VWO vs VXUS: how much do they really overlap?
VWO (Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF, tracking the FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap) and VXUS (Vanguard Total International Stock ETF, tracking the FTSE Global All Cap ex US) overlap by roughly 21% by weight. 5 of VWO's top 10 holdings also appear in VXUS. A 50/50 blend of the two behaves like about 90 equally-weighted bets (diversification grade A). In short, the two funds have only a small shared core — they mostly hold different things and are largely complementary.
The same companies, in both funds
These 5 holdings appear in both VWO and VXUS. The weight columns show how much of each fund each name represents.
| Holding | in VWO | in VXUS |
|---|---|---|
| 2330 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. | 15.64% | 4.22% |
| 700 Tencent Holdings Ltd. | 2.82% | 0.76% |
| 9988 Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. | 1.79% | 0.48% |
| 2454 MediaTek Inc. | 1.63% | 0.44% |
| 2308 Delta Electronics Inc. | 0.99% | 0.27% |
Only in VWO
Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF — emerging markets. Its biggest holdings that VXUS doesn’t have:
| 2317 Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. | 0.79% |
| HDFCBANK HDFC Bank Ltd. | 0.79% |
| RELIANCE Reliance Industries Ltd. | 0.75% |
| 939 China Construction Bank Corp. Class H | 0.74% |
| ICICIBANK ICICI Bank Ltd. | 0.63% |
| 3711 ASE Technology Holding Co. Ltd. | 0.60% |
| 1398 Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. Class H | 0.54% |
| BHARTIARTL Bharti Airtel Ltd. | 0.49% |
Only in VXUS
Vanguard Total International Stock ETF — total ex-US. Its biggest holdings that VWO doesn’t have:
| 005930 Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. | 2.26% |
| 000660 SK hynix Inc. | 2.16% |
| ASML ASML Holding NV | 1.68% |
| HSBA HSBC Holdings plc | 0.71% |
| NOVN Novartis AG | 0.64% |
| RY Royal Bank of Canada | 0.64% |
| ROP Roche Holding AG | 0.64% |
| AZN AstraZeneca plc | 0.62% |
So — mostly different. Should you hold both?
VWO and VXUS have only a small shared core — they mostly hold different things and are largely complementary. Held together they genuinely broaden your exposure — a 50/50 blend reaches ~90 effective positions (grade A), because they hold largely different securities.
Holdings as of — VWO: Jun 30, 2026 (Vanguard); VXUS: Jun 30, 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 →VWO vs VXUS — FAQ
- How much do VWO and VXUS overlap?
- VWO and VXUS overlap by approximately 21% measured by portfolio weight — that is the share of the smaller fund's holdings (by weight) that also sit inside the other. 5 of VWO's 10 largest holdings are also held by VXUS. They share 5 of their listed top holdings in total.
- Is it redundant to hold both VWO and VXUS?
- Because they have only a small shared core — they mostly hold different things and are largely complementary, holding both is not redundant — each fund covers largely different holdings, so together they broaden your exposure. A 50/50 blend has an effective 90 positions and a A diversification grade.
- What does VXUS hold that VWO doesn't?
- VXUS's largest holdings that VWO doesn't hold include 005930, 000660, ASML, HSBA, NOVN. Its category is total ex-US, versus VWO's emerging markets.
- Which is more concentrated, VWO or VXUS?
- VWO's top 10 holdings are 67% of its listed weight; VXUS's are 50%. The more concentrated fund leans harder on its largest names.