ETF overlap for European investors
European portfolios can hold several UCITS ETFs while repeating many of the same large US stocks underneath. Here is which popular UCITS funds share holdings, where their constituent exposure differs, and how to inspect the overlap by looking through each fund to its index.
How UCITS overlap is measured
For every stock held by both funds, take the smaller of the two portfolio weights, then add them up. The total is the share of the money that sits in the same companies whichever of the two funds it was invested through.
Worked example, from today's holdings files. CSPX (S&P 500) holds 8.07% Nvidia; IWDA (MSCI World) holds 5.53%. The smaller figure wins, so NVDA contributes 5.53 percentage points to the overlap. Repeat across all 438 shared holdings and CSPX + IWDA comes out at 70% — about €70 of every €100 lands in the same companies at the same weight through either fund.
Two UCITS-specific notes. Weights are in each fund's own base currency and the currency of your listing (VWCE vs VWRA) does not change them — a currency-hedged share class is a different matter. And because issuers publish holdings on different dates, a percentage is always "as of" a snapshot; ours are refreshed daily and dated on every pair page.
Why this hits European investors especially hard
Two things stack up. First, Morningstar's Instant X-Ray — the tool that used to reveal stock-level overlap — was retired for individual investors, and the UK edition was shut down in 2025, so most European DIY investors have no easy way to see through their funds. Second, popular UCITS building blocks (a World fund, an S&P 500 fund, or a Nasdaq-100 fund) are all cap-weighted and top-heavy in many of the same US mega-caps. Combining them can therefore repeat a substantial amount of stock exposure even when the fund names and benchmarks differ.
The popular UCITS funds, by what they actually hold
| UCITS ETF | Index it tracks | What's inside |
|---|---|---|
| VWCE / VWRL | FTSE All-World | ~3,700 stocks, developed + emerging, ~60% US |
| IWDA / SWDA | MSCI World | ~1,400 developed-market stocks, ~70% US |
| VUAA / CSPX / SXR8 | S&P 500 | ~500 US large-caps |
| EQQQ / CNDX / SXRV | Nasdaq-100 | ~100 US large-caps, tech-heavy |
| EIMI / EMIM | MSCI EM IMI | ~3,000 emerging-market stocks, no US |
| VGK (US-listed) / VEUR | FTSE Developed Europe | European large/mid-caps, no US |
Which combinations overlap — and how
| You hold… | Measured overlap | Shared holdings | What's really happening |
|---|---|---|---|
| VWCE + IWDA | 78.6% | 1024 | They share a developed-market core; VWCE also holds emerging-market and additional small-cap stocks. |
| IWDA + VUAA/CSPX | 70% | 438 | The S&P 500 constituents are already a major part of the World fund, so much of the US large-cap exposure repeats. |
| VWCE + VUAA/CSPX | 58.9% | 438 | The same constituents against All-World, whose emerging-market and small-cap sleeves dilute the shared weight. |
| IWDA + EQQQ/CNDX | 39.6% | 100 | Nasdaq-100 constituents also appear in MSCI World, so adding the fund increases repeated US mega-cap exposure in proportion to the allocation. |
| VWCE + EIMI | 10% | 908 | VWCE already holds emerging-market constituents, so those names receive additional portfolio weight through EIMI. |
| IWDA + EIMI | 0.1% | 6 | Developed and emerging-market index universes are mutually exclusive by design, so direct constituent overlap is minimal. |
| VWCE + VGK/VEUR | — | — | European constituents already in VWCE receive additional portfolio weight through VGK or VEUR. Not yet computed as a pair. |
Overlap here is structural: it follows from the indices, since a cap-weighted fund is just its index. The exact percentages depend on current weights — which is what a look-through calculation gives you. Holdings overlap does not measure correlation, volatility, geographic or factor exposure, fees, or suitability.
How should a UCITS overlap score be read?
The same house ranges used across our pair pages, with the UCITS pairs that fall in each:
| Weight overlap | Reading | UCITS example, measured |
|---|---|---|
| 70%+ | High shared holdings weight; inspect the shared positions and each fund's stated objective | IWDA + VWCE (78.6%), CSPX + VUAA (97.7%) |
| 30% to under 70% | Moderate shared holdings weight; inspect which positions contribute most | CSPX + VWCE (58.9%), CNDX + IWDA (39.6%) |
| Under 30% | Lower shared holdings weight within the available holdings snapshots | EIMI + VWCE (10%), EIMI + IWDA (0.1%) |
These are OverlapCheck house heuristics, not industry standards or investment guidance. Holdings overlap does not measure correlation, volatility, geographic or factor exposure, fees, or suitability. Overlap between an S&P 500 UCITS and a World fund follows from their mandates; the score only describes their shared stock weights.
Same index, same fund, same holdings — three different things
Most European overlap confusion comes from conflating three things that look alike on a broker screen:
| Situation | Example | Actual overlap |
|---|---|---|
| Same fund, different listing or share class — one pool of assets, several tickers (accumulating vs distributing, EUR vs USD line) | VWCE / VWRA / VWRL · IWDA / SWDA · CSPX / SXR8 · EIMI / EMIM | 100% — it is the same fund. Holding two tickers of it is not a second position. |
| Different funds, same index — different issuers tracking the same benchmark | CSPX vs VUAA (both S&P 500) | 97.7% — near-total, but not exactly 100%: the issuers publish on different dates and carry small cash and futures positions. |
| Different indices that still hold the same companies — the case the ticker does not reveal | CSPX vs IWDA (S&P 500 vs MSCI World) | 70% — different index and different name, but a large share of the same constituent weight. |
Only the third case is a look-through question. The first is a labelling artefact — the two tickers are one fund — and the second differs on cost, domicile and share class rather than on constituents. A holdings comparison is informative mainly where fund names and benchmarks differ but the underlying companies do not.
Check your UCITS funds — live now
Six flagship UCITS ETFs are now computed from official issuer holdings files, exactly like our US funds: VWCE, VUAA, IWDA, CSPX, CNDX, and EIMI. Popular pair checks: IWDA vs VWCE, CSPX vs VUAA, EIMI vs IWDA, or the cross-Atlantic sanity check CSPX vs VOO. For your whole portfolio, add them with dollar amounts in the free ETF overlap checker — see how the numbers are computed.
Prefer to see it in the language of the old Morningstar tool? Our Morningstar Instant X-Ray alternative rebuilds the Stock Intersection view, free and with no signup.
Want more UCITS funds covered?
Vanguard and iShares flagships are live; Amundi, Xtrackers, Invesco and more UCITS lines are added by demand. Save the funds you hold in the free holdings watch; the tickers people ask for shape what we add next.
FAQ
How is ETF overlap calculated?
For every stock held by both funds, take the smaller of the two portfolio weights, then sum those figures. Example from current holdings: CSPX holds 8.07% Nvidia and IWDA holds 5.53%, so that one company contributes 5.53 percentage points. Across all 438 holdings the two funds share, CSPX and IWDA come out at 70% weight overlap — the share of the money that sits in the same companies whichever of the two funds it was invested through. Count overlap (how many holdings are shared) is the other figure commonly quoted; it ignores position sizes, so two funds sharing a few very large positions can show modest count overlap and high weight overlap.
How should a UCITS ETF overlap score be read?
OverlapCheck sorts pairs into three house ranges. At 70% or above the shared holdings weight is high — IWDA + VWCE measures 78.6% and CSPX + VUAA 97.7% — and it is worth inspecting the shared positions and each fund's stated objective. From 30% to under 70% the shared weight is moderate: CSPX + VWCE is 58.9% and CNDX + IWDA 39.6%. Under 30% the shared weight is lower within the available snapshots, as with EIMI + VWCE at 10% or EIMI + IWDA at 0.1%. These are house heuristics, not industry standards or investment guidance: holdings overlap does not measure correlation, volatility, factor exposure, fees, or suitability.
Are VWCE and VWRA the same fund?
Yes. VWCE, VWRA and VWRL are share classes and listings of the single Vanguard FTSE All-World UCITS ETF, differing in listing currency and in whether dividends accumulate or are distributed. The same applies to IWDA/SWDA, CSPX/SXR8 and EIMI/EMIM. Holding two tickers of one fund is not a second position and overlap between them is 100% by definition — it is a labelling artefact, not something to analyse. Overlap analysis is worth doing on funds tracking different indices that still hold the same companies.
Do VWCE and IWDA overlap?
Heavily. VWCE (Vanguard FTSE All-World) and IWDA (iShares Core MSCI World) are both cap-weighted global equity funds with many of the same large US holdings. VWCE also includes emerging markets and more small-cap exposure, while IWDA covers developed markets. Holding both repeats exposure to many of the same top stocks, but holdings overlap alone does not determine overall diversification or suitability.
Does VUAA overlap with VWCE or IWDA?
Almost entirely — as a subset. VUAA (and CSPX / SXR8, the iShares S&P 500 UCITS) tracks the S&P 500, whose large US companies are already major holdings of IWDA and VWCE. Adding an S&P 500 UCITS therefore repeats much of that existing US large-cap exposure; the effect on a portfolio depends on allocation size and factors beyond holdings overlap.
Do IWDA and EIMI have holdings overlap?
Their tracked indexes cover different markets: IWDA covers developed markets, while EIMI (iShares Core MSCI EM IMI) covers emerging markets. Because those index universes are mutually exclusive by construction, direct constituent overlap should be minimal. That holdings fact does not determine an appropriate allocation or whether the combination suits an investor.
Can I check UCITS ETF overlap on OverlapCheck today?
Yes. VWCE, VUAA, IWDA, CSPX, CNDX, and EIMI are live with dated equity holdings represented from official Vanguard and iShares files — pick them in the free calculator like any other fund, or open a pair page such as IWDA vs VWCE for the shared equity holdings and weight overlap. More UCITS funds are added by demand.