SSAC (ISAC) vs SWDA: which ETF won each year?
Yearly returns side by side, one winner per year — dividends included, priced as you'd actually buy them.
Every figure here is in pounds — what you'd actually pocket buying on the London Stock Exchange. Fund fact sheets usually headline returns in US dollars, which can look very different in years when the pound moves against the dollar. Here's the full story, year by year.
SSAC
SWDA
SSAC tracks the MSCI ACWI IndexSWDA tracks the MSCI World 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.
SSAC vs SWDA, 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 | SSAC | SWDA | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | +14.58% | +13.45% | SSAC |
| 2025 | +13.95% | +12.64% | SSAC |
| 2024 | +19.63% | +21.11% | SWDA |
| 2023 | +16.14% | +17.59% | SWDA |
| 2022 | -8.56% | -8.33% | SWDA |
| 2021 | +20.35% | +23.64% | SWDA |
| 2020 | +11.80% | +12.25% | SWDA |
| 2019 | +22.09% | +23.03% | SWDA |
| 2018 | -4.76% | -3.78% | SWDA |
| 2017 | +13.26% | +11.78% | SSAC |
| 2016 | +29.60% | +29.59% | SSAC |
| 2015 | +1.60% | +4.06% | SWDA |
| 2014 | +11.27% | +12.58% | SWDA |
| 2013 | +21.20% | +25.32% | SWDA |
| 2012 | +9.30% | +9.19% | SSAC |
| 2011 | -35.63% | -6.19% | SWDA |
| 2010 | — | +14.57% | — |
| 2009 | — | -34.91% | — |
SSAC vs SWDA in plain words
SSAC tracks the MSCI ACWI Index while SWDA follows the MSCI World Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. Both funds charge 0.20% a year in running costs.
Both are accumulating funds: dividends are reinvested inside the fund and show up as a higher share price, never as a payout. Across the 16 calendar years both funds were trading, SSAC finished the year ahead 5 times and SWDA 11 times. £10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth £33,247 in SSAC versus £34,992 in SWDA by the end of 2025, dividends reinvested.
ISAC is the London (USD) listing and IUSQ the Xetra (EUR) line of the same fund, ISIN IE00B6R52259 — SSAC is its GBP line on the London Stock Exchange.
IWDA (London/Amsterdam, USD) and EUNL (Xetra, EUR) are listings of the same fund, ISIN IE00B4L5Y983 — SWDA is its GBP line on the London Stock Exchange.
Fund facts: SSAC vs SWDA
| Fact | SSAC | SWDA |
|---|---|---|
| Fund | iShares MSCI ACWI UCITS ETF USD (Acc) | iShares Core MSCI World UCITS ETF (Acc) |
| Tracks | MSCI ACWI Index | MSCI World Index |
| Yearly cost (TER) | 0.20% | 0.20% |
| Dividends | Accumulating — dividends reinvested | Accumulating — dividends reinvested |
| Launched | 21 Oct 2011 | 25 Sept 2009 |
| ISIN | IE00B6R52259 | IE00B4L5Y983 |
| Also trades as | ISAC | — |
| £10,000 invested | What £10,000 in SSAC became | What £10,000 in SWDA became |
How bumpy the ride was: SSAC vs SWDA
These head-to-head figures use only the 3,776 trading days both funds were listed: 21 Oct 2011 to 7 Oct 2026, roughly 15.0 years.
SSAC swung more than SWDA: annualised volatility of 17.4% for SSAC against 14.2% for SWDA, with SSAC moving 1% or more on 20.0% of trading days and SWDA on 20.2%. SSAC's worst day was -39.48% on 31 Oct 2011; SWDA's was -7.75% on 12 Mar 2020.
SSAC had the deeper drawdown: it fell -43.12% from its peak on 28 Oct 2011 to a low on 24 Nov 2011, then closed back above the old peak on 30 Jun 2016, 55 months after the low; SWDA fell -25.58% from its peak on 19 Feb 2020 to a low on 23 Mar 2020, then closed back above the old peak on 2 Sept 2020, 5 months after the low.
Day to day the two usually move together: the correlation of their daily returns is 0.82, and they closed in opposite directions on 3.6% of the 3,775 days measured. The widest single-day gap came on 31 Oct 2011, when SSAC moved -39.48% and SWDA -2.41%.
| Measure | SSAC | SWDA |
|---|---|---|
| Annualised volatility | 17.4% | 14.2% |
| Worst day | -39.48% on 31 Oct 2011 | -7.75% on 12 Mar 2020 |
| Best day | +6.33% on 24 Mar 2020 | +6.41% on 24 Mar 2020 |
| Days moving 1% or more | 20.0% of days | 20.2% of days |
| Deepest drawdown | -43.12% | -25.58% |
| Peak to trough | 28 Oct 2011 → 24 Nov 2011 | 19 Feb 2020 → 23 Mar 2020 |
| Back above the old peak | 30 Jun 2016 · 55 months | 2 Sept 2020 · 5 months |
Years SSAC and SWDA parted ways
In 1 of the 15 completed calendar years both funds were trading, the two returns ended more than 5 points apart. The widest split was 2011: SSAC returned -35.63% and SWDA -6.19%, a gap of 29.4 points. They rose together in 12 years and fell together in 3 years.
| Year | SSAC | SWDA | Gap (SSAC − SWDA) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | -35.63% | -6.19% | -29.4 pts |
How often SSAC beat SWDA over any 12 months
Across the 168 rolling 12-month windows since October 2011, measured month-end to month-end, SSAC finished ahead in 24.4% of them (41) and SWDA in 75.6% (127).
£200 a month into each, 2012–2025
Putting £200 into each fund at the start of every month from January 2012 to December 2025 (168 payments, £33,600 in total) would have grown to £82,732 in SSAC and £88,195 in SWDA, leaving SWDA £5,463 ahead.
| Outcome | SSAC | SWDA |
|---|---|---|
| Paid in | £33,600 | £33,600 |
| Value at the end of 2025 | £82,732 | £88,195 |
| Gain on the money paid in | +£49,132 | +£54,595 |
| Gain in % | +146.23% | +162.49% |
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 SSAC or SWDA better?
Across the 16 calendar years both funds were trading, SSAC finished the year ahead 5 times and SWDA 11 times. £10,000 invested at the start of 2016 was worth £33,247 in SSAC versus £34,992 in SWDA 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 SSAC and SWDA?
SSAC tracks the MSCI ACWI Index while SWDA follows the MSCI World Index, so they own different slices of the market and their years can look very different. Both funds charge 0.20% a year in running costs. Both are accumulating funds: dividends are reinvested inside the fund and show up as a higher share price, never as a payout.
Which is more volatile, SSAC or SWDA?
SSAC swung more than SWDA: annualised volatility of 17.4% for SSAC against 14.2% for SWDA, with SSAC moving 1% or more on 20.0% of trading days and SWDA on 20.2%. SSAC's worst day was -39.48% on 31 Oct 2011; SWDA's was -7.75% on 12 Mar 2020.
Which had the deeper drawdown, SSAC or SWDA?
SSAC had the deeper drawdown: it fell -43.12% from its peak on 28 Oct 2011 to a low on 24 Nov 2011, then closed back above the old peak on 30 Jun 2016, 55 months after the low; SWDA fell -25.58% from its peak on 19 Feb 2020 to a low on 23 Mar 2020, then closed back above the old peak on 2 Sept 2020, 5 months after the low.
How often did SSAC beat SWDA over a 12-month period?
Across the 168 rolling 12-month windows since October 2011, measured month-end to month-end, SSAC finished ahead in 24.4% of them (41) and SWDA in 75.6% (127).
What would £10,000 in SSAC have become?
£10,000 invested in SSAC at the start of 2016 grew to £33,247 by the end of 2025, with dividends reinvested — an average of 12.8% per year.
Is ISAC the same as SSAC?
ISAC is the London (USD) listing and IUSQ the Xetra (EUR) line of the same fund, ISIN IE00B6R52259 — SSAC is its GBP line on the London Stock Exchange.
Related comparisons
More head-to-heads featuring SSAC or SWDA.
Source: Yahoo Finance daily adjusted closes for the GBP trading lines on the London Stock Exchange, dividends reinvested. Prices through · refreshed 7 Oct 2026, 08:49 UTC. How every number is calculated.