Which returned more over the last year, SLV or VGK?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SLV returned +14.9% and VGK +10.4%.

Which is cheaper, SLV or VGK?

VGK is cheaper, by 0.44 percentage points a year. That is about $44 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

SLV vs VGK: Differences, Returns & Fees

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SLV is a commodity fund and VGK an equity index fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, SLV returned +14.9% against +10.4%.

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Net assets: $26.9bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares Silver Trust, and $29.6bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF.

SLV on its own →VGK on its own →

At a glance

+14.9%

SLV total return, 1 year

+10.4%

VGK total return, 1 year

0.50%

SLV expense ratio

0.06%

VGK expense ratio

Pair scorecard

VGK costs 0.44 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 4.5 points.

SLV vs VGK: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	SLV	VGK
Return
Measure	SLV	VGK
Total return, 1 year	+14.9%	+10.4%
Drawdown
Measure	SLV	VGK
Below its high	53.5%, high on Jan 28, 2026	6.1%, high on Aug 25, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	SLV	VGK
What it tracks	Silver	FTSE Developed Europe All Cap Index
Cost and size
Measure	SLV	VGK
Expense ratio	0.50%	0.06%
Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026	$30.0bn	$29.6bn
Holdings
Measure	SLV	VGK
Holdings in common	not published
In the S&P 500, by weight		0%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund		19.0%

Method

Side by side

SLV iShares Silver Trust VGK Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF

Where it sits Commodity ETF Stock ETF

Issuer iShares Vanguard

What it is Holds silver Tracks an index of European Stock

Total return, 1 year +14.9% +10.4%

Its benchmark over the same days +15.0% (SIVR) not measured

Gap to its benchmark −0.1 pts vs SIVR not measured

Expense ratio 0.50% 0.06%

Holdings not counted 1245

Net assets, SLV as of Oct 28, 2026 and VGK as of Sep 30, 2026 $26.9bn $29.6bn

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

Alert

About each fund

SLV

Its expense ratio is 0.50% a year, for the three months to Jun 30, 2026, as its 10-Q states.

SLV holds silver. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +14.9% with distributions reinvested, against +15.0% for its benchmark, the price of silver. It sat 53.5% below its high of Jan 28, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

VGK

VGK tracks an index of European Stock. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +10.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.06% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer as of Sep 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 1,245 positions, with the top ten at 19.0%. It sat 6.1% below its high of Aug 25, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, SLV or VGK?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SLV returned +14.9% and VGK +10.4%.
Which is cheaper, SLV or VGK?: VGK is cheaper, by 0.44 percentage points a year. That is about $44 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Other comparisons

EZU vs SLV AVEM vs SLV ACWI vs SLV EWY vs SLV GLDM vs VGK IAU vs VGK GLD vs VGK BWET vs VGK

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

iShares page for SLV ↗

VGK filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

VGK prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Vanguard page for VGK ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

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ETFIQ, SLV against VGK, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/slv-vs-vgk

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