At a glance
DFAU charges 0.12% a year, above the 0.05% average of the 8 funds most like it (the most expensive of 9). It has $12.42B in assets, the 5th largest of that group; it paid 0.89% of its price in distributions over the past 12 months, quarterly. Over the past year it returned +14.1% with distributions reinvested (S&P 500: +11.5%), the best of those 9 funds; over three years it returned +24.2% a year. At its worst it fell 23.6% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 14 months after the low. Its ten largest positions make up 33.7% of the fund, out of 2,195 in all.
The short version
Dimensional US Core Equity Market ETF (DFAU) is an actively managed fund that held 2,195 US stocks of all sizes as of July 31, 2026, weighted mostly by company size. Instead of tracking an index, Dimensional leans modestly toward smaller, cheaper (value) and more profitable companies. Its 0.12% yearly fee is the highest among the nine similar funds compared here, where the average is 0.05%.
Price history
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DFAU +14.1% over the year to Oct 27, 2026, total return with distributions reinvested.
How it has behaved
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | Since start | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DFAU official prospectus, to Dec 31, 2025 | — | +16.81% | — | +13.60% | — | +14.46% |
| Russell 3000® Index index, same period | — | +17.15% | — | +13.15% | — | +14.03% |
| DFAU price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +14.2% | +14.1% | +24.2% | +12.2% | — | +13.6% |
- Over the year to Oct 27, 2026, DFAU returned +14.1%, 1st of 9 among similar funds.
- Its 5-year annualized return was +12.2%.
- Its worst full calendar year was 2022 (-17.0%); its best was 2023 (+24.8%).
- The deepest fall in its price history was 23.6% (Jan 4, 2022 to Sep 30, 2022), recovered by Dec 13, 2023.
Show as a table
| Year | Price data | Prospectus (official) |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +14.2% | — |
| 2025 | +16.8% | +16.81% |
| 2024 | +23.2% | +23.20% |
| 2023 | +24.8% | +24.68% |
| 2022 | -17.0% | -16.90% |
| 2021 | — | +26.85% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Before this security existed |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Lost 23.2% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 23.6%, back to its old high 14.4 months after the low |
Dividends and income
Show as a table
| Year | Per share | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | $0.3500 | |
| 2025 | $0.4500 | 0.0% |
| 2024 | $0.4500 | +7.1% |
| 2023 | $0.4200 | +13.5% |
| 2022 | $0.3700 |
What's inside
As of Jul 31, 2026, the fund held 2,195 securities; the ten largest made up 33.68% of assets.
| Holding | Weight | |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA CORPORATION | 6.74% | |
| APPLE INC. | 6.45% | |
| MICROSOFT CORPORATION | 5.09% | |
| AMAZON.COM, INC. | 3.59% | |
| ALPHABET INC. | 2.74% | |
| BROADCOM INC. | 2.34% | |
| ALPHABET INC. | 2.28% | |
| META PLATFORMS, INC. | 1.79% | |
| MICRON TECHNOLOGY, INC. | 1.39% | |
| JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. | 1.28% | |
| ELI LILLY AND COMPANY | 1.24% | |
| BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC. | 1.11% | |
| TESLA, INC. | 1.08% | |
| EXXONMOBIL HOLDINGS CORPORATION | 0.88% | |
| ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES, INC. | 0.86% |
By country
United States 95.96%Ireland 1.96%Bermuda 0.47%Switzerland 0.3%Cayman Islands 0.19%By asset type
Stocks 99.8%Other 0%By sector
Sectors of the companies held, for the 78.8% of the fund in companies that have a stock page here; other holdings and cash aren't classified. Source: N-PORT holdings report as of Jul 31, 2026. Cash, money-market funds and derivatives are shown separately from the securities list.What changed recently
- Over the three months to Jul 31, 2026, investors added a net $455.8M (creations minus redemptions, per the N-PORT report).
- Monthly total returns reported for that quarter: +4.86%, -0.33%, +0.04%.
How it works
DFAU does not track an index. Dimensional Fund Advisors manages it actively. It starts with US-listed companies approved by its Investment Committee and weights them by market capitalization, which is a company's total stock market value, so bigger companies get bigger slices. It then shifts weight modestly toward smaller companies, value stocks and highly profitable companies. Value stocks are shares that look cheap relative to book value, the net worth shown on a company's balance sheet. The shift mostly comes from trimming large, expensive or less profitable companies. At least 80% of net assets go to US stocks.
The managers also raise or cut a position, or skip a stock entirely, based on shorter-term signals. These include price momentum, short-term price reversals and how fast a company's assets are growing. Trading is flexible: the fund waits for chances to trade when buyers and sellers are plentiful, which keeps costs down. Portfolio turnover was 5% in the latest prospectus.
The fund may use stock-index futures and options on futures to adjust its market exposure as cash comes in or goes out. It may also lend its securities for extra income. As of July 31, 2026, the ten largest positions made up 33.7% of assets, led by NVIDIA (6.7%), Apple (6.4%) and Microsoft (5.1%).
What it really costs
- DFAU charges 0.12% a year, versus an average of 0.05% for the similar funds below (9th of 9, cheapest first).
- Using the prospectus's standard example, $10,000 invested would cost about $12 in the first year and $154 over 10 years (assuming a 5% annual return).
| Cost of $10,000 (SEC example) | 1 yr | 3 yrs | 5 yrs | 10 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DFAU | $12 | $39 | $68 | $154 |
In a retirement portfolio
It owns a broad, size-weighted mix of 2,195 US stocks, so it can anchor the stock side of a long-term portfolio.
DFAU launched in November 2020, so it has no record from the 2008 financial crisis or the 2020 COVID crash. In the 2022 bear market it fell 23.6% from its January peak to its September low. It took about 14 months, until December 2023, to get back to that peak. Its worst calendar year was 2022, at -16.9%. Selling shares to cover spending during a stretch like that locks in losses, which is why money for a bad year is often kept somewhere else.
Income is small: the trailing yield was 0.89% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly. In the SEC's standard example, a $10,000 investment costs about $12 in the first year and $154 over 10 years. Its 0.12% fee is above the 0.05% average of similar funds. Past results don't predict the future, and a plan should look at the whole portfolio, not one fund.
Who it may suit — and who should look elsewhere
May suit
- Investors wanting one fund covering 2,195 US stocks of all sizes, with a modest tilt toward smaller, value and more profitable companies.
- Long-term holders who accept that its tilts can lag at times. Over five years through 2025 it returned 13.6% a year, versus 13.15% for the Russell 3000.
- Buy-and-hold investors who value low trading (5% turnover in the latest prospectus) and a cost of about $12 a year per $10,000.
Look elsewhere if
- Cost-focused investors: index funds such as IVV and SCHX charge 0.03% a year, compared with DFAU's 0.12%.
- Retirees who need steady cash from their holdings: the trailing yield was just 0.89% as of October 27, 2026, paid quarterly.
- Anyone uneasy with deep drops: it fell 23.6% during 2022 and took about 14 months to recover.
Close alternatives
Matched by holdings overlap from the latest N-PORT reports.
| Fund | Overlap | Cost | Net assets | 1 yr | 3 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DFAU this fund | — | 0.12% | $12.42B | +14.1% | +24.2% |
| DFUS Dimensional U.S. Equity Market ETF | 86% | 0.09% | $20.88B | +11.7% | +22.0% |
| SCHX Schwab U.S. Large-Cap ETF | 85% | 0.03% | $74.17B | +10.9% | +21.9% |
| SCHK Schwab 1000 Index ETF | 85% | 0.05% | $5.86B | +13.2% | +24.8% |
| BKLC BNY Mellon US Large Cap Core Equity ETF | 84% | 0% | $5.47B | +13.4% | +25.4% |
| VONE Vanguard Russell 1000 ETF | 84% | 0.07% | $11.91B | +13.0% | +24.6% |
| VTHR Vanguard Russell 3000 ETF | 83% | 0.07% | $6.41B | +13.1% | +24.5% |
| SPY SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | 82% | 0.0945% | $781.19B | +11.5% | +21.9% |
Questions investors ask
Is DFAU an index fund?
No. DFAU is an actively managed ETF from Dimensional and does not try to copy any index. It holds a broad mix of US stocks weighted by company size. It then leans modestly toward smaller, value and more profitable companies, and adjusts for short-term signals such as price momentum. Its prospectus compares its results with the Russell 3000 Index, a benchmark of roughly the 3,000 largest US stocks, but its holdings and returns can differ from that index.
What's the difference between DFAU and DFUS?
Both are Dimensional ETFs, and their holdings overlap by 86% in the latest N-PORT reports. DFUS charges 0.09% a year, compared with 0.12% for DFAU. As of July 31, 2026, DFUS was larger, with $20.9 billion in net assets versus DFAU's $12.4 billion. Over one year, DFAU returned 14.1% (as of October 27, 2026) and DFUS returned 13.5% (as of October 29). Over three years DFUS led, 24.9% a year versus 24.2%.
Does DFAU pay dividends?
Yes. DFAU pays dividends quarterly. Over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, it paid about $0.47 per share, a trailing yield of 0.89%. That is a small amount of income. The fund's stated goal is long-term growth of capital, not income. Investors who need regular cash from their portfolio would get only a small part of it from this fund and might need to sell shares or own other holdings.
How has DFAU performed compared to the Russell 3000?
Its returns have been close to the index, with small gaps either way. According to its prospectus, as of December 31, 2025, DFAU returned 16.81% over one year, versus 17.15% for the Russell 3000 Index. It returned 13.6% a year over five years, versus 13.15%, and 14.46% a year since its November 2020 launch, versus 14.03%. Its best quarter was a gain of 11.45% (fourth quarter of 2023). Its worst was a loss of 15.86% (second quarter of 2022).
What are DFAU's top holdings?
As of July 31, 2026, DFAU's largest holdings were NVIDIA (6.7%), Apple (6.4%), Microsoft (5.1%), Amazon (3.6%), Alphabet (about 5.0% across two share classes) and Broadcom (2.3%). The fund held 2,195 stocks, but its ten largest positions made up 33.7% of assets. Technology was the largest sector, at 29.6% of assets. Large swings in the biggest tech companies can therefore move the fund noticeably.