What Is the S&P 500 and How to Buy It in the UK
You think you own 500 American companies. Look inside the S&P 500 in 2026 and the top ten holdings account for more than a third of the whole index. That's not diversification.
UK-listed S&P 500 UCITS ETFs compared
| Ticker | Provider | TER | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| CSPX | iShares | 0.07% | Physical, accumulating |
| VUAG | Vanguard | 0.07% | Physical, accumulating |
| VUSA | Vanguard | 0.07% | Physical, distributing |
| SPXP | Invesco | 0.05% | Synthetic, accumulating |
| IUSA | iShares | 0.07% | Physical, distributing |
All Ireland-domiciled to benefit from the 15% US dividend withholding rate.
Key takeaways
The S&P 500 tracks the 500 largest US-listed companies by market cap and covers around 80% of total US equity market value.
It has returned roughly 10% per year nominal in USD over the last 70 years, but is now heavily concentrated in mega-cap tech.
UK investors cannot buy US-listed S&P 500 ETFs like SPY or VOO directly. They use UCITS-compliant equivalents listed on the London Stock Exchange.
CSPX (iShares Core S&P 500), VUAG (Vanguard S&P 500), and SPXP (Invesco S&P 500) are the three most widely held UK options, all charging between 0.05% and 0.07%.