Which returned more over the last year, IEFA or XLB?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IEFA returned +12.3% and XLB +18.5%.

Which is cheaper, IEFA or XLB?

IEFA is cheaper, by 0.01 percentage points a year. That is about $1 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

How much do IEFA and XLB overlap with the S&P 500?

By their latest filed holdings, 0% of IEFA and 100% of XLB by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

IEFA vs XLB: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, IEFA returned +12.3% to XLB's +18.5%; 0% of their weight is in the same names.

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Net assets: $190.4bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF, and $8.1bn on Oct 27, 2026 for State Street Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF.

IEFA on its own →XLB on its own →

At a glance

+12.3%

IEFA total return, 1 year

+18.5%

XLB total return, 1 year

0.07%

IEFA expense ratio

0.08%

XLB expense ratio

Pair scorecard

IEFA costs 0.01 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 6.2 points; IEFA is far larger, $190.1bn against $8.1bn.

IEFA vs XLB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	IEFA	XLB
Return
Measure	IEFA	XLB
Total return, 1 year	+12.3%	+18.5%
Drawdown
Measure	IEFA	XLB
Below its high	4.7%, high on Aug 25, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	IEFA	XLB
What it tracks	MSCI EAFE IMI Index	Materials Select Sector Index
Cost and size
Measure	IEFA	XLB
Expense ratio	0.07%	0.08%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$190.1bn	$8.1bn
Holdings
Measure	IEFA	XLB
Holdings in common	0%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund	12.3%	58.5%

Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method

What they share

By the books each fund has filed, IEFA and XLB hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first IEFA XLB

NEMETSCHEK 0.02% 6.56%

SODEXO SA 0.02% 3.41%

DOWNER EDI 0.01% 3.73%

INTERPUMP GROUP 0.01% 2.70%

LINDIAN RESOURCES LTD 0.00% 12.96%

Only in one fund ↓

Only in IEFA

ASML HOLDING 2.55%

ROCHE PS PAR AG 1.36%

SHELL 1.21%

HSBC HOLDINGS PLC 1.18%

NOVARTIS AG 1.14%

ASTRAZENECA PLC 1.04%

NESTLE SA 1.04%

SAP 0.97%

Only in XLB

FREEPORT MCMORAN INC 5.23%

ECOLAB INC 4.98%

VULCAN MATERIALS CO 4.89%

NUCOR CORP 4.89%

AIR PRODUCTS + CHEMICALS INC 4.84%

STEEL DYNAMICS INC 4.77%

SHERWIN WILLIAMS CO 4.73%

MARTIN MARIETTA MATERIALS 4.62%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

IEFA iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF XLB State Street Materials Select Sector SPDR ETF

Where it sits Stock ETF Stock ETF

Issuer iShares State Street

What it is Tracks the MSCI EAFE Tracks an index of Materials

Total return, 1 year +12.3% +18.5%

Its benchmark over the same days +14.3% (ACWX) not measured

Gap to its benchmark −2.0 pts vs ACWX not measured

Expense ratio 0.07% 0.08%

Already in the S&P 500 0.0% 99.8%

Holdings 2629 25

Net assets, IEFA as of Oct 28, 2026 and XLB as of Oct 27, 2026 $190.4bn $8.1bn

IEFA and XLB on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Alert

About each fund

IEFA

IEFA tracks the MSCI EAFE. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +12.3% with distributions reinvested, against +14.3% for its benchmark, the MSCI ACWI ex USA Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.07% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 2,629 positions, with the top ten at 12.3%. It sat 4.7% below its high of Aug 25, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

XLB

XLB tracks an index of Materials. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +18.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.08% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 25 positions, with the top ten at 58.5%.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, IEFA or XLB?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IEFA returned +12.3% and XLB +18.5%.
Which is cheaper, IEFA or XLB?: IEFA is cheaper, by 0.01 percentage points a year. That is about $1 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
How much do IEFA and XLB overlap with the S&P 500?: By their latest filed holdings, 0% of IEFA and 100% of XLB by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds.

Other comparisons

IEFA vs XHB IEFA vs VPU IEFA vs VDC IEFA vs VDE VEA vs XLB VXUS vs XLB EFA vs XLB SCHF vs XLB

Where to next

IEFA on its own →XLB on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →IEFA dividend history →IEFA holdings →XLB dividend history →XLB holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

IEFA filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

IEFA prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for IEFA ↗

XLB filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

XLB prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

State Street website ↗

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.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, IEFA against XLB, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/iefa-vs-xlb

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Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.