Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
ACWX vs VEU: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, ACWX returned +14.3% to VEU's +14.4%; 80% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $17.9bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares MSCI ACWI ex U.S. ETF, and $68.1bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard FTSE All World Ex US ETF.
Pair scorecard
VEU costs 0.28 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.1 points; VEU is 3.9 times larger.
| Measure | ACWX | VEU |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +14.3% | +14.4% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 4.9%, high on Sep 4, 2026 | 5.0%, high on Sep 4, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI ACWI ex USA Index | FTSE All-World ex US Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.32% | 0.04% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $17.3bn | $68.1bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 80% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 15.6% | 15.2% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Apr 11, 2008 to Oct 23, 2026 · 967 weekly returnsVEU returned more: +152.4% to +129.8%. VEU swung slightly less: 19.4% to 19.8%. ACWX and VEU fell about the same at their worst: −59.4% and −58.4%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | ACWX | VEU | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +129.8% | +152.4% | VEU | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +4.6% | +5.1% | VEU | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +42.8% | +48.1% | VEU | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 19.8% | 19.4% | VEU (slight) | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 14.4% | 14.0% | VEU (slight) | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −59.4% | −58.4% | Tie | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.25 | 0.28 | VEU (slight) | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.35 | 0.39 | VEU | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.08 | 0.09 | VEU | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 967 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, ACWX and VEU hold 80% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Sep 30, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
80% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
ACWX and VEU on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
ACWX and VEU are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. ACWX follows MSCI ACWI ex USA Index and VEU follows FTSE All-World ex US Index.
- Cost. ACWX charges 0.32% of assets a year and VEU 0.04%, a gap of 0.28 points.
- Size. ACWX has $17.3bn in net assets and VEU $68.1bn (net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026); VEU is 3.9 times larger.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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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.
VEU
VEU tracks the FTSE All-World ex-US. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +14.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.04% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 3,816 positions, with the top ten at 15.2%. It sat 5.0% below its high of Sep 4, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, ACWX or VEU?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, ACWX returned +14.3% and VEU +14.4%.
- Which is cheaper, ACWX or VEU?
- VEU is cheaper, by 0.28 percentage points a year. That is about $28 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, ACWX against VEU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/acwx-vs-veu
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). ACWX against VEU. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/acwx-vs-veu
[ACWX against VEU (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/acwx-vs-veu)
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