Which returned more over the last year, ACWX or GLD?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, ACWX returned +14.3% and GLD +2.5%.

Which is cheaper, ACWX or GLD?

ACWX is cheaper, by 0.08 percentage points a year. That is about $8 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

ACWX vs GLD: Differences, Returns & Fees

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ACWX is an equity index fund and GLD a commodity fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, ACWX returned +14.3% against +2.5%.

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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $17.9bn for iShares MSCI ACWI ex U.S. ETF and $135.8bn for SPDR Gold Shares.

ACWX on its own →GLD on its own →

At a glance

+14.3%

ACWX total return, 1 year

+2.5%

GLD total return, 1 year

0.32%

ACWX expense ratio

0.40%

GLD expense ratio

Pair scorecard

ACWX costs 0.08 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 11.8 points; GLD is 7.6 times larger.

ACWX vs GLD: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	ACWX	GLD
Return
Measure	ACWX	GLD
Total return, 1 year	+14.3%	+2.5%
Drawdown
Measure	ACWX	GLD
Below its high	4.9%, high on Sep 4, 2026	24.7%, high on Jan 29, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	ACWX	GLD
What it tracks	MSCI ACWI ex USA Index	Gold
Cost and size
Measure	ACWX	GLD
Expense ratio	0.32%	0.40%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$17.9bn	$135.8bn
Holdings
Measure	ACWX	GLD
Holdings in common	not published
In the S&P 500, by weight	0%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund	15.6%

Method

Side by side

ACWX iShares MSCI ACWI ex U.S. ETF GLD SPDR Gold Shares

Where it sits Stock ETF Commodity ETF

Issuer iShares State Street

What it is Tracks the MSCI ACWI ex U.S. Holds gold

Total return, 1 year +14.3% +2.5%

Its benchmark over the same days not measured +2.7% (IAU)

Gap to its benchmark not measured −0.2 pts vs IAU

Expense ratio 0.32% 0.40%

Holdings 1939 not counted

Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 $17.9bn $135.8bn

ACWX and GLD on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Alert

About each fund

ACWX

ACWX tracks the MSCI ACWI ex U.S.. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +14.3% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.32% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 1,939 positions, with the top ten at 15.6%. It sat 4.9% below its high of Sep 4, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

GLD

Its expense ratio is 0.40% a year, for the three months to Jun 30, 2026, as its 10-Q states.

GLD holds gold. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.5% with distributions reinvested, against +2.7% for its benchmark, the price of gold. It sat 24.7% below its high of Jan 29, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, ACWX or GLD?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, ACWX returned +14.3% and GLD +2.5%.
Which is cheaper, ACWX or GLD?: ACWX is cheaper, by 0.08 percentage points a year. That is about $8 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Other comparisons

ACWX vs IAU ACWX vs BWET ACWX vs GLDM ACWX vs SLV FENI vs GLD GLD vs IXUS GLD vs VEU GLD vs SCHF

Where to next

ACWX on its own →GLD on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →ACWX dividend history →ACWX holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

ACWX filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

ACWX prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for ACWX ↗

State Street website ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

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ETFIQ, ACWX against GLD, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/acwx-vs-gld

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