Which returned more over the last year, EFA or LQD?

In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, EFA returned +18.2% and LQD returned −2.7%, so EFA returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.

Which is cheaper, EFA or LQD?

EFA charges 0.32% a year and LQD charges 0.14%, so LQD is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.

ETFIQetfiq.com · independent ETF data

EFA vs LQD: how they differ

EFA and LQD hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and EFA returned more over the year.

iShares MSCI EAFE ETF and iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF.

What they hold in common

By the books each fund has filed, EFA and LQD hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.

Largest positions each one holds and the other does not
Only in EFA	Only in LQD
ASML HOLDING 3.01%	BLK CSH FND TREASURY SL AGENCY 0.88%
HSBC HOLDINGS PLC 1.61%	ANHEUSER-BUSCH COMPANIES LLC 0.12%
ROCHE PS PAR AG 1.36%	DEUTSCHE TELEKOM INTERNATIONAL FIN 0.11%
SHELL PLC 1.25%	CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS OPERATING L 144A 0.10%
MITSUBISHI UFJ FINANCIAL GROUP 1.15%	JPMORGAN CHASE & CO MTN 0.09%
NOVARTIS AG 1.15%	BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS PLC 0.08%
NESTLE SA 1.12%	MORGAN STANLEY (FXD-FRN) MTN 0.08%
ASTRAZENECA PLC 1.09%	CITIGROUP INC (FX-FRN) 0.07%

Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Sep 10, 2026.

EFA and LQD on the fields both publish, as of Sep 13, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
	EFA iShares MSCI EAFE ETF	LQD iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF
Where it sits	Core index fund	Core index fund
Issuer	iShares	iShares
What it is	Developed markets ex US	US investment grade bonds
Total return, 1 year	+18.2%	−2.7%
S&P 500 over the same days	+17.5%	+17.5%
Gap to the S&P 500	+0.7 pts	−20.2 pts
Expense ratio	0.32%	0.14%
Holdings	670	3149

EFA in plain words

EFA is an index equity fund tracking the Developed markets ex US. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +18.2% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.32% a year. By its holdings filed for Sep 10, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 670 positions, with the top ten at 13.8%.

LQD in plain words

LQD is a bond fund tracking the US investment grade bonds. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned −2.7% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.14% a year. It sat 6.4% below its high of Sep 22, 2021 on Sep 11, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, EFA or LQD?: In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, EFA returned +18.2% and LQD returned −2.7%, so EFA returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Which is cheaper, EFA or LQD?: EFA charges 0.32% a year and LQD charges 0.14%, so LQD is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

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Where these figures came from

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.

EFA against LQD, ETFIQ, data as of Sep 13, 2026. Every figure is arithmetic on a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page. ETFIQ, EFA against LQD, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/efa-vs-lqd Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.

A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources