Global shares
VGS
Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF · Vanguard
Around 1,250 large and medium-sized companies from developed countries around the world — everywhere except Australia — held together in one parcel.
What the fee costs you
The management fee is 0.18% a year. Here’s what that works out to in dollars:
A 0.18% yearly fee works out to about $18 a year per $10,000 invested.
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.
Its 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.
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.
How this fund relates to others
Holds almost the same global developed-market companies as VGAD (its hedged twin), BGBL and HGBL (a near-identical basket from a different provider), and the screened versions IWLD and VESG — so these overlap heavily. Because the US is ~74% of the basket, VGS also overlaps strongly with IVV/IHVV and the US tech funds. VGE and IEM cover emerging markets, which these developed-world funds all exclude.
Figures last verified 2026-06-12against the issuer’s factsheet and PDS.