AQWA vs FIW: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Global X Clean Water ETF

AQWACNasdaq

First Trust Water ETF

FIWBNYSE Arca

Overlap

37.2%by weight

Expense ratio

AQWA0.50%FIW0.50%

Avg volume · 30D

FIW 9.3×the volume

AQWA5.29KFIW49K

5Y return · a year

FIW +1.4pt

AQWA+3.7%FIW+5.1%

AQWA vs FIW Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

+19.9%AQWA+28.4%FIW

Expense ratio: AQWA 0.50%; FIW 0.50%
Fund size: AQWA $21M; FIW $1.83B
1Y total return: AQWA −3.2%; FIW +1.6%, better
Yield (12M): AQWA 1.61%, better; FIW 0.71%
Holdings: AQWA 42; FIW 37
Avg volume (30D): AQWA 5.29K sh; FIW 49K sh, better
NAV per share: AQWA $18.69; FIW $112.27
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for AQWA, FIW, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	AQWA	FIW
Cost30% weight	B66	B66
Mission25% weight	Not scored	Not scored
Risk15% weight	C51Higher	C50
Tradability15% weight	F23	A79Higher
Holdings10% weight	C46	A79Higher
Durability5% weight	F21	A76Higher

Rank among Water funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. AQWA and FIW are both graded against the same 6 Water funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Water⁠

Category · 6 funds

See all 6 ›

FIW ranks 1st and AQWA 5th of 6 funds in the Water Category.

Rank 1BFIWFirst Trust Water ETFScore 67
Rank 2BTBLUTortoise Global Water FundScore 58
Rank 4CCGWInvesco S&P Global Water Index ETFScore 53
Rank 5CAQWAGlobal X Clean Water ETFScore 48
Rank 6DPIOInvesco Global Water ETFScore 33

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

AQWACGlobal X Clean Water ETF

FIWBFirst Trust Water ETF

In short

AQWA Global X's 2021 entry into water, built narrower than the old guard: roughly 40 companies worldwide working on treatment, purification, storage and distribution. The pitch is pipes and filters, not a broad utility basket.

FIW Water is the least glamorous essential business on earth, and FIW has been buying it since 2007: roughly 40 companies earning real revenue from drinking water and wastewater, at a fee below most of the water field.

Stated mandate

AQWA AQWA seeks to invest in companies advancing clean-water provision, including water treatment, storage and distribution infrastructure, purification, and efficiency strategies.

FIW The fund seeks returns that generally track the pre-expense price and yield of the ISE Clean Edge WaterTM Index, which covers listed companies deriving substantial revenue from potable and wastewater activities.

Why people hold it

AQWA Costs 0.50% a year, on the cheaper side of the water fund field. A fee edge is fixed and known, unlike anything else about a theme fund.
Follows a rules-based index (Solactive Global Clean Water Industry) rather than a manager's hunches, so the water definition is written down before the money moves.globalxetfs.com
Mandate is global and specific: treatment, purification, storage, distribution infrastructure and efficiency, wherever those companies are listed.globalxetfs.com

FIW Launched in 2007, it predates most of the water theme. Its track record covers a financial crisis and a rate shock, not just one friendly stretch of market.
0.50% a year undercuts the two best-known rivals in the space, Invesco's CGW (0.58%) and PHO (0.59%), and sits below the water cohort's median fee.
Narrow by design: the ISE Clean Edge Water Index holds companies drawing substantial revenue from potable and wastewater work, so about 40 names instead of a loose infrastructure grab bag.
A multi-billion-dollar fund in a thin category, and one of the stronger builds in its water peer group on cost, tradability and portfolio quality. It pays quarterly.

Worth knowing

AQWA Small asset base and thin trading. Bid-ask spreads can widen, and tiny funds carry more closure risk than entrenched ones.
Roughly 40 stocks in one theme. A handful of names can drive the whole ride, up or down.
Launched 2021, so it is the newcomer against water veterans like FIW, CGW and PHO, and it sits in the lower half of our water group on the current review.

FIW Concentration cuts both ways: about 40 stocks in one theme swing harder than a broad market fund, and water can drift out of favor for years at a time.
Cheap for water, not cheap outright. 0.50% is many times what a plain broad-market index fund charges for the same equity exposure wrapper.
Trading is moderate rather than heavy, so spreads can widen when markets move fast. Income arrives quarterly, not monthly.

Full AQWA profile⁠

Full FIW profile⁠

AQWA vs FIW Holdings

As of Oct 13, 2026

How AQWA and FIW differ

Overlap by weight

37.2%

Shared holdings make up 62.6% of AQWA and 37.2% of FIW.

Level by level

Holdings16 in both37.2%
Sector7 Sectors67.9%
Countryby domicile74.0%
Asset classEquity100%

Sector

Sector weights in AQWA and FIW, widest gap first
Sector	More in AQWAMore in FIW	AQWA	FIW
Utilities	AQWA +28.9 points	39.9%	11.0%
Health Care	FIW +13.2 points	0.0%	13.2%
Technology	FIW +8.3 points	2.2%	10.5%
Industrials	FIW +6.9 points	51.1%	58.0%
Materials	FIW +3.7 points	1.8%	5.5%
Consumer Discretionary	AQWA +2.3 points	2.3%	0.0%
Consumer Staples	AQWA +1.0 points	2.8%	1.8%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in AQWA and FIW, widest gap first
Country	More in AQWAMore in FIW	AQWA	FIW
United States	FIW +22.0 points	73.0%	95.0%
United Kingdom	AQWA +12.6 points	12.6%	0.0%
China	AQWA +5.9 points	5.9%	0.0%
Japan	AQWA +4.0 points	4.0%	0.0%
Canada	FIW +3.8 points	0.0%	3.8%
South Korea	AQWA +2.3 points	2.3%	0.0%
Singapore	AQWA +1.1 points	1.1%	0.0%
Brazil	FIW +0.2 points	1.0%	1.2%

Outside the US: AQWA 66% developed, 34% emerging.

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

AQWA58.6%
FIW41.7%

Securities held

AQWA41
FIW36

Asset class

AQWA: Equity
FIW: Equity

Holdings

Only in AQWA25
In both16
Only in FIW20

Only in AQWA

25 securities, 37.4% of AQWA by weight

United Utilities Group PLC7.37%
Essential Utilities Inc6.13%
Severn Trent PLC4.77%
Kurita Water Industries Ltd2.91%
Coway Co Ltd2.38%
Guangdong Investment Ltd1.88%
Beijing Capital Eco-Enviro-A1.87%
Cia Saneamento Minas Gerais1.49%
Organo Corp1.36%
Keppel Infrastructure Trust1.17%
Chengdu Xingrong Environme-A0.81%
Middlesex Water Co0.60%
Beijing Originwater Techno-A0.59%
Nwpx Infrastructure Inc0.56%
Beijing Enterprises Water Gr0.45%
Vontron Technology Co-A0.45%
Nomura Micro Science Co Ltd0.39%
Cadiz Inc0.34%
Chongqing Water Group-A0.32%
Consolidated Water Co-Ord Sh0.32%
York Water Co0.31%
Alkhorayef Water & Power Tec0.28%
Miahona0.27%
Energy Recovery Inc0.27%
Other Payable & Receivables0.11%

Only in FIW

20 securities, 62.6% of FIW by weight

Agilent Technologies, Inc.4.45%
Veralto Corporation4.40%
Waters Corporation4.36%
Roper Technologies, Inc.4.29%
Ecolab Inc.4.18%
Jacobs Solutions Inc.4.05%
IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.3.87%
Masco Corporation3.82%
Bentley Systems, Inc. (Class B)3.80%
IDEX Corporation3.50%
Tetra Tech, Inc.3.13%
Mueller Industries, Inc.2.99%
Aecom2.75%
Valmont Industries, Inc.2.63%
Fortune Brands Innovations Inc.1.97%
Stantec Inc.1.94%
Itron, Inc.1.93%
Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.1.88%
Hawkins, Inc.1.55%
Cia. de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo - SABESP (ADR)1.14%

Weight gaps

All 16 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in AQWA and FIW, widest gap first
Holding	More in AQWAMore in FIW	AQWA	FIW
American Water Works Co IncAWK	AQWA +4.16 points	8.24%	4.08%
Xylem IncXYL	AQWA +4.14 points	7.42%	3.28%
Ferguson Enterprises IncFERG	AQWA +3.65 points	7.80%	4.15%
Zurn Elkay Water Solutions CorporationZWS	AQWA +2.35 points	4.18%	1.83%
Core & Main Inc-Class ACNM	AQWA +2.26 points	4.27%	2.01%
Smith (A.o.) CorpAOS	AQWA +1.66 points	3.74%	2.08%
Watts Water Technologies-AWTS	AQWA +1.64 points	4.42%	2.78%
Primo Brands CorpPRMB	AQWA +1.06 points	2.75%	1.69%
Mueller Water Products Inc-AMWA	AQWA +0.91 points	2.06%	1.15%
American States Water CoAWR	AQWA +0.80 points	1.98%	1.18%
Advanced Drainage Systems InWMS	AQWA +0.62 points	4.03%	3.41%
Pentair PLCPNR	AQWA +0.61 points	3.82%	3.21%
Franklin Electric Co IncFELE	AQWA +0.60 points	2.46%	1.86%
California Water Service GrpCWT	AQWA +0.53 points	1.72%	1.19%
H2O AmericaHTO	AQWA +0.25 points	1.40%	1.15%
Badger Meter IncBMI	AQWA +0.18 points	2.32%	2.14%

All 40 AQWA holdings⁠All 36 FIW holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

AQWA vs FIW Cost

Same expense ratio

$9,979

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

AQWA 0.50%
$9,979
FIW 0.50%
$9,979

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

AQWA 0.50%
FIW 0.50%

Year by year

Year	AQWA	FIW
10	$900	$900
20	$3,460	$3,460
30	$9,979	$9,979

Expense ratio

0.50%AQWA
0.50%FIW

AQWA0.50%FIW0.50%

0.40%0.75%

Middle half of Water funds
Median 0.54%

AQWA 2nd cheapest of 6 funds

FIW 2nd cheapest of 6 funds

AQWA vs FIW Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): AQWA 1.61%, better; FIW 0.71%
Payout (12M): AQWA $0.30; FIW $0.79
Last payment: AQWA $0.13; FIW $0.19
Ex-dividend: AQWA Jun 29, 2026; FIW Sep 24, 2026
Paid on: AQWA Jul 7, 2026; FIW Sep 30, 2026
Frequency: AQWA Twice a year; FIW Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

AQWATwice a year · 11 paymentsAll AQWA payments⁠

FIWQuarterly · 39 paymentsAll FIW payments⁠

AQWA vs FIW Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

AQWA
FIW

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: AQWA 15.4%, betterFIW 16.1%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: AQWA 0.51FIW 0.59, better
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: AQWA −29.5%FIW −28.5%, better
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: AQWA 0.82FIW 0.99; Market = 1

Popular comparisons

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