It’s pretty well known that tech companies have played a significant role in propelling the stock market to impressive gains over the last decade or so. With investments in artificial intelligence ramping up as we approach 2026, there’s a good chance that technology will continue to be a solid area for investment.
That said, not everyone finds it easy to pick individual tech stocks that are worth buying. There are, after all, countless great options. One alternative could be to consider Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) to get a more diversified exposure to the tech sector.
If I had to invest $1,000 in a tech ETF today, I would likely lean toward a broadly-based technology index fund rather than a specialized ETF that focuses solely on, say, AI or robotics. I’m quite partial to Vanguard ETFs, but there are several others that offer good tech exposure at low costs. Still, the most apparent choice may not actually be the best fit.
Among Vanguard’s various offerings, the Vanguard Information Technology ETF, with a ticker symbol VGT, stands out as a leading broad technology sector ETF. It has a low expense ratio of just 0.09% and seeks to track the performance of benchmark indexes in the tech space.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with this ETF as an investment; Vanguard is generally a solid option if you’re looking for pure tech exposure. My main concern, however, is that it doesn’t include many companies typically associated with the term “tech stocks.”
For instance, it doesn’t cover Alphabet, which is Google’s parent company, or Amazon, as they are categorized under Communications and Consumer Discretionary sectors, respectively.
So, if I were to invest my $1,000 in a Vanguard ETF aimed at “technology,” I would consider the Vanguard Growth ETF (ticker symbol VUG).
The Vanguard Growth ETF tracks a large-cap growth stock index, and tech companies constitute a significant part of its holdings. You’ll mostly find the same leading stocks as in the Information Technology ETF, but it also adds exposure to major AI players like Google and Amazon, along with growth-focused firms in other intriguing sectors like Tesla and Eli Lilly.
