The water ETFs that returned most
Funds sold on one theme can hold different companies, so a year apart at the top and the bottom of this list is a difference in what they own rather than in the theme.
| # | Ticker | Fund | Total return, 1Y ↓ | vs the S&P 500 | Weight in S&P 500 companies | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CGW | Invesco S&P Global Water Index ETF | −0.3% | −16.5 pts | 25.6% | 0.58% |
| 2 | PIO | Invesco Global Water ETF | −3.1% | −19.3 pts | 39.1% | 0.75% |
| 3 | TBLU | Tortoise Global Water ESG Fund | −4.8% | −21.1 pts | not filed | 0.40% |
| 4 | AQWA | Global X Clean Water ETF | −5.4% | −21.6 pts | 19.5% | 0.50% |
| 5 | PHO | Invesco Water Resources ETF | −5.8% | −22.1 pts | 61.3% | 0.59% |
| 6 | FIW | First Trust Water ETF | −7.0% | −23.3 pts | 48.1% | 0.50% |
Method
The 6 of 6 ETFs in the water theme with a full year of trading, highest first, each over the same year to Oct 2, 2026 with distributions reinvested. Across the funds listed here the one year total return runs from -7.0% to -0.3%. A year is a year. It says what happened and nothing about what happens next. The ranking is the published field sorted, nothing else: no scoring, no weighting and no view on any fund. Every fund ETFIQ covers in this category is eligible, including funds that have closed, because leaving them out would flatter the category.
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement. A ranking is not a recommendation and no order on this site is an opinion. ETFIQ is an independent publisher, not an adviser.
ETFIQ, The water ETFs that returned most, ranked by total return with distributions reinvested, data as of Oct 2, 2026. https://etfiq.com/rankings/themes-best-year-water
Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, The water ETFs that returned most, ranked by total return with distributions reinvested, data as of Oct 2, 2026. https://etfiq.com/rankings/themes-best-year-water Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
- Plain
- ETFIQ, The water ETFs that returned most, ranked by total return with distributions reinvested, data as of Oct 2, 2026. https://etfiq.com/rankings/themes-best-year-water
- APA
- ETFIQ. (Oct 2, 2026). The water ETFs that returned most, ranked by total return with distributions reinvested. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/rankings/themes-best-year-water
- Markdown
- [The water ETFs that returned most, ranked by total return with distributions reinvested (ETFIQ, Oct 2, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/rankings/themes-best-year-water)