ASX exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have become an incredibly popular vehicle for investment over the past decade.
They enable investors to buy a big basket of stocks tracking a specific index through a single trade for a single brokerage fee.
Easy peasy.
The only question is, which ASX ETF is right for you?
This largely depends on your investment strategy.
If you're going for growth over income, here are three popular ETFs among Australian investors.
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3 ASX ETFs focused on growth
Vanguard Diversified High Growth Index ETF (ASX: VDHG)
The VDHG ETF is trading at $69.65 per unit, up 0.029% on Friday and up 1.74% in the year to date.
This ASX ETF is a bit different because it invests in other ETFs, managed funds, and index funds rather than direct individual shares.
This creates massive diversification with exposure to about 16,000 stocks.
Vanguard says the VDHG ETF has a strategic allocation of 90% to growth assets and 10% to income assets.
About 36% of the VDHG is invested in ASX shares, and 26.5% is in unhedged international shares.
The ASX ETF pays distributions, or dividends, quarterly.
The management expense ratio (MER) is 0.27% per annum.
Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS)
The VGS ETF is trading at $139.16 per unit, down 0.17% today and down 0.33% year to date.
This ETF is the largest one exposed to international shares on the Australian stock exchange.
It has $10,427 million in funds under management (FUM), which makes it the second largest ETF overall behind the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS), which has $18,178 million in FUM.
The VGS ETF seeks to track the MSCI World ex-Australia (with net dividends reinvested) in Australian dollars Index.
It holds 1,325 stocks, mostly large-caps, listed in developed nations such as the US and some in Europe, the Pacific, the Middle East, and other countries. US shares dominate the portfolio at more than 70%.
The VGS ETF pays distributions quarterly and has a MER of 0.18%.
iShares S&P 500 AUD ETF (ASX: IVV)
The IVV ETF is trading at $61.07 per unit, down 0.36% on Friday and 3.45% year to date.
The ASX IVV seeks to track the returns of the S&P 500 Index (SP: .INX) before fees.
The ETF gives ASX investors exposure to the 500 largest listed companies in the US.
Some people say the S&P 500 presents some concentration risk given the domination of the Magnificent Seven stocks.
But that's short-term thinking.
The world's most successful investor, Warren Buffett, says the S&P 500 is the best and simplest way for amateur investors to grow wealth.
The ASX ETF pays distributions quarterly and has a MER of 0.04%.
