OriginaveSPY vs ACWI: which ETF won each year?
Yearly returns side by side, one winner per year — dividends included, priced as you'd actually buy them.
SPY
- SPYSPDR S&P 500 ETF Trusttracks the S&P 500 Index
VOOVanguard S&P 500 ETFtracks the S&P 500 Index
IVViShares Core S&P 500 ETFtracks the S&P 500 Index- VTIVanguard Total Stock Market ETFtracks the CRSP US Total Market Index
QQQInvesco QQQ Trusttracks the Nasdaq-100 Index- QQQMInvesco NASDAQ 100 ETFtracks the Nasdaq-100 Index
- VGTVanguard Information Technology ETFtracks the MSCI US IMI Information Technology 25/50 Index
- ACWIiShares MSCI ACWI ETFtracks the MSCI ACWI Index
- VTVanguard Total World Stock ETFtracks the FTSE Global All Cap Index
- URTHiShares MSCI World ETFtracks the MSCI World Index
SCHGSchwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETFtracks the Dow Jones U.S. Large-Cap Growth Total Stock Market Index- SCHDSchwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETFtracks the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index
- VTVVanguard Value ETFtracks the CRSP US Large Cap Value Index
- VUGVanguard Growth ETFtracks the CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index
- MTUMiShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETFtracks the MSCI USA Momentum SR Variant Index
- SPMOInvesco S&P 500 Momentum ETFtracks the S&P 500 Momentum Index
- SPHQInvesco S&P 500 Quality ETFtracks the S&P 500 Quality Index
ACWI
- SPYSPDR S&P 500 ETF Trusttracks the S&P 500 Index
- VOOVanguard S&P 500 ETFtracks the S&P 500 Index
- IVViShares Core S&P 500 ETFtracks the S&P 500 Index
- VTIVanguard Total Stock Market ETFtracks the CRSP US Total Market Index
- QQQInvesco QQQ Trusttracks the Nasdaq-100 Index
- QQQMInvesco NASDAQ 100 ETFtracks the Nasdaq-100 Index
- VGTVanguard Information Technology ETFtracks the MSCI US IMI Information Technology 25/50 Index
- ACWIiShares MSCI ACWI ETFtracks the MSCI ACWI Index
- VTVanguard Total World Stock ETFtracks the FTSE Global All Cap Index
- URTHiShares MSCI World ETFtracks the MSCI World Index
- SCHGSchwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETFtracks the Dow Jones U.S. Large-Cap Growth Total Stock Market Index
- SCHDSchwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETFtracks the Dow Jones U.S. Dividend 100 Index
- VTVVanguard Value ETFtracks the CRSP US Large Cap Value Index
- VUGVanguard Growth ETFtracks the CRSP US Large Cap Growth Index
- MTUMiShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETFtracks the MSCI USA Momentum SR Variant Index
- SPMOInvesco S&P 500 Momentum ETFtracks the S&P 500 Momentum Index
- SPHQInvesco S&P 500 Quality ETFtracks the S&P 500 Quality Index
SPY tracks the S&P 500 IndexACWI tracks the MSCI ACWI Index
What did the last 10 years do to $10,000?
You invest $10,000 at the start of the window and touch nothing — dividends reinvested, the running year not counted.
SPY vs ACWI, year by year
Calendar-year total returns (dividends included) side by side, and who took the crown each year. A dash means the fund did not exist yet.
| Year | SPY | ACWI | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | +12.71% | +12.94% | ACWI |
| 2025 | +17.72% | +22.41% | ACWI |
| 2024 | +24.89% | +17.45% | SPY |
| 2023 | +26.18% | +22.27% | SPY |
| 2022 | -18.18% | -18.39% | SPY |
| 2021 | +28.73% | +18.66% | SPY |
| 2020 | +18.33% | +16.34% | SPY |
| 2019 | +31.22% | +26.59% | SPY |
| 2018 | -4.57% | -9.12% | SPY |
| 2017 | +21.71% | +24.33% | ACWI |
| 2016 | +12.00% | +8.40% | SPY |
| 2015 | +1.23% | -2.21% | SPY |
| 2014 | +13.46% | +3.83% | SPY |
| 2013 | +32.31% | +22.38% | SPY |
| 2012 | +15.99% | +16.75% | ACWI |
| 2011 | +1.89% | -7.82% | SPY |
| 2010 | +15.06% | +12.78% | SPY |
| 2009 | +26.35% | +32.36% | ACWI |
| 2008 | -36.80% | -35.29% | ACWI |
| 2007 | +5.15% | — | — |
| 2006 | +15.85% | — | — |
| 2005 | +4.83% | — | — |
| 2004 | +10.70% | — | — |
| 2003 | +28.18% | — | — |
| 2002 | -21.58% | — | — |
| 2001 | -11.76% | — | — |
| 2000 | -9.74% | — | — |
| 1999 | +20.39% | — | — |
| 1998 | +28.69% | — | — |
| 1997 | +33.48% | — | — |
| 1996 | +22.50% | — | — |
| 1995 | +38.05% | — | — |
| 1994 | +0.40% | — | — |
| 1993 | +8.71% | — | — |
SPY vs ACWI in plain words
SPY tracks the S&P 500 Index while ACWI follows the MSCI ACWI Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. SPY charges 0.0945% a year in running costs and ACWI charges 0.32% — SPY is the cheaper fund to hold.
Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically. Across the 19 calendar years both funds were trading, SPY finished the year ahead 13 times and ACWI 6 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $39,466 in SPY versus $30,708 in ACWI by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested.
Fund facts: SPY vs ACWI
| Fact | SPY | ACWI |
|---|---|---|
| Fund | SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | iShares MSCI ACWI ETF |
| Tracks | S&P 500 Index | MSCI ACWI Index |
| Yearly cost (TER) | 0.0945% | 0.32% |
| Dividends | Distributing — dividends paid out | Distributing — dividends paid out |
| Launched | 22 Jan 1993 | 26 Mar 2008 |
| $10,000 invested | What $10,000 in SPY became | What $10,000 in ACWI became |
How bumpy the ride was: SPY vs ACWI
These head-to-head figures use only the 4,661 trading days both funds were listed: 28 Mar 2008 to 6 Oct 2026, roughly 18.5 years.
SPY and ACWI swung about equally: annualised volatility of 19.7% for SPY against 20.1% for ACWI, with SPY moving 1% or more on 26.4% of trading days and ACWI on 27.4%. Both had their worst day on 16 Mar 2020: SPY closed -10.94% and ACWI -11.22%.
ACWI had the deeper drawdown: it fell -56.28% from its peak on 16 May 2008 to a low on 9 Mar 2009, then closed back above the old peak on 6 Mar 2013, 47 months after the low; SPY fell -51.48% from its peak on 19 May 2008 to a low on 9 Mar 2009, then closed back above the old peak on 26 Apr 2011, 25 months after the low.
Day to day the two move almost in lockstep: the correlation of their daily returns is 0.96, and they closed in opposite directions on 10.0% of the 4,660 days measured. The widest single-day gap came on 18 Nov 2008, when SPY moved +1.88% and ACWI -0.93%.
| Measure | SPY | ACWI |
|---|---|---|
| Annualised volatility | 19.7% | 20.1% |
| Worst day | -10.94% on 16 Mar 2020 | -11.22% on 16 Mar 2020 |
| Best day | +14.52% on 13 Oct 2008 | +12.41% on 13 Oct 2008 |
| Days moving 1% or more | 26.4% of days | 27.4% of days |
| Deepest drawdown | -51.48% | -56.28% |
| Peak to trough | 19 May 2008 → 9 Mar 2009 | 16 May 2008 → 9 Mar 2009 |
| Back above the old peak | 26 Apr 2011 · 25 months | 6 Mar 2013 · 47 months |
Years SPY and ACWI parted ways
In 6 of the 18 completed calendar years both funds were trading, the two returns ended more than 5 points apart. The widest split was 2021: SPY returned +28.73% and ACWI +18.66%, a gap of 10.1 points. They rose together in 13 years, fell together in 3 years and went opposite ways in 2 years.
| Year | SPY | ACWI | Gap (SPY − ACWI) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | +24.89% | +17.45% | +7.4 pts |
| 2021 | +28.73% | +18.66% | +10.1 pts |
| 2014 | +13.46% | +3.83% | +9.6 pts |
| 2013 | +32.31% | +22.38% | +9.9 pts |
| 2011 | +1.89% | -7.82% | +9.7 pts |
| 2009 | +26.35% | +32.36% | -6.0 pts |
How often SPY beat ACWI over any 12 months
Across the 211 rolling 12-month windows since March 2008, measured month-end to month-end, SPY finished ahead in 77.7% of them (164) and ACWI in 22.3% (47).
$200 a month into each, 2009–2025
Putting $200 into each fund at the start of every month from January 2009 to December 2025 (204 payments, $40,800 in total) would have grown to $161,574 in SPY and $114,514 in ACWI, leaving SPY $47,061 ahead.
| Outcome | SPY | ACWI |
|---|---|---|
| Paid in | $40,800 | $40,800 |
| Value at the end of 2025 | $161,574 | $114,514 |
| Gain on the money paid in | +$120,774 | +$73,714 |
| Gain in % | +296.02% | +180.67% |
Each payment rides the return of the month it lands in, dividends reinvested. Only calendar years with all twelve months of data for both funds count, so the plan may start later than the shared history.
Frequently asked
Is SPY or ACWI better?
Across the 19 calendar years both funds were trading, SPY finished the year ahead 13 times and ACWI 6 times. $10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth $39,466 in SPY versus $30,708 in ACWI by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested. Past returns don't promise future ones — but this is what actually happened.
What is the difference between SPY and ACWI?
SPY tracks the S&P 500 Index while ACWI follows the MSCI ACWI Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. SPY charges 0.0945% a year in running costs and ACWI charges 0.32% — SPY is the cheaper fund to hold. Both funds distribute: dividends land in your account as cash instead of being reinvested automatically.
Which is more volatile, SPY or ACWI?
SPY and ACWI swung about equally: annualised volatility of 19.7% for SPY against 20.1% for ACWI, with SPY moving 1% or more on 26.4% of trading days and ACWI on 27.4%. Both had their worst day on 16 Mar 2020: SPY closed -10.94% and ACWI -11.22%.
Which had the deeper drawdown, SPY or ACWI?
ACWI had the deeper drawdown: it fell -56.28% from its peak on 16 May 2008 to a low on 9 Mar 2009, then closed back above the old peak on 6 Mar 2013, 47 months after the low; SPY fell -51.48% from its peak on 19 May 2008 to a low on 9 Mar 2009, then closed back above the old peak on 26 Apr 2011, 25 months after the low.
How often did SPY beat ACWI over a 12-month period?
Across the 211 rolling 12-month windows since March 2008, measured month-end to month-end, SPY finished ahead in 77.7% of them (164) and ACWI in 22.3% (47).
What would $10,000 in SPY have become?
$10,000 invested in SPY at the start of 2016 grew to $39,466 by the end of 2025, with dividends reinvested — an average of 14.7% per year.
Source: Yahoo Finance daily adjusted closes for the US primary listings, dividends reinvested. Prices through · refreshed 7 Oct 2026, 08:49 UTC. How every number is calculated.