Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
FREL vs ICF: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, FREL returned +4.6% to ICF's +9.0%; 16% of their weight is in the same names.
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Net assets: $1.3bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Fidelity MSCI Real Estate Index ETF, and $1.9bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares Select U.S. REIT ETF.
Pair scorecard
FREL costs 0.24 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 4.4 points; ICF is 1.5 times larger.
| Measure | FREL | ICF |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +4.6% | +9.0% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 8.4%, high on Jul 28, 2026 | 6.7%, high on Jul 29, 2026 |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | MSCI USA IMI Real Estate 25/25 Index | Cohen & Steers Realty Majors Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.08% | 0.32% |
| Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026 | $1.3bn | $2.0bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 16% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 47.5% | 59.0% |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Feb 13, 2015 to Oct 23, 2026 · 610 weekly returnsFREL and ICF returned about the same: +80.6% and +80.3%. FREL and ICF swung about the same: 21.0% and 20.9%. ICF fell slightly less at its worst: −37.2% to −39.3%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | FREL | ICF | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +80.6% | +80.3% | Tie | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +5.2% | +5.2% | Tie | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | +16.7% | +28.8% | ICF | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 21.0% | 20.9% | Tie | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 14.6% | 14.5% | Tie | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −39.3% | −37.2% | ICF (slight) | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.24 | 0.24 | Tie | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.35 | 0.35 | Tie | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.13 | 0.14 | ICF (slight) | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 610 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, FREL and ICF hold 16% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026.
half
16% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
FREL and ICF on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
FREL and ICF are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. FREL follows MSCI USA IMI Real Estate 25/25 Index and ICF follows Cohen & Steers Realty Majors Index.
- Holdings in common. 16% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 FREL returned +4.6% and ICF +9.0% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 4.4 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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FREL
FREL tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +4.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings filed for Jul 31, 2026, 73% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 122 positions, with the top ten at 47.5%. It sat 8.4% below its high of Jul 28, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
ICF
ICF tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +9.0% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.32% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 92% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 31 positions, with the top ten at 59.0%. It sat 6.7% below its high of Jul 29, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, FREL or ICF?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FREL returned +4.6% and ICF +9.0%.
- Which is cheaper, FREL or ICF?
- FREL is cheaper, by 0.24 percentage points a year. That is about $24 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, FREL against ICF, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/frel-vs-icf
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). FREL against ICF. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/frel-vs-icf
[FREL against ICF (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/frel-vs-icf)
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