Data as of Sep 12, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
EWJ vs VEA: how they differ
EWJ and VEA hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and EWJ returned more over the year.
iShares MSCI Japan ETF and Vanguard Developed Markets Index Fund.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, EWJ and VEA hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | EWJ | VEA |
|---|---|---|
| Kirin Holdings Company, Limited | 0.26% | 0.04% |
| TOPPAN Holdings Inc. | 0.13% | 0.02% |
| Only in EWJ | Only in VEA |
|---|---|
| Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. 4.08% | ASML Holding NV 2.37% |
| TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION 3.45% | Samsung Electronics Co Ltd 1.56% |
| SoftBank Group Corp. 3.37% | SK hynix Inc 1.40% |
| Tokyo Electron Limited 2.90% | HSBC Holdings PLC 1.01% |
| Hitachi, Ltd. 2.86% | Novartis AG 0.91% |
| Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. 2.58% | Royal Bank of Canada 0.90% |
| Sony Group Corporation 2.56% | AstraZeneca PLC 0.87% |
| ADVANTEST CORPORATION 2.41% | Nestle SA 0.82% |
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 | VEA Vanguard Developed Markets Index Fund | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | iShares | Vanguard |
| What it is | MSCI Japan | Developed markets ex US |
| Total return, 1 year | +26.5% | +24.5% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | +9.0 pts | +7.0 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.49% | 0.03% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Holdings | 179 | 3870 |
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%.
VEA in plain words
VEA is an index equity fund tracking the Developed markets ex US. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +24.5% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 3870 positions, with the top ten at 13.2%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, EWJ or VEA?
- In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, EWJ returned +26.5% and VEA returned +24.5%, so EWJ returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, EWJ or VEA?
- EWJ charges 0.49% a year and VEA charges 0.03%, so VEA is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do EWJ and VEA overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 0% of EWJ and 0% of VEA 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.
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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 VEA, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/EWJ-VEA Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources