Data as of Sep 12, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
EWJ vs IYR: how they differ
EWJ and IYR hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and EWJ returned more over the year.
iShares MSCI Japan ETF and iShares U.S. Real Estate ETF.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, EWJ and IYR hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in EWJ | Only in IYR |
|---|---|
| Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. 4.08% | WELLTOWER INC. 10.88% |
| TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION 3.45% | PROLOGIS, INC. 8.77% |
| SoftBank Group Corp. 3.37% | SIMON PROPERTY GROUP, INC. 4.79% |
| Tokyo Electron Limited 2.90% | EQUINIX, INC. 4.58% |
| Hitachi, Ltd. 2.86% | DIGITAL REALTY TRUST, INC. 4.41% |
| Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. 2.58% | REALTY INCOME CORPORATION 4.29% |
| Sony Group Corporation 2.56% | AMERICAN TOWER CORPORATION 3.88% |
| ADVANTEST CORPORATION 2.41% | PUBLIC STORAGE. 3.74% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and May 31, 2026.
| EWJ iShares MSCI Japan ETF | IYR iShares U.S. Real Estate ETF | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | iShares | iShares |
| What it is | MSCI Japan | U.S. Real Estate |
| Total return, 1 year | +26.5% | +4.7% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | +9.0 pts | −12.8 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.49% | 0.37% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 0.0% | 80.4% |
| Holdings | 179 | 61 |
EWJ in plain words
EWJ is an index equity fund tracking the MSCI Japan. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +26.5% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.49% a year. By its holdings filed for May 31, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 179 positions, with the top ten at 28.4%.
IYR in plain words
IYR is an index equity fund tracking the U.S. Real Estate. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +4.7% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.37% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 80% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 61 positions, with the top ten at 51.5%. It sat 6.1% below its high of Jul 28, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, EWJ or IYR?
- In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, EWJ returned +26.5% and IYR returned +4.7%, so EWJ returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, EWJ or IYR?
- EWJ charges 0.49% a year and IYR charges 0.37%, so IYR is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do EWJ and IYR overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 0% of EWJ and 80% of IYR by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.
Other comparisons
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Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, EWJ against IYR, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/EWJ-IYR Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources