Small cap value and growth ETFs compared: returns and risk
Funds on smaller companies split by style, the corner of the market where the value premium has historically been strongest.
Data updated October 2026
| Fund | 1Y | 3Y a yr | 5Y a yr | 10Y a yr | Volatility | Max drawdown | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 AVUVAvantis U.S. Small Cap Value ETF | +24.5% | +18.3% | +10.5% | — | 27.7% | −49.4% | 2019 |
| VBRVanguard Small-Cap Value ETF | +16.8% | +17.6% | +8.2% | — | 20.5% | −24.2% | 2020 |
| IWNiShares Russell 2000 Value ETF | +19.7% | +19.0% | +6.6% | +9.3% | 25.6% | −61.5% | 2006 |
| IWOiShares Russell 2000 Growth ETF | +6.2% | +17.9% | +3.2% | +9.8% | 25.0% | −57.6% | 2006 |
 ZPRVSPDR MSCI USA Small Cap Value Weighted UCITS ETF | +27.5% | +17.6% | +10.6% | +11.4% | 24.0% | −46.0% | 2015 |
| ZPRXSPDR MSCI Europe Small Cap Value Weighted UCITS ETF | +18.0% | +19.0% | +8.3% | +8.6% | 18.3% | −43.9% | 2015 |
Total returns with dividends reinvested, in each fund’s trading currency, to the last close; periods longer than a year are annualised. Volatility and maximum drawdown cover each fund’s whole history since the year shown, so they are comparable only between funds with similar start dates.
Head-to-head comparisons
Other ETF categories
- S&P 500 ETFs
- Total US stock market ETFs
- Nasdaq-100 ETFs
- Dow Jones and equal-weight ETFs
- US small and mid cap ETFs
- US growth ETFs
- US value ETFs
- Dividend ETFs
- Covered call and equity income ETFs
- Factor ETFs (min vol, quality, momentum, value)
- World and all-world ETFs
- International developed markets ETFs
- Europe ETFs
- Emerging markets and Asia ETFs
- Technology and semiconductor ETFs
- US sector ETFs
- Real estate (REIT) ETFs
- Thematic ETFs
- US Treasury bond ETFs
- Inflation-linked bond ETFs
- Aggregate bond ETFs
- Corporate, high yield and municipal bond ETFs
- Cash and T-bill ETFs
- Gold and precious metals ETFs
- Oil, gas and commodity ETFs
- Bitcoin and crypto ETFs
- Leveraged and inverse ETFs
- Allocation and multi-asset ETFs
Source: MarketStack end-of-day prices, total return with dividends reinvested. Figures are historical and descriptive; they are not forecasts and not investment advice. MEDGE Capital does not recommend buying or selling any instrument. Risk disclaimer.