | You want a more concentrated, conviction-weighted portfolio |
Bottom line: Both are excellent choices. The differences are marginal. If forced to pick, SPUS has a slight edge due to larger AUM, broader holdings, and lower purification rate — but you can't go wrong with either.
Two ways to screen
Halal Terminal
Screen stocks and ETFs interactively with real-time data, multi-methodology verdicts, and transparent financial ratios.
Key Takeaways
- Both SPUS and HLAL are 100% Shariah-compliant — either is a valid choice
- SPUS is slightly larger, broader, and cheaper in purification costs
- HLAL uses a more conservative asset-based methodology that may be more stable in downturns
- ~85% holdings overlap — you're getting very similar exposure either way
- Consider holding both for methodology diversification