EFA vs VEA: Complete Comparison

iShares MSCI EAFE ETF vs Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF — overlap, correlation, performance & risk analysis

Holdings Overlap
0.00%
Very Low Overlap
Shared Holdings
0 of 10
Complete portfolio analysis
Calculation Method
Min Weight
Weighted intersection

Visual Overlap

EFA
VEA
0.0%
EFA Only
Overlap
VEA Only

Price Performance

Historical price comparison over 3M

EFA Return
+3.87%
VEA Return
+8.33%
Winner
VEA
+4.46%
Max Drawdown
EFA: -11.4%
VEA: -11.6%
EFA Volatility (annualized)20.03%
VEA Volatility (annualized)21.29%

📈 Comparison

Metric
EFA
VEA
1 Year Return
+14.5%
+14.2%
3 Year Return
+5.2%
+5.5%
5 Year Return
+8.5%
+8.8%
Volatility
19.50%
18.80%
Expense Ratio
0.32%
0.05%
⚠️ Past performance does not guarantee future results. Data may be delayed.

⚠️Risk Metrics

Metric
EFA
VEA
Volatility
19.50%
18.80%
Sharpe Ratio
0.38
0.42
Sortino Ratio
0.52
0.58
Max Drawdown
-42.50%
-41.20%
Beta
0.85
0.82

Interpretation:

  • 📊 Lower volatility = smoother ride
  • ⚡ Higher Sharpe/Sortino = better risk-adjusted returns
  • ⚠️ Smaller max drawdown = less worst-case pain
  • 📈 Beta > 1 = more volatile than S&P 500

⚔️ Comparison

2 - 6

🏆 VEA wins this comparison

Key Factors

💰 Expense Ratio
EFA:0.32%
vs
VEA:0.05%
🎯 Number of Holdings
EFA:827 holdings
vs
VEA:3,929 holdings
📈 5-Year Return
EFA:+8.5%
vs
VEA:+8.8%
Additional Metrics (5)
⚖️ Concentration Risk
EFA: 1.6% in top 10
VEA: 15.6% in top 10
📊 Assets Under Management
EFA: $75B ✓
VEA: $120B ✓
Sharpe Ratio
EFA: 0.38
VEA: 0.42
📉 Volatility
EFA: 19.5%
VEA: 18.8%
🔍 Uniqueness vs SPY
EFA: 100.0% unique
VEA: 100.0% unique

Bottom line: VEA wins with better expense ratio and number of holdings. Consider VEA for your portfolio, but EFA is still a solid choice if you prefer its specific advantages.

Detailed Overlap Analysis

0 shared holdings representing 0.0% portfolio overlap

Top Shared Holdings

#StockEFA WeightVEA WeightOverlap
0
Shared Stocks
0.0%
Total Overlap
0
Sectors Represented

Top Holdings Only in EFA

Unique to EFA

Scroll horizontally to see all data
SymbolNameWeight
RACERACE0.24%
SESE0.24%
NBISNBIS0.22%
ALCALC0.20%
WDSWDS0.16%

Top Holdings Only in VEA

Unique to VEA

Scroll horizontally to see all data
SymbolNameWeight
NESNNestle SA2.25%
ASMLASML Holding NV2.05%
NVONovo Nordisk A/S1.85%
TMToyota Motor Corp1.65%
SAPSAP SE1.55%

Price Correlation

How We Calculate Overlap

We use the minimum weight method with normalization to calculate portfolio overlap:

Overlap = Σ min(weightA, weightB) for each shared holding

Normalization: Holdings weights are normalized to sum to 100% before comparison. This ensures accurate overlap calculations even when analyzing partial holdings data (e.g., top 50 positions).

Conservative approach: We consider only the smaller allocation for each shared position, giving you a realistic view of true portfolio overlap.

📊 This analysis is based on publicly available holdings data. For the most current and complete holdings information, please visit the official ETF provider websites.

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