Inflation-Adjusted FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO)

The Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO) tracks the performance of stocks issued by companies located in emerging market countries. While VWO's price reflects the nominal value of these stocks, this page adjusts its historical price for inflation using the US Consumer Price Index, providing a clearer perspective on its real performance over time.

Explore the charts and data below to understand VWO's real performance, compare nominal versus inflation-adjusted returns, and see how its long-term growth appears after accounting for inflation.

Nominal prices are adjusted for stock splits and assume reinvestment of any dividends to reflect total return. Inflation-adjusted prices use June 2025 as the baseline (latest available CPI).

The current value of the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF is 50.01 (as of the close of Jul 15, 2025), 0.02% lower than the all-time high of 50.02 (Jul 3, 2025).

While the nominal high reached 50.02, the inflation-adjusted peak value was 61.21 on February 17, 2021.

Since March 10, 2005, the inflation-adjusted total return for the ETF has been 100.14%, which is equivalent to an annual growth rate of 3.47%.

In nominal values, the total return since this date has been 233.97%, or an annualized rate of 6.11%.

Inflation-Adjusted Values by Month

This data presents the ETF's end-of-month closing levels over time. Inflation-adjusted figures show what past levels would be worth using roughly today's purchasing power (based on the latest CPI data). The latest entry in the table will have equal nominal and adjusted values until the next CPI figures are released.

Date Inflation-Adjusted Nominal value
Jul 2025 50.01 50.01
Jun 2025 49.46 49.46
May 2025 47.16 47
Apr 2025 45.5 45.25
Mar 2025 45.65 45.26
Feb 2025 45.17 44.68
Jan 2025 45.04 44.36
Dec 2024 44.97 44
Nov 2024 45.47 44.48
Oct 2024 46.44 45.45
Sep 2024 47.78 46.7
Aug 2024 44.59 43.52
Jul 2024 44.2 43.1
Jun 2024 43.72 42.58
May 2024 42.89 41.76
Apr 2024 42.05 40.88
Mar 2024 41.82 40.49
Feb 2024 41.29 39.73
Jan 2024 40.15 38.39
Dec 2023 41.86 39.8
Nov 2023 40.48 38.54
Oct 2023 37.73 35.99
Sep 2023 38.98 37.19
Aug 2023 40.39 38.44
Jul 2023 43.11 40.85
Jun 2023 40.79 38.59
May 2023 39.07 36.84
Apr 2023 40.37 37.96
Mar 2023 40.73 38.11
Feb 2023 39.85 37.16
Jan 2023 42.92 39.81
Dec 2022 39.94 36.75
Nov 2022 40.73 37.6
Oct 2022 35.6 32.89
Sep 2022 36.79 33.86
Aug 2022 41.01 37.66
Jul 2022 41.19 37.83
Jun 2022 41.51 38.14
May 2022 43.77 39.66
Apr 2022 44.05 39.48
Mar 2022 47.04 41.93
Feb 2022 49.27 43.34
Jan 2022 51.65 45.02
Dec 2021 51.86 44.83
Nov 2021 51.24 44.15
Oct 2021 53.03 45.47
Sep 2021 52.78 44.89
Aug 2021 54.77 46.45
Jul 2021 53.71 45.46
Jun 2021 57.34 48.3
May 2021 57.12 47.67
Apr 2021 56.62 46.87
Mar 2021 56.08 46.05
Feb 2021 56.88 46.38
Jan 2021 56.31 45.66
Dec 2020 54.83 44.28
Nov 2020 51.78 41.77
Oct 2020 47.67 38.48
Sep 2020 47.07 37.98
Aug 2020 47.71 38.44
Jul 2020 46.58 37.42
Jun 2020 43.11 34.46
May 2020 40.71 32.36
Apr 2020 39.42 31.33
Mar 2020 36.32 29.06
Feb 2020 43.69 35.03
Jan 2020 45.42 36.32
Dec 2019 48.26 38.45
Nov 2019 45.04 35.92
Oct 2019 44.79 35.74
Sep 2019 43.19 34.38
Aug 2019 42.84 34.07
Jul 2019 44.28 35.22
Jun 2019 45.17 35.87
May 2019 42.88 34.04
Apr 2019 45.9 36.36
Mar 2019 45.18 35.6
Feb 2019 44.4 34.8
Jan 2019 44.76 34.93
Dec 2018 40.9 31.85
Nov 2018 42.18 32.96
Oct 2018 40.1 31.44
Sep 2018 43.5 34.05
Aug 2018 44.15 34.51
Jul 2018 46.11 36.03
Jun 2018 44.35 34.65
May 2018 46.66 36.39
Apr 2018 47.97 37.26
Mar 2018 49.54 38.32
Feb 2018 49.75 38.4
Jan 2018 52.81 40.58
Dec 2017 48.91 37.38
Nov 2017 47.13 36.04
Oct 2017 47.29 36.17
Sep 2017 46.14 35.31
Aug 2017 46.62 35.49
Jul 2017 45.4 34.45
Jun 2017 43.07 32.71
May 2017 42.75 32.43
Apr 2017 42.36 32.11
Mar 2017 41.84 31.62
Feb 2017 40.71 30.75
Jan 2017 39.94 30.07
Dec 2016 37.99 28.43
Nov 2016 38.28 28.65
Oct 2016 39.84 29.86
Sep 2016 39.76 29.76
Aug 2016 39.07 29.18
Jul 2016 38.81 28.95
Jun 2016 36.85 27.53
May 2016 35.24 26.24
Apr 2016 36.56 27.12
Mar 2016 36.37 26.85
Feb 2016 32.4 23.82
Jan 2016 32.54 23.9
Dec 2015 34.58 25.35
Nov 2015 35.69 26.26
Oct 2015 36.45 26.87
Sep 2015 34.6 25.52
Aug 2015 35.58 26.29
Jul 2015 39.42 29.16
Jun 2015 42.05 31.11
May 2015 43.31 31.93
Apr 2015 45.13 33.11
Mar 2015 42.1 30.82
Feb 2015 43.24 31.47
Jan 2015 41.5 30.07
Dec 2014 41.39 30.13
Nov 2014 43.17 31.61
Oct 2014 43.42 31.96
Sep 2014 42.36 31.26
Aug 2014 45.67 33.68
Jul 2014 43.91 32.43
Jun 2014 43.3 32
May 2014 42.05 31.01
Apr 2014 40.93 30.08
Mar 2014 40.7 29.82
Feb 2014 39.15 28.5
Jan 2014 38.06 27.6
Dec 2013 41.73 30.15
Nov 2013 41.84 30.23
Oct 2013 42.15 30.52
Sep 2013 40.29 29.25
Aug 2013 37.61 27.27
Jul 2013 38.99 28.24
Jun 2013 38.74 28.04
May 2013 41.03 29.63
Apr 2013 43.3 31.22
Mar 2013 42.41 30.6
Feb 2013 43.06 31
Jan 2013 44.47 31.74
Dec 2012 44.57 31.72
Nov 2012 41.52 29.63
Oct 2012 40.8 29.26
Sep 2012 41.01 29.42
Aug 2012 39.12 27.94
Jul 2012 39.24 27.87
Jun 2012 39.1 27.82
May 2012 37.17 26.49
Apr 2012 41.56 29.65
Mar 2012 42.58 30.28
Feb 2012 44.05 31.09
Jan 2012 41.96 29.49
Dec 2011 38.05 26.62
Nov 2011 39.62 27.79
Oct 2011 40.28 28.27
Sep 2011 34.68 24.39
Aug 2011 42.58 29.91
Jul 2011 46.96 32.89
Jun 2011 47.3 33.1
May 2011 47.72 33.43
Apr 2011 49.4 34.45
Mar 2011 48.1 33.32
Feb 2011 46.05 31.59
Jan 2011 46.36 31.65
Dec 2010 48.24 32.78
Nov 2010 44.93 30.48
Oct 2010 46.27 31.37
Sep 2010 44.93 30.43
Aug 2010 40.35 27.31
Jul 2010 41.46 28.02
Jun 2010 37.63 25.43
May 2010 37.8 25.57
Apr 2010 41.65 28.15
Mar 2010 41.81 28.21
Feb 2010 38.81 26.08
Jan 2010 38.1 25.59
Dec 2009 40.99 27.44
Nov 2009 39.69 26.62
Oct 2009 37.05 24.83
Sep 2009 38.01 25.45
Aug 2009 34.59 23.14
Jul 2009 34.91 23.31
Jun 2009 31.43 21.02
May 2009 32.5 21.54
Apr 2009 27.64 18.28
Mar 2009 23.6 15.56
Feb 2009 21.04 13.84
Jan 2009 21.66 14.18
Dec 2008 23.89 15.57
Nov 2008 22.01 14.5
Oct 2008 23.63 15.87
Sep 2008 32.16 21.82
Aug 2008 38.05 25.84
Jul 2008 41.16 28.07
Jun 2008 43.42 29.46
May 2008 48.63 32.66
Apr 2008 48.18 32.09
Mar 2008 44.7 29.59
Feb 2008 46.81 30.72
Jan 2008 45.64 29.86
Dec 2007 50.41 32.82
Nov 2007 50.88 33.15
Oct 2007 55.95 36.24
Sep 2007 49.61 32.07
Aug 2007 45.3 29.2
Jul 2007 45.22 29.2
Jun 2007 43.67 28.21
May 2007 41.85 26.98
Apr 2007 39.48 25.3
Mar 2007 38.28 24.37
Feb 2007 37.05 23.38
Jan 2007 38.14 23.93
Dec 2006 38.22 23.91
Nov 2006 36.82 23
Oct 2006 34.25 21.43
Sep 2006 32.42 20.39
Aug 2006 31.92 20.18
Jul 2006 31.52 19.88
Jun 2006 31.04 19.52
May 2006 31.13 19.54
Apr 2006 35.26 22.03
Mar 2006 32.99 20.43
Feb 2006 32.79 20.2
Jan 2006 33.58 20.64
Dec 2005 30.31 18.49
Nov 2005 28.34 17.36
Oct 2005 26.28 16.23
Sep 2005 27.92 17.2
Aug 2005 26.11 15.9
Jul 2005 25.87 15.67
Jun 2005 24.3 14.65
May 2005 23.5 14.16
Apr 2005 22.81 13.76
Mar 2005 23.51 14.09

Returns from Investing in the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF

How much did an investment in the VWO ETF really grow each year after accounting for inflation? The following chart contains the inflation-adjusted real annual percentage returns.

Detailed Annual Returns (Adjusted vs. Nominal)

The table below shows the returns for the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF by year, both inflation-adjusted and nominal. You can sort any column by clicking on the header.

Observe how inflation erodes nominal gains, sometimes resulting in a negative real return even when the ETF nominally increased, as in 2021.

Year Inflation-Adjusted Return Nominal Return
2024 7.43% 10.53%
2023 4.81% 8.32%
2022 -22.99% -18.02%
2021 -5.42% 1.24%
2020 13.61% 15.16%
2019 18.01% 20.71%
2018 -16.38% -14.78%
2017 28.74% 31.46%
2016 9.87% 12.15%
2015 -16.45% -15.84%
2014 -0.81% -0.06%
2013 -6.37% -4.97%
2012 17.14% 19.18%
2011 -21.13% -18.8%
2010 17.69% 19.45%
2009 71.61% 76.28%
2008 -52.62% -52.57%
2007 31.88% 37.26%
2006 26.12% 29.33%

Vanguard Ftse Emerging Markets Etf: Average Annualized Returns

Annualized returns show the average rate of growth per year, making it easier to compare performance across different time periods. While nominal returns indicate the headline growth, adjusting for inflation reveals the actual change in purchasing power.

This table presents both nominal and inflation-adjusted average annual returns for the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets over various trailing periods ending June 30, 2025, offering a clearer view of long-term, real investment performance.

Period Avg. Annual Return (Inflation-Adjusted) Avg. Annual Return (Nominal)
Last 1 year 13.13% 16.15%
Last 3 years 6.01% 9.05%
Last 5 years 2.78% 7.5%
Last 10 years 1.64% 4.75%
Last 20 years 3.62% 6.27%

Real Returns of Investing in the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets

The chart and table below show the nominal and inflation-adjusted value of a hypothetical $100 investment over various long-term historical periods, ending in June 2025.

The inflation-adjusted line, in green, represents the real increase in purchasing power for the initial investment. Observe the gap between both lines, which illustrates the cumulative effect of inflation over time.

Even over just five years, inflation takes a noticeable bite out of investments. Investing $100 in the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets five years ago yielded an 41.18% nominal gain, but the real return (the actual increase in buying power) was 13.22%.

As investment periods get longer, the difference between reported nominal returns and the inflation-adjusted gains usually becomes much greater due to the compounding effect of inflation over time.

Investment Period What $100 Grew To (Nominal) Total Nominal Return (%) Total Inflation-Adjusted Return (%)
Last 5 years Feb 2020 - Jun 2025 $141.18 41.18% 13.22%
Last 10 years Feb 2015 - Jun 2025 $157.18 57.18% 14.38%

About the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF

The Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO) is an exchange-traded fund that seeks to track the performance of the FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index. Launched in March 2005, VWO provides investors exposure to stocks of companies located in emerging markets such as Brazil, Russia, India, Taiwan, China, and South Africa. The fund offers a cost-effective way to diversify internationally beyond developed markets.

Last Close
Jul 15, 2025
50.01
Highest
Jul 3, 2025
50.02
Highest, Inflation-Adjusted
Feb 17, 2021
61.21
Annualized return
Since Mar 10, 2005
6.11%
Annualized return, Inflation-Adjusted
Since Mar 10, 2005
3.47%