What is the expense ratio of IWF vs VUG?

IWF has an expense ratio of 0.18%, while VUG has an expense ratio of 0.03%.

IWF vs VUG

iShares Russell 1000 Growth ETF vs Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares

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

VUG Vanguard

Vanguard Growth Index Fund ETF Shares (VUG) is an exchange-traded fund issued by Vanguard that provides exposure to large-cap U.S. growth stocks with above-average earnings potential. It charges a very low expense ratio of 0.03%. The fund offers a modest dividend yield of 0.45%. Launched in 2004, the fund has a 22-year track record.

AUM: $179.8B ER: 0.03% Yield: 0.45% Since: Jan 26, 2004

Quick Verdict

VUG is significantly cheaper at 0.03% vs 0.18% expense ratio, saving you approximately $297 per $10,000 invested over 10 years. Both funds have delivered similar 1-year returns (18.2% vs 18.0%), tracking closely.

Key Metrics

Metric	IWF	VUG
Expense Ratio	0.18%	0.03%
Dividend Yield	0.4%	0.5%
Fund Family	iShares	Vanguard
Category	US Large Cap Growth	US Large Cap Growth

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

IWF +71.3%

VUG +66.0%

Performance Comparison

Period	IWF	VUG	Difference
1 Month	-4.73%	-4.47%	-0.26%
3 Months	-8.83%	-9.18%	+0.35%
6 Months	-8.48%	-8.28%	-0.20%
YTD	-8.83%	-9.18%	+0.35%
1 Year	+18.20%	+18.01%	+0.19%
3 Years	+75.80%	+77.18%	-1.38%
5 Years	+71.26%	+66.01%	+5.25%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment	Period	IWF Fees	VUG Fees	You Save
$10.000	10 years	$357	$60	$297
$10.000	20 years	$1.529	$258	$1.271
$10.000	30 years	$4.912	$835	$4.076
$50.000	10 years	$1.786	$299	$1.486
$50.000	30 years	$24.558	$4.176	$20.382
$100.000	30 years	$49.116	$8.352	$40.764

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric	IWF	VUG
Annualized Volatility	21.4%	22.2%
Max Drawdown	-33.1%	-36.0%
Sharpe Ratio	0.40	0.37

Dividend Comparison

Metric	IWF	VUG
Annual Dividend (per share)	$1.69	$1.99
Dividend Yield	0.39%	0.45%
Distribution Frequency	Quarterly	Quarterly

Top Holdings

9 of top 9 holdings overlap (100% 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%

VUG Top Holdings

Name	Weight
NVIDIA CorporationNVDA	12.82%
Apple Inc.AAPL	12.23%
Microsoft CorporationMSFT	9.15%
Alphabet Inc.GOOG	4.49%
Meta Platforms, Inc.META	4.44%
Amazon.com, Inc.AMZN	4.41%
Broadcom Inc.AVGO	3.95%
Tesla, Inc.TSLA	3.58%
Eli Lilly and CompanyLLY	2.82%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose VUG if...

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

Either works if...

you just need broad us large cap growth exposure. Both are solid options — pick whichever your brokerage offers commission-free.

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