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The FIRE Exit
Fund vs fund

CSPX vs IWDA.

CSPX and IWDA don't track the same index. Here's what each actually holds, then the fee, domicile and structure side by side. I show you the difference; you decide how much of the world you want to own.

First, the thing that matters most: these follow different indices. CSPX tracks S&P 500 (large-cap US, 500 companies); IWDA tracks MSCI World (23 developed markets, ~1,400 companies). How much of the world you want to own dwarfs the fee gap below, so start there.

The fee, and what it costs

MeasureCSPXIWDA
Yearly fee (TER)0.07%0.20%
Fee cost over thirty years, on €100,000€11k€32k

The fee alone, priced on a €100,000 lump over thirty years at a steady 6% real return. Your own numbers: run them through The Tracking Gap

Where they differ

DimensionCSPXIWDA
Fee (TER)0.07%0.20%
StructurePhysical (full)Physical (sampled)
Size€133bn€125bn

Where they match

  • Domicile 🇮🇪 Ireland
  • Income Accumulating
  • Securities lending Yes

The honest notes

CSPX

iShares Core S&P 500 UCITS ETF (Acc)

The giant, and Irish domicile means it keeps more of the US dividends than a fund taxed at 30% would.

Vs its own index (S&P 500) −0.21% a year

IWDA

iShares Core MSCI World UCITS ETF (Acc)

The giant: by far the most-held MSCI World fund, roughly six times the next.

Vs its own index (MSCI World) +0.03% a year

Each drift is measured against that fund’s own index, from trackingdifferences.com, so they aren’t a head-to-head: negative means the fund beat its index.

Checked July 2026

The structural facts (fee, domicile, structure, size) are each fund’s own, from its factsheet or KID, checked and cited. The returns come from justETF, a reputable ETF data service, so every fund is measured to the same date on the same basis: the only honest way to compare them. The tracking difference (how each fund actually did against its own index) comes from trackingdifferences.com, the standard European source. I don’t compute any of it myself, and there are still no affiliate links.

No affiliate links. No paywall. Nothing on this page is for sale, and no broker pays me to rank one fund above another. The neutrality is the whole point.

Structural facts from the funds’ own reports, returns via justETF, tracking via trackingdifferences.com. Not a recommendation, and I’m not a licensed adviser. Past returns are not a guide to future ones. Which fund suits you depends on your broker, your account and your country’s tax. Not advice.

Bring me a challenge.

The Exit Audit, then ninety minutes: a straight verdict, real alternatives with their pros and cons, and your first move. If you want someone to nod along, I’m the wrong person to pay.

How the sessions work

Ninety minutes, online, €600. The Exit Audit included.