iShares Russell 2000 Value vs. Morningstar Small Cap: Which ETF Suits Your Portfolio Best?

Investors choosing between iShares Morningstar Small Cap Value ETF (ISCV 0.01%) and iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF (IWN +0.18%) must weigh the former's significantly lower expense ratio against the latter's massive liquidity and higher recent total returns.

Both ISCV and IWN serve as tools for investors seeking exposure to undervalued small-cap companies. While they share a similar mission, they use different indexing strategies and sampling techniques to capture the performance of the smaller-company value segment, resulting in distinct risk and reward profiles.

Snapshot (cost & size)

| Metric | IWN | ISCV | | --- | --- | --- | | Issuer | iShares | iShares | | Share price (as of July 2, 2026) | $221.33 | $78.79 | | Expense ratio | 0.24% | 0.06% | | 1-yr return (as of July 2, 2026) | 37.4% | 26.3% | | Dividend yield | 1.4% | 1.9% | | Beta | 1.01 | 0.98 | | AUM | $14.4 billion | $685.2 million |

Beta measures price volatility relative to the S&P 500; beta is calculated from five-year monthly returns. The 1-yr return represents total return over the trailing 12 months. Dividend yield is the trailing-12-month distribution yield.

ISCV is the more affordable option with an expense ratio of 0.06%, compared to 0.24% for the Russell-based fund. Additionally, the iShares Morningstar ETF provides a higher trailing-12-month dividend yield of 1.9% versus 1.4% for its counterpart.

Performance & risk comparison

| Metric | IWN | ISCV | | --- | --- | --- | | Max drawdown (5 yr) | (26.7%) | (25.3%) | | Growth of $1,000 over 5 years (total return) | $1,472 | $1,493 |

What's inside

ISCV targets companies within the Morningstar US Small Cap Broad Value Extended Index. Its sector allocation focuses on financial services at 23%, consumer cyclical at 15%, and industrials at 12%. The fund's largest positions include Host Hotels & Resorts REIT (HST 0.58%) at 0.51%, Best Buy (BBY +0.01%) at 0.49%, and Jazz Pharmaceuticals (JAZZ +0.29%) at 0.49%. ISCV holds 1,052 stocks and was launched in 2004. It has paid $1.45 per share over the trailing 12 months.

IWN seeks to replicate the Russell 2000 Value Index, which includes companies with lower price-to-book ratios and lower forecast growth values. Its portfolio tilts toward financial services at 24%, industrials at 12%, and technology at 12%. Its largest positions include Viasat (VSAT +0.89%) at 0.68%, Cytokinetics (CYTK 1.06%) at 0.66%, and Umb Financial (UMBF +0.42%) at 0.63%. IWN holds 1,406 stocks and was launched in 2000. It has paid $3.19 per share over the trailing 12 months.

For more guidance on ETF investing, check out the full guide at this link.

What this means for investors

IWN and ISCV have pretty comparable five-year returns. IWN has a higher expense ratio, but it's nothing outrageous. Both are well-diversified, with over a thousand stocks each, and the weightings are spread so that no single position accounts for more than 1% of either portfolio.

One area of contrast is their size. IWN has more than $14 billion in assets under management, while ISCV doesn't even crack the billion-dollar level. This size differential has knock-on effects. For example, IWN has far higher average trading volume than the Morningstar ETF. Some investors may therefore prefer IWN for its higher liquidity, even though it has a lower dividend yield.