DFEV vs SPEM: Differences, Returns & Fees
DFEV and SPEM hold 31% of their weight in the same names, and DFEV returned +36.0% over the year. Net assets: $2.0bn on Jul 31, 2026 for Dimensional Emerging Markets Value ETF, and $17.5bn on Oct 8, 2026 for State Street SPDR Portfolio Emerging Markets ETF.
SPEM costs 0.36 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 22.3 points; SPEM is 8.7 times larger.
| DFEV | SPEM | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.43% | 0.07% |
| Net assets, as of Jul 31, 2026 | $2.0bn | $17.3bn |
| Total return, 1 year | +36.0% | +13.7% |
| What it tracks | No index, actively managed | S&P Emerging BMI Index ? |
| Holdings in common | 31% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 18.6% | 26.5% |
| Below its high | 3.2%, high on Jun 22, 2026 | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Oct 8, 2026.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, DFEV and SPEM hold 31% 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 Jul 31, 2026 and Oct 8, 2026.
half
31% in common
On the same fields
DFEV and SPEM on the fields both publish, as of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
About DFEV
DFEV is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 it returned +36.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.43% 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 3,512 positions, with the top ten at 18.6%. It sat 3.2% below its high of Jun 22, 2026 on Oct 9, 2026.
About SPEM
SPEM tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 it returned +13.7% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.07% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 8, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 2,746 positions, with the top ten at 26.5%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, DFEV or SPEM?
- In the year to Oct 9, 2026, with distributions reinvested, DFEV returned +36.0% and SPEM +13.7%.
- Which is cheaper, DFEV or SPEM?
- SPEM is cheaper, by 0.36 percentage points a year. That is about $36 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, DFEV against SPEM, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dfev-vs-spem
ETFIQ. (Oct 9, 2026). DFEV against SPEM. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/dfev-vs-spem
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