SMH vs VXUS: how much do they really overlap?
SMH (VanEck Semiconductor ETF, tracking the MVIS US Listed Semiconductor 25) and VXUS (Vanguard Total International Stock ETF, tracking the FTSE Global All Cap ex US) overlap by roughly 5% by weight. 1 of SMH's top 10 holdings also appear in VXUS. A 50/50 blend of the two behaves like about 52 equally-weighted bets (diversification grade B). In short, the two funds hold almost none of the same securities — they are complementary, not redundant.
The same companies, in both funds
These 1 holdings appear in both SMH and VXUS. The weight columns show how much of each fund each name represents.
| Holding | in SMH | in VXUS |
|---|---|---|
| ASML ASML Holding N.V. | 4.89% | 1.38% |
Only in SMH
VanEck Semiconductor ETF — semiconductors. Its biggest holdings that VXUS doesn’t have:
| NVDA NVIDIA Corporation | 18.16% |
| TSM Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited | 9.04% |
| MU Micron Technology, Inc. | 5.99% |
| AVGO Broadcom Inc. | 5.49% |
| AMD Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. | 5.44% |
| AMAT Applied Materials, Inc. | 5.35% |
| INTC Intel Corporation | 5.09% |
| LRCX Lam Research Corporation | 5.00% |
Only in VXUS
Vanguard Total International Stock ETF — total ex-US. Its biggest holdings that SMH doesn’t have:
| 2330 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. | 3.95% |
| 005930 Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. | 2.17% |
| 000660 SK hynix Inc | 1.85% |
| 700 Tencent Holdings Ltd. | 0.74% |
| HSBA HSBC Holdings plc | 0.71% |
| ROP Roche Holding AG | 0.65% |
| NOVN Novartis AG | 0.63% |
| AZN AstraZeneca plc | 0.61% |
So — essentially different. Should you hold both?
SMH and VXUS hold almost none of the same securities — they are complementary, not redundant. Held together they genuinely broaden your exposure — a 50/50 blend reaches ~52 effective positions (grade B), because they hold largely different securities.
Holdings as of — SMH: Jun 27, 2026 (VanEck); VXUS: May 31, 2026 (Vanguard). Refreshed monthly. Overlap is measured across each fund’s largest holdings (top 50); the diffuse long tail barely moves the math.
See this for YOUR whole portfolio, free →SMH vs VXUS — FAQ
- How much do SMH and VXUS overlap?
- SMH and VXUS overlap by approximately 5% measured by portfolio weight — that is the share of the smaller fund's holdings (by weight) that also sit inside the other. 1 of SMH's 10 largest holdings are also held by VXUS. They share 1 of their listed top holdings in total.
- Is it redundant to hold both SMH and VXUS?
- Because they hold almost none of the same securities — they are complementary, not redundant, holding both is not redundant — each fund covers largely different holdings, so together they broaden your exposure. A 50/50 blend has an effective 52 positions and a B diversification grade.
- What does VXUS hold that SMH doesn't?
- VXUS's largest holdings that SMH doesn't hold include 2330, 005930, 000660, 700, HSBA. Its category is total ex-US, versus SMH's semiconductors.
- Which is more concentrated, SMH or VXUS?
- SMH's top 10 holdings are 69% of its listed weight; VXUS's are 49%. The more concentrated fund leans harder on its largest names.