Side by side
Compare two ETFs
Pick two funds and we’ll line them up in plain English — what each one holds, what it costs you in dollars, and where they actually differ. No jargon, no advice.
Global shares
VGS
Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF
Vanguard
US shares
IVV
iShares S&P 500 ETF
iShares
What each one holds
Around 1,250 large and medium-sized companies from developed countries around the world — everywhere except Australia — held together in one parcel.
The 500 biggest companies listed in the United States, held together in one parcel.
What the fee costs you
The signature ClearOrigin device — each management fee translated into a dollar figure. Set one amount and we’ll show what each fund’s fee costs you a year, lined up side by side.
VGS · 0.18% a year
about $18 a year on $10,000
IVV · 0.04% a year
about $4.00 a year on $10,000
A rough guide based on the headline fee only. Other costs (such as brokerage or buy/sell spreads) aren’t included.
The basics
- Issuer
- Vanguard
- Asset class
- Global shares
- Number of holdings
- ~1,250
- Where it invests
- Global developed markets, but heavily weighted to the United States — roughly three-quarters of the fund — with Japan, the UK and Europe making up much of the rest.
- Income paid
- Quarterly
- Currency hedged
- No — It's unhedged, so for an Australian investor the value also moves with the Australian dollar against the US dollar and other currencies, on top of the markets themselves.
- Issuer
- iShares
- Asset class
- US shares
- Number of holdings
- ~500
- Where it invests
- 100% United States.
- Income paid
- Quarterly
- Currency hedged
- No — It's unhedged, so for an Australian investor the value also moves with the US-dollar-to-Australian-dollar exchange rate, on top of the US market itself.
Their character
Dominated by the same giant US names that lead world markets — Nvidia, Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon sit at the top — so despite holding over a thousand companies, its top handful carry real weight.
Dominated by a handful of very large US technology names — Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon and Alphabet sit right at the top — so it leans on how those giants perform.
What to keep in mind
Spread across many countries and companies, which softens single-market risk — but it still leans heavily on the United States and a handful of large technology firms, and carries currency movements for an Australian holder.
Diversified across 500 companies, but concentrated in one country and tilted toward a few giant technology firms. It rises and falls with the US market — and, for an Australian holder, with the currency.
How they overlap
VGS is global shares and IVV is us shares, so they sit in different parts of the market and tend to behave differently from one another. That difference is the source of any diversification holding both would give you.
Figures last verified — VGS: 2026-06-12 · IVV: 2026-06-12. Sources are linked from each fund’s profile.