Buy the Space Race With These 3 Space ETFs

Space exchange-traded funds (ETFs) might be one of the next great investing frontiers, but they won't be without their bumps.

Over the past couple of days, space-related investments have strongly sold off amid the launchpad explosion of Blue Origin's New Glenn rocket and the FAA's temporary grounding of SpaceX's Starship to investigate a booster's failure during a test flight.

On the flip side, consider how well space investments had been doing before that. From a May 27 Deutsche Bank note:

“Space/satellite stocks have continued to rally over the past month. … In total, these [50 public space companies globally] are worth $402 billion [and are] up nearly 3.5x year-over-year. In terms of year-to-date performance, the average change in market capitalization for a space stock is +138% (median is +75%) vs. Nasdaq +15%; the best performer is up ~2,300% vs. worse down ~60%.”

If you're interested, then, in putting some of your money into the growing space industry, read on as I outline three of the most prominent space ETFs to buy.

Disclaimer: This article does not constitute individualized investment advice. Individual securities, funds, and/or other investments appear for your consideration and not as personalized investment recommendations. Act at your own discretion.

My Look at Wall Street's Top Space ETFs

While the commercial space industry has existed in some form since before most of us were born, space ETFs have really only existed for less than a decade.

Related: The 16 Best ETFs to Buy Right Now

And they typically share a few common traits:

• Similar holdings. The space industry, while hardly nascent, isn't exactly widespread. Most of these ETFs hold only a few dozen companies, and many of them play in the same pool.
• Similar sector weights. Along the same lines, space ETFs tend to allocate a huge chunk of their assets to industrial/defense companies, with the rest going to communications and technology firms.
• Similar fees. "Thematic" funds that focus on specific investment opportunities that span a few different sectors often charge more than broad-market funds. All of the funds here assess annual fees between 0.35% and 0.75% annually, with several charging that top-end number.

That doesn't mean there aren't meaningful variations now—but like with many thematic funds, these space ETFs will likely differentiate themselves even more if and when the space industry expands.

Now, let me show you some of the most notable space ETFs on the market. The following are a few selections from my broader list of the best space ETFs to buy now.

ETFs are listed in order of assets under management (AUM), from largest to smallest.

Make sure you sign up for The Weekend Tea, Young and the Invested's free weekly newsletter that over 10k monthly readers use to level up their money know-how.

Procure Space ETF

• Inception: April 11, 2019
• Assets under management: $1.3 billion
• Expense ratio: 0.75%, or $7.50 per year on every $1,000 invested

The largest space ETF at the moment also happens to be one of the oldest: Procure Space ETF (UFO), from market veteran Andrew Chanin's ETF firm, ProcureAM.

The Procure Space ETF tracks the VettaFi Space Index, which allocates at least 80% of its weight to "companies that derive a majority of revenues from space-related industries, including those companies utilizing satellite technology." Among those industries?

• Ground equipment manufacturing dependent upon satellite systems
• Rocket and satellite manufacturing and operation
• Satellite-based telecommunications, radio, and television broadcasting
• Space industry segments—space-based imagery and intelligence services
• Space technology and hardware

UFO's portfolio currently stands at around 50 stocks. From a more traditional sector perspective, industrials make up half of UFO's assets, followed by communications (30%) and technology (20%). This is also a global fund, with the U.S. accounting for about two-thirds of assets, and a handful of other countries—including Canada, the Netherlands, and Japan, among others—making up the rest.

Related: Buy 'The Future': 5 Tech Stock ETFs You Should Own in 2026

Top holdings include the likes of Planet Labs (PL), an Earth imaging company; EchoStar (SATS), which provides satellite communications solutions, wireless communications, and content delivery; and longtime satellite radio firm SiriusXM Holdings (SIRI).

Procure also spells out how the fund could evolve over time if and when new space businesses become possible and viable. The ETF says it may eventually reflect other industries, including space tourism, space-based military and defense systems, space colonization, and space resource exploration and extraction.

The Procure Space ETF hit the markets seven years ago, and it might have been ahead of its time. In a recent Reuters report, Chanin noted that "UFO was labeled the worst ETF launch of the year by Morningstar in 2019." It boasted less than $100 million in AUM for most of its first six years of trading and only had $170 million as of the start of 2026.

Today, UFO boasts more than seven times those assets, making it the largest space ETF out there.

Related: 7 Best Growth Stocks to Buy Right Now [Find Your Edge]

State Street SPDR S&P Kensho Final Frontiers ETF

• Inception: Oct. 22, 2018
• Assets under management: $254.6 million
• Expense ratio: 0.45%, or $4.50 per year on every $1,000 invested

The State Street SPDR S&P Kensho Final Frontiers ETF (ROKT) predates all of the funds we cover on our full list of space ETFs, and it's also one of the least expensive ways to invest in cosmos commerce.

But you'll want to pay close attention to one of the words in its name: "frontiers." As in "more than one." 

Let's take a look at the product description page (emphasis ours):

"[ROKT] seeks to track an index utilizing artificial intelligence and a quantitative weighting methodology to capture companies whose products and services are driving innovation behind the exploration of the final frontiers, which includes the areas of outer space and the deep sea."

OK, so ROKT isn't a pure play on the Milky Way. But you're still getting a ton of outer-space exposure in this 35-stock portfolio.

Related: The 7 Best Gold ETFs You Can Buy

Top holdings include previously mentioned Planet Labs as well as SpaceX rival Rocket Lab (RKLB). It also owns aerospace manufacturer and space infrastructure tech firm Redwire (RDW), as well as global satellite communications network operator Iridium Communications (IRDM). Another holding, defense-and-space firm Voyager Technologies (VOYG), is jointly developing a low-Earth orbit (LEO) space station, Starlab, alongside Airbus, Mitsubishi, and MDA Space.

Industrial stocks broadly, and defense companies specifically, are big parts of most space ETFs. But they're an even greater influence on ROKT than they are elsewhere, as State Street's ETF allocates two-thirds of assets to the sector.

We say that to say this: U.S. and other nations' defense spending will also have a say in these funds' performance, but perhaps Final Frontiers more than most.

Nothing wrong with that so far. ROKT has been one of the best-performing space ETFs of the past few years.

Related: 10 Brokerages That Offer Fractional Shares

Global X Space Tech ETF

• Inception: April 14, 2026
• Assets under management: $50.1 million
• Expense ratio: 0.50%, or $5.00 per year on every $1,000 invested

Global X Space Tech ETF (ORBX) is one of the newest space ETFs, launched in April with a 50-basis-point fee that undercuts most of the pure-play interstellar funds. (A basis point is one one-hundredth of a percentage point.)

ORBX tracks the Global X Space Tech Index, which owns companies that earn at least 50% of their revenue from "critical segments of the upstream and downstream space sectors." This includes rocket launch systems, reusable rockets, mission-critical space technology and components, satellite-enabled telecommunications and data, space transportation and exploration, and even space tourism.

Related: 7 Best AI ETFs for the Artificial Intelligence Era

"In a category where broader tech, telecom, or defense exposure can dilute the theme, ORBX aims to give investors a cleaner, more focused way to access the fast-commercializing space economy," says Tejas Dessai, VP, Director of Thematic Research at Global X.

ORBX is another tight portfolio, owning just 30 stocks right now. It's even more heavily weighted in industrials than ROKT, at 70% of assets. The rest belongs to tech and communication stocks. The names should be familiar too: Rocket Lab. Planet Labs. Iridium. It also owns space exploration firm Intuitive Machines (LUNR) and satellite internet provider Viasat (VSAT)—two more names you'll commonly find among other space ETFs.

Like several other space funds, we can expect Global X Space Tech ETF to get a bite of SpaceX at some point after it launches. But a big question (for all of them) is when?

Says Dessai about Global X's product: "ORBX does not require investors to wait for the next quarterly rebalance to gain exposure to major new listings. Through its Fast Entry process, qualifying IPOs can be added on an accelerated timeline. In some cases, it could be less than two weeks. New IPOs are reviewed twice a month, and if a company meets the index criteria, it can be added three business days after the evaluation date."

Learn More About These and Other Funds With Morningstar Investor

If you're buying a fund you plan on holding for years (if not forever), you want to know you're making the right selection. And Morningstar Investor can help you do that.

Morningstar Investor provides a wealth of information and comparable data points about mutual funds and ETFs—fees, risk, portfolio composition, performance, distributions, and more. Morningstar experts also provide detailed explanations and analysis of many of the funds the site covers.

With Morningstar Investor, you'll enjoy a wealth of features, including Morningstar Portfolio X-Ray®, stock and fund watchlists, news and commentary, screeners, and more. And you can try it before you buy it. Right now, Morningstar Investor is offering a free seven-day trial and a discount on your first year's subscription when you use our exclusive link.