iShares Core S&P/ASX 200 ETF (IOZ) — Review & Analysis

OZ is Australia's sixth-largest ETF, with $8.6 billion in assets as at May 2026 — about 2.4% of the entire $358 billion Australian ETF market. It's BlackRock's flagship Australian equity ETF and the third member of the "ASX 200 trifecta" alongside VAS ($25.5B) and A200 ($9.8B). iShares launched IOZ in December 2010 and it tracks the S&P/ASX 200 Index — the same benchmark you see quoted on the evening news every day. The management fee is 0.05% per annum, sitting between A200 (0.04%) and VAS (0.07%), or $5 per year per $10,000 invested.

To compare IOZ side-by-side with every other ETF on the ASX, see the full ETF directory.

IOZ holds the 200 largest companies on the ASX, weighted by market capitalisation. As at May 2026, top 10 holdings make up roughly 45% of the fund — Commonwealth Bank (~10.5%), BHP (~9.5%), Westpac, NAB, ANZ, Wesfarmers, Macquarie, CSL, Woodside and Rio Tinto. Sector weights mirror the broader ASX 200: ~33% financials, ~22% materials, ~7% healthcare, ~7% consumer discretionary. IOZ tracks the official S&P/ASX 200 benchmark, while VAS tracks the broader S&P/ASX 300 and A200 tracks the Solactive Australia 200 — the differences sound technical but matter at the margins. Over the 5 years to May 2026, IOZ returned +40.8% total return — fractionally behind A200 (+41.8%) and ahead of VAS (+39.9%). The performance gap is small but consistent year-on-year due to index methodology differences.

IOZ pays distributions quarterly (late March, June, September and December) with significant franking credits. As at May 2026, the trailing 12-month cash distribution yield runs around 4.0-4.5%, distributions are typically about 80% franked, and the grossed-up yield comes in near 5.5% for an Australian resident taxpayer. The yield, franking and tax treatment are virtually identical to VAS and A200 — the three ETFs hold the same companies, just with slight methodology differences. IOZ is most often chosen by investors who want the iShares brand or are already BlackRock customers in their wider portfolio.

IOZ is a perfectly fine ASX 200 tracker. Unless you specifically want the iShares brand or the exact S&P 200 benchmark, A200 (cheaper at 0.04%) and VAS (largest, deepest liquidity) are both arguably better picks for the same exposure. A $10,000 investment in IOZ at its December 2010 launch (with all distributions reinvested) would be worth roughly $25,000 as at May 2026 — an annualised return of about 6.1% per year over the 15-year period. For the comparison, see VAS vs A200 vs IOZ — which Australian shares ETF is best.