Top 10 most-bought ETFs: April 2026

Stock markets, particularly the S&P 500 index, enjoyed a strong spell of performance in April, despite no shortage of headwinds. 

In particular, uncertainty over the Middle East conflict and scepticism over the huge amount of money the world’s biggest businesses are spending on artificial intelligence (AI) advancements.

As Richard Hunter, head of markets at interactive investor, noted last week, investors have for the most part chosen to look through the conflict and return to fundamentals, which has been helped by a strong earnings season so far. 

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For exchange-traded fund (ETF) investors “going global” is favoured over seeking out dedicated regional exposure. 

In April, the number of global ETFs edged up from two to three with iShares Core MSCI World ETF (LSE:SWDA) returning to the top 10 for the first time since November. Vanguard FTSE All-World ETF(LSE:VWRP) (the accumulating share class) moved from second to first place, while Vanguard FTSE All-World ETF (LSE:VWRL) (the distributing share class) rose from eighth to sixth.

The other new entrant this month, VanEck Semiconductor ETF (LSE:SMGB), reflects an increase in risk appetite among some investors. It describes its approach as investing in “pure play” semiconductor stocks by focusing on companies that derive at least 50% of revenues from semiconductors or related activities.

Regular members of the top 10 – two S&P 500 trackers from Vanguard – continue to appeal. Investors having a slight preference for the accumulating version Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (LSE:VUAG), over the distribution version Vanguard S&P 500 UCITS ETF (LSE:VUSA).

With the income share class, income generated by a fund’s underlying investments is paid out to investors. With accumulation shares, the income is reinvested back into the fund, which bolsters the effect of compounding, in which investment returns themselves generate future gains.

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In second and fourth place respectively are iShares Physical Gold ETC(LSE:SGLN) and iShares Physical Silver ETC (LSE:SSLN), products that offer exposure to the spot prices of gold and silver.

While widely considered safe-haven assets, during the Iran crisis both gold and silver failed to do their jobs as diversifiers. In the immediate aftermath of the US/Israeli attacks, both gold and silver saw their prices notably decline. At the low points, gold had fallen from around $5,200 to around $4,426, while sliver slipped from around $93.80 to around $64. As of 5 May, both remain below levels before the crisis intensified, with the gold price standing at $4,552 and silver priced at $73.60.  

One of the main reasons this has occurred is due to the strong gains over the past couple of years for both gold and silver, which prompted some profit taking, particularly among hedge funds in order to de-risk portfolios.

As the returns in the tables show, investors who held their nerve have done very well over both one and three years.

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Elsewhere, investors continue to be drawn to money market funds, with Amundi Smart Overnight Return ETF (LSE:CSH2) moving up one place to ninth.

Investors often use money market funds to park cash balances for a short period while deciding where to invest, or to guard against periods of stock market volatility. Given the ongoing Middle East conflict, some investors are more inclined to adopt a more cautious stance. However, bear in mind that, balance is key. While money market funds, given their current yields, serve as useful defenders in a portfolio, holding too much in cash or cash-like alternatives for long periods will hamper long-term growth.

In 10th place is WisdomTree NASDAQ 100 3x Daily Leveraged ETF (LSE:QQQ3). With leveraged products, investors need to take great care, as losses and gains are amplified. As we explain in detail here, many leveraged products caution against holding them for periods longer than a day due to the ETF having to rebalance, which means the returns are no longer fully correlated with the underlying index.

Departing our ETF top 10 in April are iShares Core FTSE 100 ETF (LSE:ISF) and Global X Silver Miners ETF (LSE:SILG). 

Top 10 most-popular ETFs in April

Source: FE Analytics. Top 10 based on numbers of buys in April. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.