In this guide
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) continue to cement their role in SMSF portfolios, with more than one in three (35.5%) Class SMSFs holding them, and one of only two asset classes to grow in popularity in 2025–26.
This puts ETFs ahead of traditional managed funds (30.2% of Class SMSFs) and direct property (29.7%), despite being a relatively young investment product.
As the name suggests, ETFs can be bought and sold on the ASX like ordinary shares but offer the diversification of managed funds. Each one tracks a particular market, from a share index such as the ASX 200 or the S&P 500 to a sector, a region or an asset class, and, as the Class report points out, they now cover enough ground for an SMSF to build a diversified portfolio using ETFs alone.
The popularity of ETFs is being fuelled by the growing take-up of SMSFs by Generation X and Millennials, who together accounted for 89.1% of new Class SMSF establishments in the 2026 financial year. Millennials recorded the sharpest shift of any cohort, lifting their share of new funds from 37.3% to 44.0% in a single year, just behind Generation X on 45.1%.
SMSF investors have embraced ETFs because they offer a simple, easy-to-trade, low-cost way to diversify, especially in global markets. They also let self-directed investors plug gaps in a portfolio or adjust their asset allocation as markets move.
Financial advisers have also come on board, as ETFs offer a simple way of building a diversified portfolio, often using a core and satellite approach. The core component generally includes broad asset classes such as Australian or US shares, while the satellite component may include active or thematic components such as semiconductors or climate change.
ETFs accounted for 7.2% (or $27.6 billion) of total SMSF assets in June 2026, up 1.0 percentage point over the year. That was enough to overtake unlisted trusts, at 7.0%, and make ETFs the fifth-largest asset class by value.
ETF growth in SMSFs
The number of SMSFs holding ETFs has crept up, but the money going into them has grown much faster. The share of Class SMSFs holding at least one ETF rose 0.6 percentage points over the year, while the number of unique ETF holdings rose 19.9% and their market value rose 23.6%.
| ETFs in Class SMSFs | FY24 | FY25 | FY26 |
|---|---|---|---|
| SMSFs holding at least one ETF | 32.5% | 34.9% | 35.5% |
| ETFs as a share of total SMSF assets | 5.3% | 6.2% | 7.2% |
| Unique ETF holdings | 267,293 | 309,167 | 370,660 |
| Market value of ETFs held | $18.4 billion | $22.3 billion | $27.6 billion |
Source: Class. Data as at 30 June 2026. Data sourced from 198,898 SMSFs that use Class software.
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Find out moreInternational and domestic ETFs
The most popular ETFs are generally low-cost and split close to 50:50 between domestic and international funds. Six of the top 10 provide exposure to international shares, highlighting how SMSFs use ETFs to gain international exposure and diversify risk.
That said, Vanguard’s Australian Shares Index ETF continues to rule the roost, held by 14.2% of SMSFs with ETFs and making up 5.7% of total SMSF ETF investments, worth around $1.6 billion.
The iShares S&P 500 ETF moved up from third to second, held by 13.4% of funds with ETFs, while the VanEck MSCI World ex Australia Quality ETF slipped to third at 12.7%. The iShares ETF provides investors with exposure to booming tech stocks such as Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft and NVIDIA.
The 20 largest ETF holdings by value accounted for 48.1% of Class SMSF ETF investments, down from 50.9% a year earlier, so the biggest funds hold a slightly smaller share of SMSF ETF money than they did.
20 most popular ETFs invested in by SMSFs
The top 20 list below is ranked by the percentage of SMSFs holding these ETFs, rather than the percentage each security makes up of total SMSF investments in ETFs, although both figures are provided in the table.
| Rank | Security code | ETF | International or Domestic | % of funds with ETFs that hold this security | % of total SMSF ETF investments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VAS | Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | Domestic | 14.2% | 5.7% |
| 2 | IVV | iShares S&P 500 ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | International | 13.4% | 4.6% |
| 3 | QUAL | VanEck MSCI World ex Australia Quality ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | International | 12.7% | 3.0% |
| 4 | VGS | Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | International | 12.2% | 4.1% |
| 5 | VEU | Vanguard All-World ex-US Shares Index ETF – Chess Depositary Interests 1:1 | International | 10.3% | 2.1% |
| 6 | NDQ | Betashares Nasdaq 100 ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | International | 9.9% | 2.4% |
| 7 | VAP | Vanguard Australian Property Securities Index ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | Domestic | 9.7% | 1.3% |
| 8 | VHY | Vanguard Australian Shares High Yield ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | Domestic | 9.6% | 2.7% |
| 9 | A200 | Betashares Australia 200 ETF | Domestic | 9.0% | 2.2% |
| 10 | IOO | iShares Global 100 ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | International | 7.9% | 2.7% |
| 11 | VTS | Vanguard US Total Market Shares Index ETF – Chess Depositary Interests 1:1 | International | 7.5% | 2.3% |
| 12 | VGAD | Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares (Hedged) | International | 7.4% | 2.5% |
| 13 | MVW | VanEck Australian Equal Weight ETF – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | Domestic | 7.0% | 1.5% |
| 14 | SUBD | VanEck Australian Subordinated Debt ETF | Domestic | 6.6% | 1.5% |
| 15 | IOZ | iShares Core S&P/ASX 200 ETF | Domestic | 6.5% | 1.8% |
| 16 | STW | SPDR S&P/ASX 200 Fund – Exchange Traded Fund Units Fully Paid | Domestic | 6.4% | 2.3% |
| 17 | HBRD | Betashares Active Australian Hybrids Fund (Managed Fund) | Domestic | 6.0% | 1.4% |
| 18 | IJP | iShares MSCI Japan ETF | International | 5.9% | 0.5% |
| 19 | IFRA | VanEck FTSE Global Infrastructure (AUD Hedged) ETF | International | 5.7% | 0.8% |
| 20 | IAF | iShares Core Composite Bond ETF | Domestic | 5.7% | 0.9% |
| Total (Percentage that these 20 securities make up of total SMSF investments in exchange-traded funds) | 46.4% | ||||
Source: Class. Data as at 30 June 2026. Data sourced from 198,898 SMSFs that use Class software.
What new SMSFs are buying
Funds set up in the past year are building noticeably different portfolios, according to an analysis in the Class report by Ciara Conway, general manager of super at investing platform Stake.
Among all SMSFs with ETFs, only one of the five most widely held funds tracks a US index.
Five most popular ETFs: all SMSFs
| Rank | Security code | Index tracked | % of funds with ETFs that hold this security |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | VAS | ASX | 14.16% |
| 2 | IVV | Wall St | 13.43% |
| 3 | QUAL | Global | 12.71% |
| 4 | VGS | Global | 12.22% |
| 5 | VEU | Global ex-US | 10.25% |
Source: Class. Data as at 30 June 2026.
Among funds established during the year, the top two track a US index. The Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF slips from first to fourth, although the proportion of funds holding it barely changes.
Five most popular ETFs: newly established SMSFs
| Rank | Security code | Index tracked | % of funds with ETFs that hold this security |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | IVV | Wall St | 20.03% |
| 2 | NDQ | Wall St | 17.35% |
| 3 | A200 | ASX | 15.39% |
| 4 | VAS | ASX | 14.02% |
| 5 | VGS | Global | 13.83% |
Source: Class. Data as at 30 June 2026. All seven funds in the two tables above trade on the ASX. “Index tracked” is the index each fund follows, not its listing venue. “Wall St” is used only where the index is US-specific; “Global” covers MSCI World ex Australia, which is majority US but not US only.
Conway puts the difference down to investing history rather than an SMSF-specific decision. Someone setting up a fund in their early forties has often been buying shares and ETFs online in their own name for years, and buying a US index takes the same few taps as buying an Australian bank share.
Which ETF providers do SMSFs use?
SMSFs can choose from dozens of ETF issuers, but their money is concentrated in a handful. Vanguard, Betashares, BlackRock (which issues the iShares range) and VanEck together account for 80.8% of the ETF assets held by Class SMSFs.
| ETF provider | % of ETF assets held by Class SMSFs |
|---|---|
| Vanguard | 27.6% |
| Betashares | 21.1% |
| BlackRock (iShares) | 18.7% |
| VanEck | 13.4% |
| Global X | 6.2% |
| State Street Global Advisors | 4.2% |
| Magellan | 0.9% |
| Macquarie | 0.7% |
| Russell | 0.3% |
| JPMorgan | 0.2% |
| Dimensional | 0.2% |
| Other | 6.5% |
Source: Class. Data as at 30 June 2026. Data sourced from 198,898 SMSFs that use Class software.
Vanguard’s lead is not confined to SMSFs. In June 2026 it became the first Australian ETF issuer to reach $100 billion in ETF assets, with the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF accounting for $25.4 billion of that.
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