VFWSX Fees and Costs — Vanguard FTSE All-World Ex-US Index Fund, Institutional Shares
Data updated: 2026-09-28
The net expense ratio is 0.05%: a 0.03% management fee plus 0.02% other expenses. There are no sales loads or redemption fees. In fiscal 2025 the fund paid $2.6M in broker commissions, 0.0040% of average net assets, and portfolio turnover was 6%.
VFWSX Fees and Expenses
Annual operating expenses and sales charges of VFWSX. Prospectus, as of October 31, 2025.
| Annual operating expenses | |
|---|---|
| Management fee | 0.03% |
| 12b-1 fee | 0.00% |
| Other expenses | 0.02% |
| Gross expense ratio | 0.05% |
| Fee waiver | — |
| Net expense ratio | 0.05% |
| Sales charges | |
|---|---|
| Max front load | 0.00% |
| Max deferred load | — |
| Redemption fee | 0.00% |
| Expense limitation in place (N-CEN) | No |
| Fees waived or reduced during the year | No |
| Waived fees subject to recoupment | No |
VFWSX Costs Over Time
On $10,000 invested in VFWSX, assuming 5% a year before costs, total costs come to $34 over 5 years, cutting the return by 0.06% a year. Illustration, not a forecast: it assumes today's net expense ratio throughout (a fee waiver may end).
| $10,000 invested | Sell after 1 year | Sell after 3 years | Sell after 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Value before costs | $10,500 | $11,576 | $12,763 |
| Fund expenses (net expense ratio 0.05%) | $5 | $17 | $29 |
| Trading costs (broker commissions) | $0 | $1 | $2 |
| Lost growth on money paid in costs | $0 | $1 | $3 |
| Total costs | $6 | $19 | $34 |
| Value after costs | $10,494 | $11,558 | $12,728 |
| Impact on return, per year | 0.06% | 0.06% | 0.06% |
VFWSX Trading Costs
Brokerage costs reported on SEC Form N-CEN for the fiscal year ending October 31, 2025.
- Explicit cost rate (commissions ÷ average net assets): 0.0040%
- Total broker commissions: $2.6M
- Bought from dealers (principal trades, not a cost): $16.5B
- Portfolio turnover (prospectus): 6%
- Securities on loan, average value: $459.7M
- Net income from securities lending: $14.7M (0.023% of average net assets)
VFWSX Agency Brokers
Commissions paid.
| Broker | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|
| JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. | $500K | 22.59% |
| MORGAN STANLEY | $345K | 15.59% |
| THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. | $327K | 14.79% |
| BANK OF AMERICA CORPORATION | $320K | 14.46% |
| JEFFERIES FINANCIAL GROUP INC. | $199K | 9.01% |
| CITIGROUP INC. | $195K | 8.80% |
| UBS GROUP AG | $124K | 5.61% |
| Nomura Holdings, Inc. | $81K | 3.66% |
| CITIC Limited | $63K | 2.85% |
| BNP PARIBAS | $58K | 2.64% |
VFWSX Dealer Counterparties
Securities bought directly from dealers (principal trades).
| Broker | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Vanguard Market Liquidity Fund | $16.4B | 99.81% |
| JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. | $17.2M | 0.10% |
| UBS GROUP AG | $3.6M | 0.02% |
| HSBC HOLDINGS PLC | $2.9M | 0.02% |
| THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. | $2.0M | 0.01% |
| BANK OF AMERICA CORPORATION | $1.5M | 0.01% |
| CITIGROUP INC. | $1.1M | 0.01% |
| MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED | $1.0M | 0.01% |
| Nomura Holdings, Inc. | $704K | 0.00% |
| Market Securities (Dubai) Limited | $460K | 0.00% |
Vanguard FTSE All-World Ex-US Index Fund Share Classes
Net expense ratio and maximum front-end load of each share class, cheapest first.
| Ticker | Class | Net expense ratio | Front load |
|---|---|---|---|
| VFWPX | Institutional Plus Shares | 0.03% | none |
| VEU | ETF Shares | 0.04% | — |
| VFWSX | Institutional Shares | 0.05% | none |
| VFWAX | Admiral Shares | 0.08% | none |
For information only. Not investment advice: figures are as reported in SEC filings and may contain errors or be out of date. Past performance does not guarantee future results.