ETF Versus

ITOT vs IWM

iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF vs iShares Russell 2000 ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-02

ITOT iShares

iShares Core S&P Total U.S. Stock Market ETF (ITOT) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to the total U.S. stock market across all capitalizations. It charges a very low expense ratio of 0.03%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.12%. Launched in 2004, the fund has a 22-year track record.

AUM: $77.6B ER: 0.03% Yield: 1.12% Since: Jan 20, 2004
IWM iShares

iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to small-cap U.S. equities with higher growth potential and volatility. It charges a moderate expense ratio of 0.19%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.02%. Launched in 2000, the fund has a 26-year track record.

AUM: $69.0B ER: 0.19% Yield: 1.02% Since: May 22, 2000

Quick Verdict

ITOT is significantly cheaper at 0.03% vs 0.19% expense ratio, saving you approximately $317 per $10,000 invested over 10 years. Over the past year, IWM has significantly outperformed with a 25.1% return vs 17.2%.

Key Metrics

Metric ITOT IWM
Expense Ratio 0.03% 0.19%
Dividend Yield 1.1% 1.0%
Fund Family iShares iShares
Category US Total Market US Small Cap

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

70 89 108 127 146 165 2021-04 2022-06 2023-09 2024-12 2026-04
ITOT +52.8%
IWM +10.9%

Performance Comparison

Period ITOT IWM Difference
1 Month -4.55% -5.40% +0.85%
3 Months -3.83% +0.31% -4.14%
6 Months -2.08% +1.52% -3.60%
YTD -3.83% +0.31% -4.14%
1 Year +17.17% +25.09% -7.92%
3 Years +57.97% +39.83% +18.14%
5 Years +52.82% +10.93% +41.89%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment Period ITOT Fees IWM Fees You Save
$10.000 10 years $60 $377 $317
$10.000 20 years $258 $1.613 $1.355
$10.000 30 years $835 $5.178 $4.342
$50.000 10 years $299 $1.884 $1.585
$50.000 30 years $4.176 $25.888 $21.712
$100.000 30 years $8.352 $51.776 $43.424

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric ITOT IWM
Annualized Volatility 17.4% 22.6%
Max Drawdown -26.2% -33.1%
Sharpe Ratio 0.32 0.01

Dividend Comparison

Metric ITOT IWM
Annual Dividend (per share) $1.61 $2.54
Dividend Yield 1.13% 1.02%
Distribution Frequency Quarterly Quarterly

Top Holdings

0 of top 9 holdings overlap (0% overlap in top holdings)

ITOT Top Holdings

NameWeight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA6.59%
Apple Inc.AAPL5.91%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT4.29%
Amazon.com, Inc.AMZN3.15%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO2.31%
Alphabet Inc.GOOG2.07%
Meta Platforms, Inc.META1.86%
Tesla, Inc.TSLA1.65%
Berkshire Hathaway Inc.BRK.B1.39%

IWM Top Holdings

NameWeight
Bloom Energy CorporationBE1.01%
FabrinetFN0.69%
Nextpower Inc.NXT0.61%
COEUR MINING INCCDE.NE0.60%
EchoStar CorporationSATS0.54%
Credo Technology Group Holding LtdCRDO0.53%
Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc.KTOS0.45%
Sterling Infrastructure, Inc.STRL0.43%
Advanced Energy Industries, Inc.AEIS0.41%
Hecla Mining CompanyHL0.39%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose ITOT if...

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

Choose IWM if...

recent performance momentum matters to your strategy. Note that past performance doesn't guarantee future results.

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