PlainIndex

Guide · International Total

Best total international stock ETFs

A total international ETF owns essentially every publicly traded company outside the United States, weighted by market cap. Splitting international exposure across developed and emerging market funds gives you finer control over the emerging-markets weight but doubles the funds you maintain. The single-ticker total-international funds below combine both.

How the scoring ranks these funds

VXUS and IXUS are the two single-ticker total-international options. The leaderboard below pulls in the closely related VEA / IEFA (developed only) and VWO / IEMG (emerging only) funds, which together replicate total-international exposure when held in tandem.

See the methodology for the full formula behind each sub-score.

Top picks

  1. #1 · International Total

    VXUS

    Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund ETF Shares

    91

    composite / 100

    Vanguard's total international fund. Tracks the FTSE Global All Cap ex US Index, which uses a different developed/emerging definition than MSCI (notably classifies South Korea as developed). The standard international leg in a 3-fund portfolio.

    Expense
    0.050%
    AUM
    $629.15B
    Issuer
    Vanguard

  2. #2 · International Total

    IXUS

    iShares Core MSCI Total International Stock ETF

    90

    composite / 100

    iShares' total international fund. Tracks MSCI ACWI ex USA IMI, which classifies South Korea as emerging. Otherwise nearly identical exposure to VXUS; works as a TLH partner.

    Expense
    0.070%
    AUM
    $56.23B
    Issuer
    iShares

  3. #3 · International Developed

    VEA

    Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets Index Fund ETF Shares

    92

    composite / 100

    Vanguard developed-markets-only fund (FTSE Developed All Cap ex US). Paired with VWO, replicates VXUS-style total-international exposure at finer control over the emerging-markets weight.

    Expense
    0.030%
    AUM
    $304.26B
    Issuer
    Vanguard

  4. #4 · International Emerging

    VWO

    Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index Fund

    90

    composite / 100

    Vanguard emerging-markets fund (FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index). Higher volatility and slightly higher tax cost than developed-only funds — separates cleanly from VEA for investors who want to dial emerging exposure independently.

    Expense
    0.060%
    AUM
    $159.87B
    Issuer
    Vanguard

Also in the category

Other funds scoring in this category. Same data, no editorial commentary yet.

How much international is enough

Market-cap weight outside the US is currently around 40% of global equity. Most US-domiciled three-fund portfolios run a smaller international weight — 20-30% of equity is common — citing currency risk, home-country expense familiarity, and the fact that S&P 500 companies already derive ~40% of revenue overseas. There is no methodological answer; this is a personal-preference dial that should be set before the funds are picked.

Foreign tax credit and account placement

International equity funds pay foreign withholding taxes on dividends; in a taxable account these can be claimed back via the foreign tax credit. In a tax-advantaged account (IRA, 401k) the withholding is simply lost. The standard recommendation is to hold international equity in a taxable account when possible — opposite the usual "bonds in tax-advantaged" placement rule.

Guide. Picks come from the live PlainIndex composite for this category; editorial commentary on each pick is hand-written. Re-pulled with every catalog refresh.

PlainIndex publishes data and editorial commentary — nothing here is personalized investment advice. Read the methodology for how the scores referenced here are computed.