HEFA vs ILOW: Differences, Returns & Fees
HEFA and ILOW hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and HEFA returned +19.3% over the year. Net assets: $7.5bn on Oct 9, 2026 for iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EAFE ETF, and $1.8bn on Oct 8, 2026 for AB International Low Volatility Equity ETF.
HEFA costs 0.15 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 10.3 points.
| HEFA | ILOW | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.35% | 0.50% |
| Net assets, HEFA as of Oct 9, 2026 and ILOW as of Oct 8, 2026 | $7.5bn | $1.8bn |
| Total return, 1 year | +19.3% | +9.0% |
| What it tracks | not read by ETFIQ | No index, actively managed |
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 100.0% | 20.7% |
| Below its high | 3.2%, high on Aug 13, 2026 | 4.9%, high on Aug 25, 2026 |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated May 31, 2026 and Oct 9, 2026.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, HEFA and ILOW hold 0% 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 Oct 9, 2026.
half
0% in common
On the same fields
HEFA and ILOW on the fields both publish, as of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
HEFA in plain words
HEFA tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 it returned +19.3% with distributions reinvested, against +17.3% for the S&P 500. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.35% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 9, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 97 positions, with the top ten at 100.0%. It sat 3.2% below its high of Aug 13, 2026 on Oct 9, 2026.
ILOW in plain words
ILOW is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 9, 2026 it returned +9.0% with distributions reinvested, against +17.3% for the S&P 500. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.50% a year. By its holdings filed for May 31, 2026, 1% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 84 positions, with the top ten at 20.7%. It sat 4.9% below its high of Aug 25, 2026 on Oct 9, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, HEFA or ILOW?
- In the year to Oct 9, 2026, with distributions reinvested, HEFA returned +19.3% and ILOW +9.0%.
- Which is cheaper, HEFA or ILOW?
- HEFA is cheaper, by 0.15 percentage points a year. That is about $15 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, HEFA against ILOW, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hefa-vs-ilow
ETFIQ. (Oct 9, 2026). HEFA against ILOW. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hefa-vs-ilow
[HEFA against ILOW (ETFIQ, Oct 9, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hefa-vs-ilow)
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