What is the expense ratio of IWF vs VWO?

IWF has an expense ratio of 0.18%, while VWO has an expense ratio of 0.06%.

IWF vs VWO

iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF vs Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index Fund

Last updated: 2026-04-02

IWF iShares

iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF (IWF) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to large-cap U.S. growth stocks with above-average earnings potential. It charges a moderate expense ratio of 0.18%. The fund offers a modest dividend yield of 0.39%. Launched in 2000, the fund has a 26-year track record.

AUM: $108.0B ER: 0.18% Yield: 0.39% Since: May 22, 2000

VWO Vanguard

Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index Fund (VWO) is an exchange-traded fund issued by Vanguard that provides exposure to stocks in emerging market economies with higher growth potential. It charges a low expense ratio of 0.06%. The fund offers an attractive dividend yield of 2.76%. Launched in 2005, the fund has a 21-year track record.

AUM: $107.3B ER: 0.06% Yield: 2.76% Since: Mar 4, 2005

Quick Verdict

VWO is significantly cheaper at 0.06% vs 0.18% expense ratio, saving you approximately $237 per $10,000 invested over 10 years. VWO has edged ahead over the past year (19.4% vs 18.2%). Income investors may prefer VWO for its higher yield (2.8% vs 0.4%).

Key Metrics

Metric	IWF	VWO
Expense Ratio	0.18%	0.06%
Dividend Yield	0.4%	2.8%
Fund Family	iShares	Vanguard
Category	US Large Cap Growth	Emerging Markets

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

IWF +71.3%

VWO +3.0%

Performance Comparison

Period	IWF	VWO	Difference
1 Month	-4.73%	-5.29%	+0.56%
3 Months	-8.83%	-1.31%	-7.52%
6 Months	-8.48%	-1.06%	-7.42%
YTD	-8.83%	-1.31%	-7.52%
1 Year	+18.20%	+19.38%	-1.18%
3 Years	+75.80%	+33.62%	+42.18%
5 Years	+71.26%	+3.00%	+68.26%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment	Period	IWF Fees	VWO Fees	You Save
$10.000	10 years	$357	$120	$237
$10.000	20 years	$1.529	$515	$1.014
$10.000	30 years	$4.912	$1.664	$3.248
$50.000	10 years	$1.786	$598	$1.187
$50.000	30 years	$24.558	$8.318	$16.240
$100.000	30 years	$49.116	$16.637	$32.479

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric	IWF	VWO
Annualized Volatility	21.4%	17.3%
Max Drawdown	-33.1%	-35.9%
Sharpe Ratio	0.40	-0.14

Dividend Comparison

Metric	IWF	VWO
Annual Dividend (per share)	$1.69	$1.45
Dividend Yield	0.39%	2.68%
Distribution Frequency	Quarterly	Quarterly

Top Holdings

0 of top 8 holdings overlap (0% overlap in top holdings)

IWF Top Holdings

Name	Weight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA	12.82%
Apple Inc.AAPL	11.79%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT	8.78%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO	4.81%
Amazon.com, Inc.AMZN	4.61%
Tesla, Inc.TSLA	3.57%
Meta Platforms, Inc.META	3.28%
Alphabet Inc.GOOG	2.83%
Eli Lilly and CompanyLLY	2.62%

VWO Top Holdings

Name	Weight
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited!tpe/2330	12.71%
Tencent Holdings Limited!hkg/0700	3.44%
Alibaba Group Holding Limited!hkg/9988	2.74%
HDFC Bank Limited!nse/HDFCBANK	0.93%
Reliance Industries Limited!nse/RELIANCE	0.88%
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.!tpe/2317	0.78%
MediaTek Inc.!tpe/2454	0.76%
China Construction Bank Corporation!hkg/0939	0.75%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose VWO if...

you want the lowest fees and plan to buy and hold long-term. Over decades, the expense ratio difference compounds significantly.

Choose VWO if...

you prioritize dividend income and want higher regular distributions from your portfolio.

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