Trading term

What is Nasdaq-100?

The Nasdaq-100 is an index of the 100 biggest companies listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange, leaving out banks and other financial firms. QQQ and QQQM are the best-known funds that track it.

Each company is weighted by its size, so the biggest ones count for the most. In October 2026 Nvidia, Apple and Microsoft were about 22% of it. It isn't a tech index. It also holds shops, carmakers, drugmakers and media companies, as long as they list on the Nasdaq. A company listed only on the New York Stock Exchange can't get in, however big it is.

For example

QQQ and QQQM both track the Nasdaq-100 and held the same stocks in the same weights in October 2026. Vanguard's VGT doesn't: it tracks the tech sector, so it holds no Amazon, Alphabet, Meta or Tesla.

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Why it matters to you

It's the index most traders mean when they say 'the Nasdaq'. Nasdaq futures, QQQ options and the 3x funds like TQQQ all move with it.

⚠ The Nasdaq-100 isn't the Nasdaq Composite

The Composite holds every stock listed on the Nasdaq, more than 3,000 of them. News reports often quote it, and it can move differently from the 100.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Nasdaq-100 the same as the tech sector?

No. Tech companies are the biggest part of it, but it also holds companies like Amazon, Costco and Tesla. A tech-sector fund such as VGT leaves those out.

How do I invest in the Nasdaq-100?

Through a fund that tracks it, such as QQQ or QQQM in the US, or a Nasdaq-100 UCITS ETF in the UK and Europe.

Read the full guide

Funds & ETFsQQQ vs QQQM vs VGT: Which Nasdaq and Tech ETF Should You Own?QQQ and QQQM hold the same 100 stocks. VGT holds only tech. We tested $10,000 in each since 2020, and QQQ against VGT since 2004.9 min read

Related terms

All-time highAn all-time high is the highest price a market has ever reached. Traders often measure it by the closing price, so one brief spike doesn't count.Anchored VWAPAnchored VWAP is a volume-weighted average price that starts from one candle you choose, rather than resetting at the start of each session. You anchor it to a meaningful event — an earnings gap, a major low, a breakout — and it tracks the average price everyone has paid since.APY (annual percentage yield)APY is the rate you actually earn over a year once your interest starts earning interest of its own. It's the same money as the quoted rate, just counted properly: 5% APR compounded monthly works out to 5.1162% APY.Ascending triangleAn ascending triangle is a bullish continuation pattern: a flat horizontal resistance line on top, with a rising trendline of higher lows beneath it. As the higher lows squeeze price against the ceiling, pressure builds — and it usually resolves with a breakout up through the resistance.
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