Best Dow Jones ETFs: Dividend Picks & Low-Cost Funds

Charles Dow created the Dow Jones Industrial Average on May 26, 1896, starting with just 12 industrial stocks. It expanded to its current 30-component format in 1928 and remains the oldest continuing U.S. market index. Today, several Dow Jones ETFs let you track these 30 blue-chip companies — from straightforward index replicas to dividend-weighted alternatives.

Unlike the market-cap-weighted S&P 500 or Nasdaq 100, the DJIA is price-weighted. A stock’s share price — not the company’s total market capitalization — determines its weight in the index. The Dow 30 covers most sectors except utilities and transportation, with a heavier tilt toward industrials, health care, and financials compared to the S&P 500.

Here are the main Dow Jones ETF approaches:

• SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA): Launched in January 1998, DIA is the first and only pure Dow tracker, holding all 30 stocks in the same proportion as the index. It trades on NYSE Arca and ranks among the most liquid U.S.-listed ETFs.
• Invesco Dow Jones Industrial Average Dividend ETF (DJD): Also on NYSE Arca, DJD tracks only the dividend-paying stocks within the DJIA, weighted by their dividend yield rather than share price.
• Low-cost alternatives: Several providers offer Dow Jones funds with varying fee structures, from minimal-cost passive trackers to funds with specific dividend or weighting strategies.

Components of the DJIA are selected by a five-person committee — three from S&P Dow Jones Indices and two from the Wall Street Journal. There is no fixed reconstitution schedule; changes happen on an as-needed basis, which keeps the selection process less predictable than other major indexes.

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The table below lists Dow Jones ETFs traded on U.S. exchanges, with live data on dividend distributions, fee structures, and trading volumes.