Australian investors continue to pour into ASX ETFs at record pace.
Providers are likely to soon be managing over $400 billion in funds.
While there continues to be more and more thematic and managed funds hitting the market, three funds in particular continue to dominate in terms of popularity.
When I say "popularity", I don't mean public perception; rather, these three ASX ETFs are the largest funds by market cap.
In simple terms, it means the ETFs with the most money invested in them, making them the biggest ETFs on the ASX.
These three funds are:
- Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS) is the largest with a market cap of $26.17 billion
- Vanguard Msci Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS) – $17.17 billion
- iShares S&P 500 ETF (ASX: IVV) – $14.23 billion.
The market cap is accurate as at July 2026 (via Betashares).
These ASX ETFs make up fundamental parts of many investors' portfolios.
But which has brought the best returns?
Here is how they have performed in 2026 so far.
Image source: Getty Images
Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF
By far the largest ASX ETF is this Australian focussed fund from Vanguard.
It has provided a stable foundation to many portfolios since its inception in 2009.
The fund seeks to track the return of the S&P/ASX 300 Index.
In simple terms, the 300 largest companies on the ASX by market cap.
However, with the slow performance of the ASX through April, it has subsequently risen just over 4% in 2026.
This is below its historical average, as the fund has brought returns of more than 8% over the last 10 years.
It has a management fee of 0.07% p.a.
Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF
This fund is often paired with the previous fund to provide international diversification.
It invests in around 1,300 companies from developed countries, excluding Australia.
This includes some of the world's largest companies from around 23 different countries including the U.S, Japan, U.K, Canada, France, and Switzerland.
Investing internationally offers greater access to sectors such as technology and health care that aren't as well represented in the Australian share market.
It has also had a historically soft year, rising just over 4% since the start of 2026.
On a per annum basis, it has risen almost 15% in the last 10 years.
It has a management fee of 0.18% p.a.
iShares S&P 500 ETF
This ASX ETF from iShares tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Index, before fees and expenses.
The index is designed to measure the performance of large capitalisation US equities.
In simple terms, it targets the 500 largest companies in the United States.
It has risen slightly more than the previous two funds, but not by much – up 4.3% in 2026.
Historically, it has risen over 15% per year over the last 10 years.
It has a management fee of 0.04% per annum.
