Why Alphabet has two tickers

Alphabet trades under two symbols because it has several share classes. They represent ownership of the same company and share in the same profits, but the voting rights differ:

  • Class A (GOOGL) has one vote per share.
  • Class C (GOOG) has no votes.
  • Class B is not publicly traded. It carries ten votes per share and is held by insiders, which keeps control with the founders and long-time leaders.

For a regular investor, the voting difference rarely changes anything in practice. You are buying a share of the same business.

Do they pay the same dividend?

Yes. Alphabet declared its first dividend in 2024, and it is paid per share at the same amount for each listed class. That means the dividend yield on GOOG and GOOGL is almost identical, apart from small differences in share price.

The dividend is small compared with the price, so neither share class should be seen as an income stock. They are growth holdings with a modest cash payment.

How to choose

  • The price of the two classes is usually close. Class C sometimes trades slightly lower or higher depending on demand.
  • If you care about a vote at shareholder meetings, buy Class A.
  • If you simply want exposure to the business and the dividend, either works. Many investors look at whichever one has the lower price or better liquidity in their broker.

The business behind the ticker

Alphabet is the parent of Google. It earns most of its income from advertising on Search and YouTube, with Google Cloud as the second major pillar. For a full description of how the business works, read the GOOGL page.

Quick take

GOOG and GOOGL are two ways to own the same company. The key difference is voting, not money. Use the chart below to compare the price path, and avoid counting both classes when you work out how concentrated your portfolio is.