APUE vs DFAC

APUEAActivePassive U.S. Equity ETF

DFACADimensional US Core Equity 2 ETF

In short

APUE The ActivePassive pitch squeezed into one ticker: an index core, value, quality and momentum tilts, and active sleeves, all measured against the CRSP US Large Cap Index for 0.31%, with no waiver.

DFAC Dimensional's whole-market workhorse: roughly 2,600 US stocks in one ticker, run by managers who weigh federal tax consequences before they trade, at a fee closer to index funds than to active ones.

Stated mandate

APUE The Fund seeks long-term capital appreciation through a blend of active and passive U.S. equity strategies.

DFAC The fund seeks long-term capital appreciation while considering federal income-tax implications in its investment decisions.

Why people hold it

• APUE Blends an index core with value, quality and momentum tilts against the CRSP US Large Cap Index, so one ticker carries the whole recipe.
• At 0.31% it sits below the typical fee in the active U.S. equity category, and that is the real price: gross and net match, no fee waiver doing the work.
• Grew into a multi-billion-dollar fund since its 2023 launch and trades with moderate volume, not a thinly followed experiment.
• Rates among the stronger implementations in a crowded field of active U.S. equity funds.

• DFAC 0.17% a year for an actively run fund, well under the median fee among active US equity ETFs.
• About 2,600 US stocks under one ticker, so it holds the market broadly rather than a narrow slice of it.
• Federal income-tax implications sit inside the stated objective, not in a footnote, so they factor into what managers buy and sell.
• A multi-billion-dollar fund with a track record running back to 2007 and one of the strongest implementations in its peer group.

Worth knowing

• APUE You pay for the active sleeves: DFAU charges 0.12%, AVLC 0.15% and EBI 0.24% net of a waiver through December 31, 2026, for core U.S. equity exposure.
• Blending strategies means results can drift from the CRSP large-cap benchmark in either direction. This is not an index tracker.
• Cash comes back once or twice a year, not as a monthly paycheck.

• DFAC Actively managed, so there's no published index to check it against. Holdings and tilts shift at the managers' discretion.
• Dimensional's own DFAU runs a US core equity mandate for 0.12%, a slightly lighter fee for a similar shelf.
• All stocks, all US: the mandate is capital appreciation from equities, so it takes the market's full swings, and cash arrives quarterly.

Full APUE profile⁠

Full DFAC profile⁠