Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF
Performance
Total return to 23 Oct 2026, distributions reinvested, before franking. ASX figures are to 30 Sept 2026 and gross of franking, so they run higher for franked Australian funds.
What it costs to hold
Management fee plus trading costs, compared with similar funds.
A typical fund among Global ex-Australia equity funds would cost $297 (0.59% a year), so VGS is $205 cheaper.
Spread is the average gap between buying and selling prices on the ASX. Fees are shown on a flat balance, not compounded on growth. Excludes tax and any adviser or platform fees.
Calendar-year returns
Where the money is
Look-through exposure as at 31 July 2026 · 1003 securities · top 10 = 27.6%
Country
Sector
Monthly returns
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | −2.7 | −1.1 | −4.4 | 5.6 | 5.6 | 3.1 | −1.2 | 0.8 | 1.9 | −1.2 | 6.0YTD | ||
| 2025 | 3.7 | −2.3 | −4.9 | −1.1 | 6.1 | 2.5 | 3.9 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 3.7 | −0.2 | −0.8 | 12.9 |
| 2024 | 5.9 | 4.1 | 3.4 | −2.3 | 0.6 | 3.5 | 2.4 | −1.8 | 0.3 | 4.9 | 4.0 | 2.6 | 30.9 |
| 2023 | 1.6 | 3.7 | 2.2 | 3.4 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 3.2 | 1.3 | −4.0 | −2.1 | 5.1 | 2.3 | 22.9 |
| 2022 | −3.4 | −5.6 | 2.1 | −3.0 | −2.3 | −5.2 | 5.4 | −0.8 | −3.9 | 8.0 | −0.2 | −3.1 | −12.4 |
| 2021 | 0.4 | −0.2 | 5.8 | 3.1 | 1.8 | 4.5 | 3.4 | 3.9 | −1.6 | −0.9 | 5.8 | 0.7 | 29.7 |
| 2020 | 5.5 | −7.9 | −7.3 | 6.2 | 1.4 | −1.6 | 1.0 | 5.1 | −1.7 | −0.7 | 7.2 | −0.1 | 5.8 |
| 2019 | 4.7 | 5.3 | 1.5 | 4.6 | −3.7 | 4.2 | 3.8 | −0.3 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 4.9 | −0.7 | 29.2 |
| 2018 | 1.8 | −0.1 | −2.4 | 4.4 | 0.5 | 1.6 | 2.3 | 4.4 | 1.3 | −6.8 | −1.3 | −4.5 | 0.4 |
| 2017 | −2.6 | 1.6 | 1.2 | 4.3 | 2.1 | −2.5 | −1.6 | 0.8 | 3.1 | 4.4 | 2.9 | −0.6 | 13.6 |
| 2016 | −5.2 | 0.1 | −0.8 | 1.9 | 7.0 | −5.5 | 2.9 | 1.5 | −2.0 | −0.8 | 2.9 | 6.2 | 7.7 |
| 2015 | 4.9 | 4.8 | 2.7 | −4.0 | 5.3 | −2.2 | 5.7 | −4.5 | −2.5 | 8.6 | −2.7 | −2.8 | 12.8 |
| 2014 | 1.4 | 1.4 |
Total return each month in %, distributions reinvested, before franking. The latest month runs to the last price date. The first year starts from listing.
Top holdings
Most similar funds
Overlap is the share of the portfolio held in common, look-through. Correlation is of daily returns. High overlap means close substitutes.
VGS questions answered
Written from the latest data on this page. General information only, not financial advice.
How diversified is Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF?
Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF holds 1,003 securities, and its ten largest positions make up 27.6% of the fund, more spread out than the 36.4% typical of Global ex-Australia equity funds. That makes it widely diversified.
Its largest country exposure is United States at 74.6%, and its biggest sector is Information Technology at 29.2%, based on holdings as at 31 July 2026.
Which ETFs does VGS double up with most?
VGS shares the most holdings with Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares (Hedged) ETF (VGAD) (92% overlap), Betashares WealthBuilder Global Geared Complex ETF (GGBL) (90% overlap) and Betashares Global Shares ETF (BGBL) (90% overlap). Overlap is the share of the portfolio the two funds hold in common, looking through to the underlying securities.
At 92%, owning both VGS and VGAD would mostly double up on the same investments rather than spread your money further. Of these, BGBL has the lowest fee, at 0.08% a year against 0.18% for VGS.
How is Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF managed – active or passive?
Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF is passively managed: it follows an index and holds what that index holds, rather than relying on a manager's stock picks.
Among Global ex-Australia equity funds, active funds charge a median 0.75% a year and index funds 0.45%.
What will I pay in fees for VGS?
VGS charges a management fee of 0.18% a year, about $18 for every $10,000 invested. That is cheaper than 87% of the 471 ASX ETFs we track, where the median fee is 0.44%. Among Global ex-Australia equity funds, the median is 0.55%.
Lower-cost funds with a similar focus include Betashares Global Shares ETF (BGBL) at 0.08%, Betashares Global Shares Currency Hedged ETF (HGBL) at 0.11% and iShares Core MSCI World ex Australia ESG ETF (IWLD) at 0.09%.
If you would rather have a manager choose the investments, active options such as Dimensional Global Core Equity Trust (Unhedged Class) - Active ETF (DGCE) at 0.30% and Dimensional Global Core Equity Trust (AUD Hedged Class) - Active ETF (DFGH) at 0.30% cost more.
The fee is taken from the fund's assets and is already reflected in its returns. You'll also pay brokerage when you buy or sell, and the bid-ask spread, which has averaged 0.02% for VGS.
Does Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF follow a theme?
No. Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF is a broad equity fund: it aims to cover a wide slice of its market (Global ex-Australia) rather than one theme or sector. Its largest sector, Information Technology, is 29.2% of the fund.
What is under the hood of VGS?
As at 31 July 2026, the largest issuers among VGS's holdings are NVIDIA Corp (5.2%), Apple Inc (5.1%), Alphabet Inc (4.2% across 2 bonds), Microsoft Corp (3.7%), Amazon.com Inc (3.0%), Broadcom Inc (2.0%), Meta Platforms Inc (1.4%), JPMorgan Chase & Co (1.1%), Micron Technology Inc (1.0%) and Eli Lilly & Co (1.0%).
It follows an index. Most broad share indices weight companies by market size, so the largest companies take the biggest share; the exact rules for VGS's index are in the issuer's PDS. Its top 10 weighting of 27.6% compares with 36.4% for similar funds.
How well has Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF performed?
Based on its category, Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF aims to grow your capital in line with the index it tracks.
To 23 Oct 2026, with distributions reinvested, it returned 6.1% over 1 year (median 6.3%; ranked 63 of 121), 18.1% a year over 3 years (median 16.5% a year; ranked 33 of 82) and 12.4% a year over 5 years (median 9.2% a year; ranked 14 of 66). The medians and rankings compare it with Global ex-Australia equity funds. Since listing in 2014 it has returned 13.2% a year.
Tracking difference is the gap between a fund's return and its index's return. We don't hold index returns, so we can't measure it for VGS; the issuer reports it in the monthly fact sheet. As a guide, a well-run index fund trails its index by about its fee, here 0.18% a year, and a much bigger gap is a warning sign.
Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.