About TrackingDifferences.com

TrackingDifferences.com is an independent and non-commercial ETF comparison portal. It is aimed at investors with a long-term perspective.

What is the tracking difference?

The key figure "Tracking Difference" (TD) indicates how much an ETF has deviated from its benchmark index over the course of the year:

• A positive deviation shows that its performance was lower than the index
• On the other hand, a negative deviation means that the ETF has "beaten" the index

A permanently low tracking difference is therefore a desirable property of an ETF. However, one should not blindly trust this key figure, but also understand the following:

• Why an ETF can beat the index at all and what that means
• Whether the tracking difference is permanently low. In addition to the individual values, we also specify the "Tracking Difference Variance" (TDV), the variance of the annual tracking differences.
• That there are further criteria for the ETF selection (replication method, use of earnings, fund size, etc.)
• That the data on TrackingDifferences.com and even those in the official documents of the fund companies can be incorrect
• That a wrong reference index (price index) is used in the documents for some ETFs, suggesting that the tracking difference is better than it actually is

The capital investment company (KAG) uses the "Total Expense Ratio" to indicate the expected costs of an ETF. These are also most likely to occur. If the tracking difference is still lower than the TER, the KAG was able to generate additional income. For example, by lending securities or optimizing withholding tax deductions.

Where does the displayed data come from?

The information on the annual index and fund performance comes from the "Key Investor Information Documents" (KIIDs) or other official publications of the respective fund company, such as "Monthly Factsheets". These documents can usually be downloaded as PDF from the website of the respective fund company or popular finance portals

The tracking differences are calculated as index performance - fund performance. This definition has the advantage that the tracking difference is easier to compare with the total expense ratio of an ETF.

The PDFs of some fund companies allow an automatic import, others at least copy & paste. However, from some PDFs the numbers have to be transferred manually. Errors are therefore possible.

The ETF master data is provided by Deutsche Börse , exchange rates by fixer.io and onvista.

Why are no data displayed for "my" ETF?

This can be due to the following reasons:

• The fund has not existed long enough. At least one full calendar year is required.
• The fund information (KIID) uses an incorrect reference index
• The KIID PDFs of the respective fund company cannot be imported automatically
• Subjectively, the fund was not "relevant" enough for manual entry. This is especially the case with products on industry or country indices. Broad indices are preferred.
• If data is missing for the last year: the fund company may not have updated its KIID yet

You are welcome to send an email to "info at trackingdifferences dot com" and ask for the relevant data to be added.

What else do I have to consider?

• This website is a private project that is made available to you without any guarantee. It is not investment advice.
• The information presented could be incorrect or out of date
• The information presented does not constitute a recommendation.
• Check the original KIID documents and, if necessary, consult a qualified investment advisor before making any investment decisions!