Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
ACWI vs XLG: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, ACWI returned +13.4% to XLG's +6.4%; 40% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $33.0bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares MSCI ACWI ETF, and $11.9bn on Oct 27, 2026 for Invesco S&P 500 Top 50 ETF.
Pair scorecard
XLG costs 0.12 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 7.0 points; ACWI is 2.8 times larger.
| Measure | ACWI | XLG |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +13.4% | +6.4% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI ACWI | S&P 500 Top 50 Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.32% | 0.20% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 26, 2026 | $32.6bn | $11.7bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 40% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 24.9% | 60.3% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Apr 4, 2008 to Oct 23, 2026 · 968 weekly returnsXLG returned more: +747.9% to +333.1%. XLG swung slightly less: 17.6% to 18.5%. XLG fell less at its worst: −47.0% to −55.3%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | ACWI | XLG | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +333.1% | +747.9% | XLG | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +8.2% | +12.2% | XLG | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +204.7% | +512.6% | XLG | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 18.5% | 17.6% | XLG (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 13.2% | 12.2% | XLG (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −55.3% | −47.0% | XLG | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.44 | 0.66 | XLG | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.62 | 0.95 | XLG | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.15 | 0.26 | XLG | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 968 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, ACWI and XLG hold 40% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
40% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
ACWI and XLG on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
ACWI and XLG do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. ACWI follows MSCI ACWI and XLG follows S&P 500 Top 50 Index.
- Holdings in common. 40% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 ACWI returned +13.4% and XLG +6.4% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 7.0 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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ACWI
ACWI tracks the MSCI ACWI. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.32% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 61% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 2,197 positions, with the top ten at 24.9%.
XLG
XLG tracks the S&P 500 top 50. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +6.4% with distributions reinvested, against +13.7% for its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.20% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 98% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 53 positions, with the top ten at 60.3%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, ACWI or XLG?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, ACWI returned +13.4% and XLG +6.4%.
- Which is cheaper, ACWI or XLG?
- XLG is cheaper, by 0.12 percentage points a year. That is about $12 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.
How this is computed
Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.
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ETFIQ, ACWI against XLG, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/acwi-vs-xlg
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). ACWI against XLG. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/acwi-vs-xlg
[ACWI against XLG (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/acwi-vs-xlg)
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