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VanEck Defense UCITS ETF A (DFEN.DE) Alternatives

ETF · Currency in EUR · Last updated Jun 26, 2026

The VanEck Defense UCITS ETF provides exposure to global companies involved in defense technology, cybersecurity, and defense-related services by tracking the MarketVector Global Defense Industry Index.

VanEck Defense UCITS ETF A (DFEN.DE) belongs to the Aerospace & Defense category. Below you'll find alternative ETFs from the same category, ranked by key criteria, plus funds that investors commonly compare with DFEN.DE. Use the tables to find lower-cost options, better risk-adjusted returns, or a closer substitute for your current allocation.

Cheapest Alternatives to DFEN.DE

DFEN.DE charges 0.55% annually. There are 5 ETFs in the Aerospace & Defense category with lower expense ratios, going as low as 0.35%.

SymbolNameExpense RatioAUMInception
5J50.DE
iShares Global Aerospace & Defence UCITS ETF USD (...0.35%—Feb 2024DFEN.DE vs 5J50.DE
DFNC.DE
iShares Europe Defence UCITS ETF EUR Acc0.35%—May 2025DFEN.DE vs DFNC.DE
EUDF.DE
WisdomTree Europe Defence UCITS ETF - EUR Acc0.40%—Mar 2025DFEN.DE vs EUDF.DE
ED3F.DE
Global X Europe Focused Defence Tech UCITS ETF EUR...0.40%—May 2025DFEN.DE vs ED3F.DE
ASWC.DE
HANetf Future of Defence UCITS ETF Acc EUR0.49%—Jul 2023DFEN.DE vs ASWC.DE

Best Risk-Adjusted Alternatives to DFEN.DE

DFEN.DE has a PortfoliosLab risk / return rank of 11. There are 2 ETFs in the Aerospace & Defense category with higher risk-adjusted ranks, going as high as 36.

SymbolNameRisk / Return RankAUMInception
5J50.DE
iShares Global Aerospace & Defence UCITS ETF USD (...
36
—Feb 2024DFEN.DE vs 5J50.DE
ASWC.DE
HANetf Future of Defence UCITS ETF Acc EUR
17
—Jul 2023DFEN.DE vs ASWC.DE
DFNC.DE
iShares Europe Defence UCITS ETF EUR Acc
9
—May 2025DFEN.DE vs DFNC.DE
EUDF.DE
WisdomTree Europe Defence UCITS ETF - EUR Acc
9
—Mar 2025DFEN.DE vs EUDF.DE
ED3F.DE
Global X Europe Focused Defence Tech UCITS ETF EUR...
7
—May 2025DFEN.DE vs ED3F.DE

Top Performing DFEN.DE Alternatives (YTD)

DFEN.DE is at -5.88% YTD. There are 4 ETFs in the Aerospace & Defense category with higher YTD returns, going as high as 9.76%.

SymbolNameYTD ReturnAUMInception
ASWC.DE
HANetf Future of Defence UCITS ETF Acc EUR
9.76%
—Jul 2023DFEN.DE vs ASWC.DE
5J50.DE
iShares Global Aerospace & Defence UCITS ETF USD (...
8.99%
—Feb 2024DFEN.DE vs 5J50.DE
DFNC.DE
iShares Europe Defence UCITS ETF EUR Acc
-0.15%
—May 2025DFEN.DE vs DFNC.DE
EUDF.DE
WisdomTree Europe Defence UCITS ETF - EUR Acc
-0.27%
—Mar 2025DFEN.DE vs EUDF.DE
ED3F.DE
Global X Europe Focused Defence Tech UCITS ETF EUR...
-9.14%
—May 2025DFEN.DE vs ED3F.DE

Lowest Volatility Alternatives to DFEN.DE

DFEN.DE has 25.35% 1-year volatility. There is 1 ETF in the Aerospace & Defense category with lower 1-year volatility, going as low as 20.07%.

SymbolNameVolatility 1YAUMInception
5J50.DE
iShares Global Aerospace & Defence UCITS ETF USD (...20.07%—Feb 2024DFEN.DE vs 5J50.DE
EUDF.DE
WisdomTree Europe Defence UCITS ETF - EUR Acc28.79%—Mar 2025DFEN.DE vs EUDF.DE
ASWC.DE
HANetf Future of Defence UCITS ETF Acc EUR29.84%—Jul 2023DFEN.DE vs ASWC.DE
DFNC.DE
iShares Europe Defence UCITS ETF EUR Acc29.86%—May 2025DFEN.DE vs DFNC.DE
ED3F.DE
Global X Europe Focused Defence Tech UCITS ETF EUR...30.62%—May 2025DFEN.DE vs ED3F.DE

Lowest Drawdown Alternatives to DFEN.DE

DFEN.DE has a 1-year max drawdown of -23.28%. There are 4 ETFs in the Aerospace & Defense category with shallower 1-year drawdowns, going as shallow as -13.56%.

SymbolNameMax Drawdown 1YAUMInception
5J50.DE
iShares Global Aerospace & Defence UCITS ETF USD (...
-13.56%
—Feb 2024DFEN.DE vs 5J50.DE
EUDF.DE
WisdomTree Europe Defence UCITS ETF - EUR Acc
-19.51%
—Mar 2025DFEN.DE vs EUDF.DE
DFNC.DE
iShares Europe Defence UCITS ETF EUR Acc
-20.23%
—May 2025DFEN.DE vs DFNC.DE
ASWC.DE
HANetf Future of Defence UCITS ETF Acc EUR
-22.64%
—Jul 2023DFEN.DE vs ASWC.DE
ED3F.DE
Global X Europe Focused Defence Tech UCITS ETF EUR...
-28.06%
—May 2025DFEN.DE vs ED3F.DE

Other ETFs from VanEck

The 10 most viewed VanEck ETFs shown here include VVSM.DE, VDIV.DE, JEDI.DE and span 11 categories.

SymbolNameCategoryRisk / Return RankYTD ReturnAUMInception
VVSM.DE
VanEck Semiconductor UCITS ETFSemiconductors, Technology Equities
97
97.11%
—Dec 2020DFEN.DE vs VVSM.DE
VDIV.DE
VanEck Morningstar Developed Markets Dividend Lead...Global Equities, Dividend
94
10.63%
—May 2016DFEN.DE vs VDIV.DE
JEDI.DE
VanEck Space Innovators UCITS ETFIndustrials Equities
72
38.20%
—Jun 2022DFEN.DE vs JEDI.DE
NUKL.DE
VanEck Uranium and Nuclear Technologies UCITS ETF ...Uranium, Alternative Energy Equities
22
4.94%
—Feb 2023DFEN.DE vs NUKL.DE
G2X.DE
VanEck Gold Miners UCITS ETFGold, Precious Metals
33
-11.01%
—Mar 2015DFEN.DE vs G2X.DE
DAVV.DE
VanEck Crypto and Blockchain Innovators UCITS ETFTechnology Equities
20
26.16%
—Apr 2021DFEN.DE vs DAVV.DE
VVMX.DE
VanEck Rare Earth and Strategic Metals UCITS ETF ARare Earth & Strategic Metals
87
25.48%
—Sep 2021DFEN.DE vs VVMX.DE
ESP0.DE
VanEck Video Gaming and eSports UCITS ETFTechnology Equities
3
-15.49%
—Jun 2019DFEN.DE vs ESP0.DE
QUTM.DE
VanEck Quantum Computing UCITS ETF A USD AccTechnology Equities
43
23.86%
—May 2025DFEN.DE vs QUTM.DE
TRET.DE
VanEck Global Real Estate UCITS ETFREIT
43
10.95%
—Apr 2011DFEN.DE vs TRET.DE

Often Compared With DFEN.DE

Investors most often compare DFEN.DE with DFNS.L, DFND.AS, ITA. These 20 comparison targets span 12 categories, based on PortfoliosLab usage data.

SymbolNameCategoryRisk / Return RankYTD ReturnAUMInception
DFNS.L
VanEck Defense UCITS ETFAerospace & Defense
11
-6.07%
—Mar 2023DFEN.DE vs DFNS.L
DFND.AS
iShares Global Aerospace & Defence UCITS ETFIndustrials Equities
48
61.77%
—Feb 2024DFEN.DE vs DFND.AS
ITA
iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETFAerospace & Defense, Industrials Equities
44
10.72%
14.21BMay 2006DFEN.DE vs ITA
PPA
Invesco Aerospace & Defense ETFAerospace & Defense, Industrials Equities
41
9.73%
8.26BOct 2005DFEN.DE vs PPA
JEDG.L
VanEck Space Innovators UCITS ETFIndustrials Equities
74
35.90%
—Jun 2022DFEN.DE vs JEDG.L
VGT
Vanguard Information Technology ETFTechnology Equities
60
22.82%
170.10BMar 2004DFEN.DE vs VGT
XMMO
Invesco S&P MidCap Momentum ETFMomentum, Mid Cap Growth Equities
74
23.99%
8.18BMar 2005DFEN.DE vs XMMO
CNX1.L
iShares NASDAQ 100 UCITS ETF USD (Acc)Nasdaq-100
76
17.68%
21.20BJan 2010DFEN.DE vs CNX1.L
VUSA.L
Vanguard S&P 500 UCITS ETFS&P 500
82
9.53%
64.19BMay 2019DFEN.DE vs VUSA.L
AYEP.DE
iShares Asia Property Yield UCITS ETF USD AccREIT
16
-2.94%
—Dec 2018DFEN.DE vs AYEP.DE
SPYG
State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 Growth ETFS&P 500, Large Cap Growth Equities
45
8.55%
52.13BSep 2000DFEN.DE vs SPYG
ARMR.AX
Betashares Global Defence ETFAerospace & Defense
8
-8.99%
—Oct 2024DFEN.DE vs ARMR.AX
GBSP.L
WisdomTree Physical Gold - GBP Daily HedgedGold, Precious Metals
21
-7.32%
2.28BMar 2013DFEN.DE vs GBSP.L
DBXD.DE
Xtrackers DAX UCITS ETF 1CEurope Equities
14
1.61%
—Jan 2007DFEN.DE vs DBXD.DE
EQAC.MI
Invesco EQQQ NASDAQ-100 UCITS ETF AccNasdaq-100
76
19.55%
—Sep 2018DFEN.DE vs EQAC.MI
ETLX.DE
L&G Gold Mining UCITS ETFGold, Precious Metals
33
-11.01%
—Sep 2008DFEN.DE vs ETLX.DE
4MMR.DE
Global X Defence Tech UCITS ETF USD AccumulatingAerospace & Defense
11
-6.44%
——DFEN.DE vs 4MMR.DE
LCHM.DE
Lyxor STOXX Europe 600 Chemicals UCITS ETF AccIndustrials Equities
62
16.81%
—Aug 2006DFEN.DE vs LCHM.DE
EXV6.DE
iShares STOXX Europe 600 Basic Resources UCITS ETF...Industrials Equities
86
18.54%
—Jul 2002DFEN.DE vs EXV6.DE
VOO
Vanguard S&P 500 ETFS&P 500
63
8.09%
1.70TSep 2010DFEN.DE vs VOO

Compare DFEN.DE with Any Fund or Stock

Compare DFEN.DE with any ETF, mutual fund, or stock using PortfoliosLab's comparison tool.

 

Diversifiers

Pair DFEN.DE with funds that move differently

VanEck Defense UCITS ETF A alternatives help with substitution. Diversifiers are the next step when you want funds with lower historical correlation to DFEN.DE.

Explore DFEN.DE Diversifiers