Data as of Sep 12, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
EWJ vs VYMI: how they differ
EWJ and VYMI hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and VYMI returned more over the year.
iShares MSCI Japan ETF and Vanguard International High Dividend Yield Index Fund.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, EWJ and VYMI hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | EWJ | VYMI |
|---|---|---|
| Kirin Holdings Company, Limited | 0.26% | 0.07% |
| Only in EWJ | Only in VYMI |
|---|---|
| Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. 4.08% | HSBC Holdings PLC 1.73% |
| TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION 3.45% | Novartis AG 1.56% |
| SoftBank Group Corp. 3.37% | Nestle SA 1.44% |
| Tokyo Electron Limited 2.90% | Shell PLC 1.43% |
| Hitachi, Ltd. 2.86% | Royal Bank of Canada 1.38% |
| Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. 2.58% | Commonwealth Bank of Australia 1.15% |
| Sony Group Corporation 2.56% | Toyota Motor Corp 1.12% |
| ADVANTEST CORPORATION 2.41% | Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc 1.08% |
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 Apr 30, 2026 and May 31, 2026.
| EWJ iShares MSCI Japan ETF | VYMI Vanguard International High Dividend Yield Index Fund | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | iShares | Vanguard |
| What it is | MSCI Japan | International High Dividend Yield |
| Total return, 1 year | +26.5% | +28.2% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | +9.0 pts | +10.7 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.49% | 0.07% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 0.0% | 0.1% |
| Holdings | 179 | 1582 |
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%.
VYMI in plain words
VYMI is an index equity fund tracking the International High Dividend Yield. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +28.2% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.07% a year. By its holdings filed for Apr 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 1582 positions, with the top ten at 13.5%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, EWJ or VYMI?
- In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, EWJ returned +26.5% and VYMI returned +28.2%, so VYMI returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, EWJ or VYMI?
- EWJ charges 0.49% a year and VYMI charges 0.07%, so VYMI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do EWJ and VYMI overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 0% of EWJ and 0% of VYMI 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
Where to next
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 VYMI, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/EWJ-VYMI Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources