Would I have done better with a passive ETF strategy?
A performance question asks what a portfolio has actually returned. The answer keeps the money you paid in apart from the money the investments made, which is why a time-weighted and a money-weighted return can differ so much on the same account.
Worked through on a sample portfolio. The figures below are that portfolio’s, not yours.
Short answer: in this period your passive ETF strategy would have outperformed your actual portfolio.
Here are the numbers for 12/05/2021 to 10/09/2026:
| Scenario | Total invested (EUR) | Value today (EUR) | Total return (EUR) | Total return (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Your actual portfolio | 63.990,15 € | 90.983,96 € | +21.483,58 € | +33,57% |
| 100% HSBC MSCI World UCITS ETF (simulated) | 77.556,45 € | 97.103,40 € | 29.057,95 € | 37,47 |
What this means
- Your data shows you actually invested 63.990,15 € and your portfolio is worth 90.983,96 € today, a headline gain of +21.483,58 € (+33,57%).
- The simulation used your real cashflows but invested them entirely in HSBC MSCI World UCITS ETF from 12/05/2021 to 10/09/2026. In that scenario the simulated portfolio would be worth 97.103,40 €, a total return of +29.057,95 € (+37,47%).
- Comparing the two, the simulated passive ETF outcome (+37,47%) is higher than your portfolio's headline return (+33,57%).
Assumptions used in the simulation (as run)
- The simulated portfolio is 100,0% HSBC MSCI World UCITS ETF; your own transactions funded it and were invested on their transaction dates.
- No rebalancing, no trading costs or taxes in the simulation; prices converted to EUR where needed.
- Cashflows were reinvested as described and the result is valued at the latest available closing price.
If you want, I can show the per-year returns, the holdings that drove the difference, or re-run the simulation with a different ETF mix.
This page in other languages
Related questions
See this for your own portfolio
The assistant answers the same question about your own holdings, with your figures and today’s prices. Import from your broker, or open the demo portfolio and ask it there.