index
FTSE Developed World
Developed-market global equities
Index Battle · Evidence-first comparison
FTSE Developed World vs FTSE All-World: Which Exposure Fits Your Portfolio?
Compare their structural exposure, diversification and intended portfolio role—without treating recent performance as a decision rule.
Last reviewed: 26 August 2026IndependentNo paid placementsInformational only
vs
index
FTSE All-World
Global developed and emerging-market equities
Overall verdict
FTSE Developed World provides developed-market global equities, while FTSE All-World provides global developed and emerging-market equities. The decision is primarily about geographic or asset-class exposure, not which has recently performed better.
Quick Decision
Choose FTSE Developed World if…
you deliberately want developed-market global equities and it matches the intended portfolio role.
Choose FTSE All-World if…
you deliberately want global developed and emerging-market equities and accept its distinct concentration and risks.
Either can make sense if…
the exposure, implementation and risks fit a clearly defined portfolio objective.
At a glance
Entity characteristics—not reference-product fees.
| Characteristic | FTSE Developed World | FTSE All-World |
|---|---|---|
| Exposure | Developed-market global equities | Global developed and emerging-market equities |
| Geography | Developed markets worldwide | Global |
| Market coverage | Large and mid cap | Large and mid cap |
| Emerging markets | Not included | Included |
| Small caps | Not included | Not included |
| Weighting | Market-cap weighted | Market-cap weighted |
| Index provider | FTSE Russell | FTSE Russell |
Key differences
- 1.Exposure: Developed-market global equities compared with Global developed and emerging-market equities.
- 2.Geography: Developed markets worldwide compared with Global.
- 3.Emerging markets: Not included compared with Included.
Decision scorecard
ExposureDepends
GeographyDepends
Emerging marketsDepends
“Depends” means the category reflects an investor objective, not universal superiority.
Coverage, countries and sectors
Verified holdings, concentration, country and sector datasets are not currently connected. When available, each dataset will be labelled as official index data or Reference ETF holdings; listing domicile will not be presented as economic revenue exposure.
What this means in a portfolio
Holding both does not automatically create two independent portfolios. Overlapping companies and regions can make the combination an intentional tilt toward the exposure emphasised by FTSE All-World.
Common mistake
Assuming that adding FTSE All-World to FTSE Developed World automatically improves diversification, without checking overlap and concentration.
Historical comparison basis
Historical performance is represented using Grovcap-selected reference exchange-traded products. It is not the official index or spot return series. Fund or ETP returns can differ because of fees, taxes, tracking, cash positions, product structure and other implementation effects. Differences can reflect TER, tracking difference, withholding taxes, sampling, securities lending, cash drag, operating expenses, currency conversion and inception date.
| Period | FTSE Developed World | FTSE All-World | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year to date | 11.45% | 11.18% | Cumulative |
| 1 year | 23.82% | 23.58% | Cumulative |
| 3 years | 20.07% | 19.66% | Annualised |
| 5 years | 11.82% | 10.96% | Annualised |
| Since inception | 14.46% | 13.16% | Annualised |
Provider-reported net-asset-value total returns for the two reference products, in USD, as of 30 Jun 2026. Figures are taken from provider documents; Grovcap does not convert them into another currency and does not recompute them. Periods where the two products report different currencies, bases or reporting dates are withheld rather than aligned artificially.
Grovcap does not currently hold a daily net-asset-value time series for these products. Indexed performance charts, annualised volatility, maximum drawdown and return-per-risk therefore remain unavailable rather than being estimated from period returns.
Reference instruments used
One canonical European exchange-traded product per exposure, chosen by published rules: exact benchmark family, active and published, plain long-only, then accumulating, unhedged, longest usable history and largest established product.
FTSE Developed World reference product
Vanguard FTSE Developed World UCITS ETF (USD) Accumulating
- ISIN
- IE00BK5BQV03
- Product type
- UCITS ETF
- Provider
- Vanguard
- Tracked benchmark
- FTSE Developed Index
- Distribution
- Accumulating
- Currency hedging
- Unhedged
- Replication
- Index
- Domicile
- Ireland
- Base currency
- USD
- Ongoing charge (TER)
- 0.12%
- Fund size
- Not currently available
- Inception
- 24 Sept 2019
Selected deterministically from 3 eligible products in the Grovcap database — never by commercial arrangement.
FTSE All-World reference product
Vanguard FTSE All-World UCITS ETF (USD) Accumulating
- ISIN
- IE00BK5BQT80
- Product type
- UCITS ETF
- Provider
- Vanguard
- Tracked benchmark
- Not currently available
- Distribution
- Accumulating
- Currency hedging
- Unhedged
- Replication
- Index
- Domicile
- Ireland
- Base currency
- USD
- Ongoing charge (TER)
- 0.19%
- Fund size
- Not currently available
- Inception
- 23 Jul 2019
Selected deterministically from 9 eligible products in the Grovcap database — never by commercial arrangement.
Continue researching
Related Grovcap guides, rankings and tools to take the next step.
Best ETFsBest MSCI World UCITS ETFsEvery plain MSCI World UCITS share class compared on cost, size and structure.Best ETFsBest FTSE All-World UCITS ETFsEvery core FTSE All-World UCITS share class compared on cost, size and structure.ETF comparisonVWCE vs WEBNFTSE and Solactive all-country implementations compared.ETF comparisonIWDA vs VWCEDeveloped-world versus all-world coverage, cost and portfolio fit.PortfolioIs One All-World ETF Enough?Separate genuine diversification from overlap and intentional tilts.
Disclaimer
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