Data as of Sep 13, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
VUG vs VWO: how they differ
VUG and VWO hold 0% of their weight in the same names, and VWO returned more over the year.
Vanguard Growth Index Fund and Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index Fund.
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, VUG and VWO hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in VUG | Only in VWO |
|---|---|
| NVIDIA Corp 12.63% | Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Lt 14.73% |
| Apple Inc 11.67% | Tencent Holdings Ltd 3.28% |
| Microsoft Corp 7.62% | Alibaba Group Holding Ltd 2.57% |
| Alphabet Inc 5.76% | Delta Electronics Inc 1.18% |
| Alphabet Inc 4.54% | MediaTek Inc 1.07% |
| Amazon.com Inc 4.47% | Reliance Industries Ltd 0.90% |
| Broadcom Inc 4.29% | HDFC Bank Ltd 0.81% |
| Meta Platforms Inc 3.41% | Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd 0.75% |
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 Apr 30, 2026 and Jun 30, 2026.
| VUG Vanguard Growth Index Fund | VWO Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index Fund | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | Vanguard | Vanguard |
| What it is | US growth | Emerging markets |
| Total return, 1 year | +12.9% | +15.6% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | −4.6 pts | −1.9 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.06% |
| Already in the S&P 500 | 97.4% | 0.0% |
| Holdings | 147 | 6355 |
VUG in plain words
VUG is an index equity fund tracking the US growth. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +12.9% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 97% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 147 positions, with the top ten at 60.5%.
VWO in plain words
VWO is an index equity fund tracking the Emerging markets. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +15.6% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.06% a year. By its holdings filed for Apr 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 6355 positions, with the top ten at 26.8%.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, VUG or VWO?
- In the year to Sep 13, 2026, with distributions reinvested, VUG returned +12.9% and VWO returned +15.6%, so VWO returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
- Which is cheaper, VUG or VWO?
- VUG charges 0.03% a year and VWO charges 0.06%, so VUG is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- How much do VUG and VWO overlap with the S&P 500?
- By their latest filed holdings, 97% of VUG and 0% of VWO by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.
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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.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, VUG against VWO, data as of Sep 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/vug-vs-vwo Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources