DFAE vs GEM: Differences, Returns & Fees
DFAE and GEM hold 62% of their weight in the same names, and GEM returned +26.6% over the year. Net assets: $9.5bn on Jul 31, 2026 for Dimensional Emerging Core Equity Market ETF, and $1.8bn on Oct 8, 2026 for Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta Emerging Markets Equity ETF.
DFAE costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.6 points.
| DFAE | GEM | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.29% | 0.35% |
| Net assets, DFAE as of Jul 31, 2026 and GEM as of Oct 8, 2026 | $9.5bn | $1.8bn |
| Total return, 1 year | +26.0% | +26.6% |
| What it tracks | No index, actively managed | Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta Emerging Markets Equity Index |
| Holdings in common | 62% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 30.5% | 36.9% |
| Below its high | 5.0%, high on Jun 22, 2026 | 5.9%, high on Jun 22, 2026 |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated May 31, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, DFAE and GEM hold 62% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated May 31, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026.
half
62% in common
On the same fields
DFAE and GEM on the fields both publish, as of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
About DFAE
DFAE is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 it returned +26.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.29% a year. By its holdings filed for Jul 31, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 6,272 positions, with the top ten at 30.5%. It sat 5.0% below its high of Jun 22, 2026 on Oct 9, 2026.
About GEM
GEM tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 it returned +26.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.35% 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 743 positions, with the top ten at 36.9%. It sat 5.9% below its high of Jun 22, 2026 on Oct 9, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, DFAE or GEM?
- In the year to Oct 9, 2026, with distributions reinvested, DFAE returned +26.0% and GEM +26.6%.
- Which is cheaper, DFAE or GEM?
- DFAE is cheaper, by 0.06 percentage points a year. That is about $6 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure; a link is not an endorsement. 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, DFAE against GEM, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dfae-vs-gem
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