EPP vs VPL: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

iShares MSCI Pacific ex Japan ETF

EPPCNYSE Arca

Vanguard FTSE Pacific ETF

VPLANYSE Arca

Overlap

16.5%by weight

Expense ratio

VPL −0.40pt a year

EPP0.47%VPL0.07%

Avg volume · 30D

VPL 1.4×the volume

EPP264KVPL382K

10Y return · a year

VPL +1.8pt

EPP+7.3%VPL+9.1%

EPP vs VPL Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

+34.0%EPP+56.3%VPL

Expense ratio: EPP 0.47%; VPL 0.07%, better
Fund size: EPP $2.24B; VPL $13.5B
1Y total return: EPP +12.7%; VPL +21.9%, better
Yield (12M): EPP 3.35%, better; VPL 2.23%
Holdings: EPP 95; VPL 2348
Avg volume (30D): EPP 264K sh; VPL 382K sh, better
NAV per share: EPP $55.74; VPL $108.58
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for EPP, VPL, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	EPP	VPL
Cost30% weight	D35	A89Higher
Mission25% weight	B67	A100Higher
Risk15% weight	B65Higher	C47
Tradability15% weight	B63Higher	C43
Holdings10% weight	C48	A74Higher
Durability5% weight	B60	A86Higher

Rank among Asia-Pacific Region funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. EPP and VPL are both graded against the same 7 Asia-Pacific Region funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Asia-Pacific Region⁠

Category · 7 funds

See all 7 ›

VPL ranks 1st and EPP 5th of 7 funds in the Asia-Pacific Region Category.

Rank 1AVPLVanguard FTSE Pacific ETFScore 76
Rank 2AIPACiShares Core MSCI Pacific ETFScore 70
Rank 4BBBAXJPMorgan BetaBuilders Developed Asia Pacific ex-Japan ETFScore 55
Rank 5CEPPiShares MSCI Pacific ex Japan ETFScore 54
Rank 6CAAXJiShares MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan ETFScore 52

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

EPPCiShares MSCI Pacific ex Japan ETF

VPLAVanguard FTSE Pacific ETF

In short

EPP EPP is the Pacific minus Japan: one ticket for the region's developed markets, with Japan deliberately left out so you can size that exposure yourself. It has tracked an MSCI index of roughly 90 stocks since 2001.

VPL Vanguard's scalpel for the developed Pacific: Japan, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore and New Zealand, down to small caps, for 0.07% a year. Asia-Pacific without Europe bolted on, running since 2005.

Stated mandate

EPP The fund seeks to track an index of developed-market equities in the Pacific region, excluding Japan, providing diversified regional exposure.

VPL VPL seeks to track the FTSE Developed Asia Pacific All Cap Index, targeting Pacific-region common stocks through passive full replication.

Why people hold it

EPP Japan is carved out by mandate, not by accident, so Japanese stocks are a decision you make separately instead of a weight you inherit.ishares.com
Launched in 2001 under iShares, one of the longest-running US-listed ways to hold developed Pacific ex Japan in a single line item.
Plain index wrapper: one declared benchmark (MSCI Pacific ex Japan Index, Net), roughly 90 holdings, no stock picking.
A billion-dollar-plus, moderately traded fund rather than a thin niche listing, and it sits in the upper half of its index-wrapper peer group.

VPL Costs 0.07% a year, roughly a quarter of the 0.28% median in its international-blend group and well under broad rivals like ACWX at 0.32%.vanguard.com
Full replication, all-cap: roughly 2,400 stocks held in index weight, small caps included, rather than a large-cap sample of the region.vanguard.com
Trading since 2005 and now a multi-billion-dollar fund that has tracked its benchmark tightly, one of the stronger implementations in its peer group.
FTSE's developed Asia Pacific map includes South Korea, so Korean names sit alongside Japanese and Australian ones in the same index.bogleheads.org

Worth knowing

EPP At 0.47%, regional exposure costs more than broad index staples like SCHK (0.03%) or VT (0.06%). You pay for the geographic slice.
Roughly 90 stocks across a handful of Pacific markets means country, sector, and currency swings land harder than in a global fund.
Distributions run annual or semiannual rather than quarterly, so income arrives in lumps.

VPL Six developed markets, full stop. No Europe and no emerging Asia, so China, Taiwan and India sit outside the mandate.bogleheads.org
Japan is the region's largest market and the fund's heaviest weight, and currency is unhedged, so Japanese equities and yen moves shape a lot of the ride.vanguard.com
One region means bumpier ground than a global fund; it doesn't cover developed ex-US or all-world markets the way VEU or IXUS do.

Full EPP profile⁠

Full VPL profile⁠

EPP vs VPL Holdings

How EPP and VPL differ

Overlap by weight

16.5%

Shared holdings make up 96.6% of EPP and 16.5% of VPL.

Level by level

Holdings81 in both16.5%
Countryby domicile22.1%
Sector11 Sectors58.4%
Asset classEquity100%

Sector

Sector weights in EPP and VPL, widest gap first
Sector	More in EPPMore in VPL	EPP	VPL
Technology	VPL +26.9 points	0.6%	27.5%
Financials	EPP +26.7 points	46.4%	19.7%
Industrials	VPL +8.4 points	9.4%	17.8%
Materials	EPP +8.4 points	15.1%	6.7%
Communication	VPL +3.1 points	2.1%	5.2%
Real Estate	EPP +3.0 points	6.5%	3.5%
Consumer Discretionary	VPL +2.7 points	6.0%	8.7%
Utilities	EPP +2.1 points	3.5%	1.4%
Energy	EPP +1.5 points	2.9%	1.4%
Consumer Staples	VPL +0.3 points	3.1%	3.4%
Health Care	VPL +0.1 points	4.5%	4.6%

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in EPP and VPL, widest gap first
Country	More in EPPMore in VPL	EPP	VPL
Japan	VPL +54.9 points	0.0%	54.9%
Australia	EPP +50.3 points	64.4%	14.1%
South Korea	VPL +23.0 points	0.0%	23.0%
Singapore	EPP +13.4 points	16.7%	3.3%
Hong Kong	EPP +13.1 points	17.2%	4.1%
New Zealand	EPP +1.2 points	1.7%	0.5%

Outside the US: EPP 100% developed, 0% emerging. VPL 77% developed, 23% emerging.

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

EPP48.8%
VPL24.8%

Securities held

EPP88
VPL2,337

Asset class

EPP: Equity
VPL: Equity

Holdings

Only in EPP7
In both81
Only in VPL2,256

Only in EPP

7 securities, 3.2% of EPP by weight

Sea Ads Representing Ltd Class A1.24%
Jardine Matheson Holdings0.43%
Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (Holdings0.42%
Hongkong Land Holdings Ltd0.36%
Grab Holdings Class A0.29%
Hkt Trust and Hkt Units0.24%
Futu Holdings Adr0.22%

Only in VPL

2,256 securities, 84.8% of VPL by weight

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd7.10%
SK hynix Inc5.82%
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc1.98%
SLBBH11421.57%
Toyota Motor Corp1.51%
Tokyo Electron Ltd1.30%
Advantest Corp1.25%
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc1.25%
Hitachi Ltd1.20%
SoftBank Group Corp1.19%
Recruit Holdings Co Ltd1.12%
Sony Group Corp1.10%
Kioxia Holdings Corp1.04%
Mizuho Financial Group Inc1.02%
Samsung Electronics-Pref0.90%
Mitsubishi Corp0.75%
Keyence Corp0.75%
Tokio Marine Holdings Inc0.74%
ITOCHU Corp0.69%
Murata Manufacturing Co Ltd0.68%
Fast Retailing Co Ltd0.64%
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd0.63%
Mitsui & Co Ltd0.60%
SK Square Co Ltd0.58%
Shin-Etsu Chemical Co Ltd0.53%
Mitsubishi Electric Corp0.52%
Panasonic Holdings Corp0.52%
Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co Ltd0.48%
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd0.46%
Fujikura Ltd0.43%
Nintendo Co Ltd0.41%
KDDI Corp0.40%
Hoya Corp0.39%
Japan Tobacco Inc0.38%
Sumitomo Corp0.35%
Marubeni Corp0.35%
Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd0.35%
SoftBank Corp0.34%
Fujitsu Ltd0.33%
KB Financial Group Inc0.33%
Komatsu Ltd0.33%
ORIX Corp0.33%
Daiichi Life Group Inc0.32%
MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings Inc0.32%
Japan Post Bank Co Ltd0.31%
Honda Motor Co Ltd0.31%
NEC Corp0.29%
Renesas Electronics Corp0.28%
TDK Corp0.28%
Sompo Holdings Inc0.28%

Weight gaps

All 81 Holdings in both funds, largest gap first.

Holding weights in EPP and VPL, widest gap first
Holding	More in EPPMore in VPL	EPP	VPL
Bhp Group Ltd	EPP +7.50 points	9.19%	1.69%
Commonwealth Bank of Australia	EPP +7.40 points	8.77%	1.37%
Dbs Group Holdings Ltd	EPP +4.32 points	5.28%	0.96%
Aia Group	EPP +3.69 points	4.44%	0.75%
National Australia Bank	EPP +3.41 points	4.07%	0.66%
Westpac Banking Corporation	EPP +3.31 points	3.96%	0.65%
Anz Group Holdings Ltd	EPP +3.24 points	3.87%	0.63%
Oversea-Chinese Banking	EPP +2.72 points	3.35%	0.63%
Csl	EPP +2.54 points	3.02%	0.48%
Macquarie Group Ltd Def	EPP +2.42 points	2.89%	0.47%
Wesfarmers	EPP +2.27 points	2.73%	0.47%
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing	EPP +1.88 points	2.34%	0.46%
Woodside Energy Group Ltd	EPP +1.66 points	1.99%	0.33%
United Overseas Bank	EPP +1.42 points	1.74%	0.32%
Goodman Group Units	EPP +1.40 points	1.69%	0.29%
Rio Tinto	EPP +1.39 points	1.72%	0.33%
Woolworths Group	EPP +1.28 points	1.54%	0.26%
Transurban Group Stapled Units	EPP +1.14 points	1.36%	0.22%
Qbe Insurance Group	EPP +1.04 points	1.23%	0.19%
Aristocrat Leisure	EPP +0.93 points	1.10%	0.17%
Techtronic Industries	EPP +0.90 points	1.08%	0.18%
Northern Star Resources Ltd	EPP +0.89 points	1.07%	0.18%
Boc Hong Kong Holdings Ltd	EPP +0.88 points	1.07%	0.19%
Singapore Telecommunications Ltd	EPP +0.87 points	1.06%	0.19%
Ck Hutchison Holdings	EPP +0.84 points	1.02%	0.18%
Santos	EPP +0.79 points	0.94%	0.15%
Brambles	EPP +0.76 points	0.90%	0.14%
Coles Group Ltd	EPP +0.74 points	0.91%	0.17%
Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd	EPP +0.68 points	0.82%	0.14%
Clp Holdings	EPP +0.62 points	0.74%	0.12%
Evolution Mining	EPP +0.62 points	0.76%	0.14%
Computershare Ltd	EPP +0.59 points	0.71%	0.12%
Fisher and Paykel Healthcare Corpo	EPP +0.59 points	0.71%	0.12%
Fortescue Ltd	EPP +0.58 points	0.72%	0.14%
Origin Energy	EPP +0.56 points	0.66%	0.10%
Suncorp Group	EPP +0.53 points	0.65%	0.12%
Insurance Australia Group	EPP +0.51 points	0.61%	0.10%
Link Real Estate Investment Trust	EPP +0.51 points	0.61%	0.10%
Telstra Group	EPP +0.50 points	0.60%	0.10%
SOUTH32	EPP +0.49 points	0.61%	0.12%
Scentre Group	EPP +0.49 points	0.59%	0.10%
Singapore Technologies Engineering	EPP +0.47 points	0.57%	0.10%
Singapore Exchange	EPP +0.43 points	0.54%	0.11%
Power Assets Holdings	EPP +0.43 points	0.51%	0.08%
Capitaland Integrated Commercial T	EPP +0.42 points	0.51%	0.09%
Washington H Soul Pattinson & Comp	EPP +0.40 points	0.49%	0.09%
Keppel	EPP +0.40 points	0.50%	0.10%
Apa Group Units	EPP +0.40 points	0.47%	0.07%
Hong Kong and China Gas Ltd	EPP +0.39 points	0.47%	0.08%
Medibank Private	EPP +0.39 points	0.46%	0.07%
Ck Asset Holdings Ltd	EPP +0.38 points	0.46%	0.08%
Sigma Healthcare	EPP +0.38 points	0.45%	0.07%
Asx Ltd	EPP +0.36 points	0.42%	0.06%
The Lottery Corporation Ltd	EPP +0.32 points	0.38%	0.06%
Sitc International Holdings Ltd	EPP +0.31 points	0.37%	0.06%
Pro Medicus	EPP +0.30 points	0.35%	0.05%
Galaxy Entertainment Group	EPP +0.30 points	0.37%	0.07%
Auckland International Airport	EPP +0.30 points	0.36%	0.06%
Lynas Rare Earths	EPP +0.29 points	0.36%	0.07%
Singapore Airlines Ltd	EPP +0.29 points	0.35%	0.06%
Xero	EPP +0.26 points	0.31%	0.05%
Capitaland Ascendas Reit	EPP +0.26 points	0.32%	0.06%
Vicinity Centres	EPP +0.25 points	0.30%	0.05%
Mtr Corporation	EPP +0.25 points	0.30%	0.05%
Wh Group	EPP +0.23 points	0.28%	0.05%
Wharf Real Estate Investment Compa	EPP +0.23 points	0.28%	0.05%
Infratil Ltd	EPP +0.22 points	0.28%	0.06%
Sgh	EPP +0.22 points	0.26%	0.04%
Wisetech Global	EPP +0.22 points	0.25%	0.03%
Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holding	EPP +0.21 points	0.25%	0.04%
Rea Group Ltd	EPP +0.20 points	0.24%	0.04%
Pls Group Ltd	EPP +0.19 points	0.26%	0.07%
Swire Pacific Ltd A	EPP +0.19 points	0.22%	0.03%
Sino Land Ltd	EPP +0.19 points	0.23%	0.04%
Henderson Land Development Ltd	EPP +0.18 points	0.22%	0.04%
Qantas Airways	EPP +0.16 points	0.20%	0.04%
Contact Energy Ltd	EPP +0.16 points	0.20%	0.04%
Capitaland Investment Ltd	EPP +0.15 points	0.19%	0.04%
Meridian Energy Ltd	EPP +0.15 points	0.18%	0.03%
Wilmar International	EPP +0.13 points	0.17%	0.04%
Sands China Ltd	EPP +0.13 points	0.15%	0.02%

All 88 EPP holdings⁠All 2,384 VPL 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.

EPP vs VPL Cost

Overpaying EPP vs VPL

$7,938

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

EPP 0.47%
$9,418
VPL 0.07%
$1,480

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

EPP 0.47%
VPL 0.07%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	EPP	VPL	Overpaying
10	$847	$128	$719
20	$3,261	$503	$2,758
30	$9,418	$1,480	$7,938

Expense ratio

0.47%EPP
0.07%VPL, cheaper

VPL0.07%EPP0.47%

0.07%0.72%

Middle half of Asia-Pacific Region funds
Median 0.19%

VPL cheapest of 7 funds

EPP 5th cheapest of 7 funds

EPP vs VPL Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): EPP 3.35%, better; VPL 2.23%
Payout (12M): EPP $1.87; VPL $2.42
Last payment: EPP $0.82; VPL $2.42
Ex-dividend: EPP Jun 15, 2026; VPL Dec 19, 2025
Paid on: EPP Jun 18, 2026; VPL Dec 23, 2025
Frequency: EPP Twice a year; VPL Quarterly

Distribution history

Per share, 2017 to 2026, same scale for both

EPPTwice a year · 20 paymentsAll EPP payments⁠

VPLQuarterly · 36 paymentsAll VPL payments⁠

EPP vs VPL Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: EPP 13.8%, betterVPL 16.2%
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: EPP 0.93VPL 1.06, better
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: EPP −24.2%, betterVPL −28.3%
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: EPP 0.79VPL 1.10; Market = 1

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