How the iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF Has Performed, Year by Year

DGRO, the iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF, launched in June 2014 and has returned about 12.7% a year since, including reinvested dividends. That turned $10,000 into roughly $43,800 by early November 2026, and in 2025 it beat all three of the other most popular US dividend ETFs.

DGRO is younger than SCHD, VYM and VIG, and it is often overlooked next to them. Yet its record holds up well: it has never cut its annual dividend, it fell less than the S&P 500 in 2018 and 2022, and in late 2026 it was trading at an all-time high.

This guide tells DGRO’s story year by year. It covers how the fund was built, what happened in every calendar year since launch, how far it fell in each major decline and how long it took to recover, how its dividend grew, and how its record compares with the other major dividend funds.

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DGRO at a Glance

All return figures in this guide are total returns, meaning they include dividends reinvested, unless stated otherwise. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

DGRO Returns by Year

Over its 11 full calendar years, DGRO finished higher in eight and lower in three: 2015, 2018 and 2022. None of those losses was larger than 8%.

The Fund and the Index Behind It

DGRO tracks the Morningstar US Dividend Growth Index. To qualify, a company must have raised its dividend for at least five years without interruption, a shorter record than the 10 years VIG requires.

The index adds two safety screens. A company’s dividend must be less than 75% of its expected earnings, so the payout is covered with room to spare, and the highest-yielding 10% of eligible stocks are excluded. Real estate investment trusts are left out because their payouts generally do not qualify for lower dividend tax rates.

The most distinctive rule is how holdings are weighted. Instead of weighting companies by size, as most index funds do, DGRO weights them by the total dollars of dividends they pay, with caps to limit any single company.

That means the companies paying the most cash to shareholders carry the most weight. In October 2026, its largest holdings were Microsoft, Apple, ExxonMobil, AbbVie, Broadcom, JPMorgan Chase, Johnson & Johnson, Procter & Gamble, Philip Morris and Home Depot, together making up about 27% of the fund.

The index is rebuilt every December and rebalanced every quarter. The result is a broad fund of about 390 companies that sits between VIG’s focus on long dividend records and the higher-yield approach of SCHD and VYM.

The Launch: June 2014

DGRO launched on June 10, 2014, as part of BlackRock’s iShares Core range of low-cost funds. By then, dividend ETFs were well established: VIG and VYM had been running since 2006, and SCHD had launched in 2011.

iShares designed DGRO to combine two ideas: dividend growth and dividend sustainability. The five-year growth rule widened the pool of companies, while the payout ratio screen aimed to avoid companies stretching to pay more than they could afford.

From its first trading days in mid-June to the end of 2014, DGRO returned about 8.6%. Oil prices began to collapse in the second half of the year, falling from above $100 a barrel, but the broad bull market carried on.

2015: A Small Loss in a Flat Year

DGRO’s first full year brought a small loss of about 0.7%, against a gain of about 1.2% for the S&P 500. The oil crash deepened, hurting energy companies, and in August China’s surprise currency devaluation triggered a sharp global sell-off.

The broad market was held up by a small group of large technology and internet companies, several of which paid no dividends at the time. DGRO, built entirely around dividend payers, did not benefit.

DGRO paid about $0.65 per share in dividends in 2015, its first full year. That figure would more than double over the next decade.

2016: Ahead of the Market

2016 was DGRO’s first strong year, with a return of about 15.2% against the S&P 500’s 12.0%. After oil prices hit bottom in February, energy and industrial stocks recovered sharply.

The surprise result of the US presidential election in November sparked a rally in banks and value stocks on expectations of tax cuts and lighter regulation. Banks and other financial companies, which pay large dividends and carry real weight in DGRO, were among the biggest winners.

Its dividend rose only about 1.4% in 2016, the smallest increase in its history. By the end of the year, an investor’s $10,000 from launch had grown to about $12,400.

2017: Calm and Strong

2017 was one of the calmest years in market history, with steady gains and very few pullbacks. DGRO returned about 23.0%, ahead of the S&P 500’s 21.7%.

Strong global growth lifted company profits, and the corporate tax cuts passed in December 2017 lowered tax rates from 2018. That gave many of DGRO’s companies more room to raise their dividends.

DGRO’s dividend rose about 7.6%, to around $0.71 per share. By the end of 2017, the original $10,000 had grown to about $15,300.

2018: Two Sell-Offs, a Smaller Loss

2018 tested markets twice. A sudden spike in volatility hit in February, and a larger decline followed in the fourth quarter, driven by rising interest rates, trade tensions with China and fears of a slowing economy.

From its September peak to Christmas Eve, DGRO’s price fell about 17.6%. It finished the year down about 2.4%, a smaller loss than the S&P 500’s 4.6%.

The recovery came quickly. DGRO regained its September 2018 peak by late April 2019, about four months after the low. Its dividend jumped about 14.9% for the year, helped by the lower corporate tax rates.

2019: DGRO’s Best Year

When the Federal Reserve paused its rate rises in early 2019 and then cut rates three times, markets rebounded strongly. DGRO returned about 29.9%, its best calendar year, close to the S&P 500’s 31.2%.

Falling interest rates made dividend-paying companies more attractive. DGRO’s technology, healthcare and consumer holdings all performed well.

Its dividend rose another 14.8%, to around $0.93 per share. By the end of 2019, the original $10,000 had nearly doubled to about $19,400.

2020: The COVID Crash

In early 2020, the spread of COVID-19 triggered the fastest market crash in history. From February 12 to March 23, DGRO fell about 35.1%, its deepest decline to date.

The recovery was uneven. Technology companies thrived as people worked, shopped and streamed from home, while banks, energy companies and industrial firms, all large dividend payers, struggled through the recession. DGRO regained its February peak in mid-November 2020, about eight months after the low.

DGRO returned about 9.5% for 2020, behind the S&P 500’s 18.3% but well ahead of high-yield funds such as VYM. Its dividend still rose about 10.6%, even as many companies cut or suspended their payouts, helped by a payout ratio screen that steers the fund away from the most stretched payers.

2021: Reopening Rally

2021 was a strong year for almost everything, and DGRO returned about 26.6%, close to the S&P 500’s 28.7%. Economies reopened, profits surged and value stocks had a strong run.

Financial, energy and industrial companies, the areas that had struggled in 2020, led the recovery. DGRO’s dividend rose about 4.1%, to around $1.07 per share.

By the end of 2021, an investor’s $10,000 from launch had grown to about $26,900. However, inflation was rising fast, setting up a difficult year for stocks.

2022: Holding Up in a Bear Market

As inflation hit 40-year highs in 2022, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates at the fastest pace in decades. The S&P 500 fell into a full bear market and lost about 18.2% for the year.

DGRO lost about 7.9%, less than half the market’s decline. Its price fell about 20.7% from early January to its low on September 30, but its profitable, dividend-paying companies held up far better than the high-valued growth stocks that led the market down.

It was DGRO’s worst calendar year, yet its dividend rose about 9.0% to around $1.17 per share. DGRO’s price did not regain its January 2022 peak until February 2024, more than two years after the decline began.

2023: Behind the AI Rally

2023 was dominated by artificial intelligence. A small group of giant technology companies drove the S&P 500 up about 26.2%.

DGRO returned about 10.5%, well behind the market. It still finished ahead of SCHD’s 4.5% and VYM’s 6.6%, because its holdings included Microsoft and Apple, though behind VIG’s 14.5%.

DGRO’s dividend rose about 12.7% to around $1.32 per share, one of its strongest increases. By the end of 2023, the original $10,000 had grown to about $27,300.

2024: Another Gap to the Market

DGRO returned about 16.6% in 2024, a solid year that still trailed the S&P 500’s 24.9%. The market’s gains remained concentrated in a handful of technology companies, several of which pay small dividends or none.

Because DGRO weights companies by the dividends they pay rather than by their size, even the technology giants it owns carry much less weight than in the S&P 500. That limited its gains in a market led by those companies.

Its dividend rose about 5.2% to around $1.39 per share. By the end of 2024, an investor’s $10,000 from launch had grown to about $31,900.

2025: The Tariff Shock and the Top of the Table

In early 2025, sweeping US tariff announcements triggered a sharp market sell-off in February and April. DGRO’s fall was milder than in 2020 or 2022, and it recovered within a few months as tariff fears eased.

DGRO returned about 15.7% for the year, close to the S&P 500’s 17.7%. It finished ahead of VYM’s 15.4%, VIG’s 14.2% and SCHD’s 4.3%, making it the strongest of the four major US dividend ETFs in 2025.

Its dividend rose about 4.8%, to around $1.45 per share. That made 10 straight years of increases.

2026: An All-Time High

At the start of March 2026, war between the United States and Iran sent oil prices above $100 a barrel. With ExxonMobil among its three largest holdings and more weight in healthcare and consumer staples than the S&P 500, DGRO was well placed for the market that followed.

By early November, DGRO was up about 18.7% for 2026, against about 11.2% for the S&P 500. On November 2, 2026, it closed at an all-time high.

That put DGRO ahead of VIG’s 14.3% and VYM’s 16.2% for the year, though behind SCHD’s 34.1%. As of early November, the original $10,000 from launch was worth about $43,800.

Every Major Fall at a Glance

These figures are measured on share price alone. Including reinvested dividends, the declines were slightly smaller and the recoveries came sooner. In every case so far, DGRO eventually recovered and went on to new highs.

DGRO Against the Other Major Dividend ETFs, Year by Year

Most performance pages show one fund at a time. The table below puts the four most popular US dividend ETFs side by side for every full year since DGRO launched, so the differences between them are easy to see.

No single fund led every year. DGRO topped the table in 2017, 2019 and 2025, and it is the only one of the four that never finished last in a full calendar year.

That middle-of-the-pack consistency reflects its design. DGRO holds more technology than SCHD or VYM, but less than VIG, and more high-dividend companies than VIG, but fewer than SCHD or VYM.

FRC’s year-by-year histories of VIG, SCHD and VYM tell each of those funds’ stories in full.

How DGRO Compared With the Market Over Time

From the start of 2015 to early November 2026, DGRO returned about 12.5% a year and the S&P 500, measured by SPY, about 13.4% a year. Over that period, $10,000 in DGRO grew to about $40,300, against about $44,400 in SPY.

Over the 10 years to late October 2026, DGRO returned about 14.1% a year, against about 15.5% for the S&P 500. Over five years, it returned about 11.3% a year against about 11.8%.

That answers a common question: how does DGRO compare with an S&P 500 fund such as VOO? VOO has delivered higher returns over most periods, while DGRO has offered a higher yield, smaller falls in 2018 and 2022, and a dividend that has risen every year. FRC’s VOO performance history and SPY performance history tell the S&P 500 side of the story.

The Dividend Story

DGRO’s dividend has grown from about $0.65 per share in 2015 to about $1.45 in 2025, more than doubling. That works out to average growth of about 8.4% a year.

The annual payout has never fallen. It rose every year from 2016 to 2025, with increases ranging from about 1.4% in 2016 to about 14.9% in 2018, and it kept growing through the 2020 recession.

DGRO pays quarterly, and its yield has typically been around 2%, higher than the S&P 500 but lower than SCHD or VYM. That is the result of its design, which excludes the highest yielders and favors companies whose payouts are well covered by earnings.

For long-term investors, that steady growth adds up. Someone who bought in 2015 was earning more than twice as much income per share by 2025, an example of compound interest at work.

What the Declines Taught DGRO Investors

The first lesson is that a dividend growth fund is still a stock fund. DGRO fell about 35% in early 2020, almost as much as the broad market, and its focus on dividends did not prevent that loss.

The second is that sustainable payouts matter more than high ones. DGRO’s payout ratio screen kept it away from companies paying more than they could afford, and its dividend kept rising in 2020 while many higher-yield funds saw income fall.

The third is that its weighting by dividend dollars shapes its results. It held up well in 2022, when the market’s most expensive companies fell hardest, but lagged in 2023 and 2024, when those same companies led. FRC’s guide to growth stocks vs value stocks explains why different styles take turns leading.

Costs and Taxes Over DGRO’s History

DGRO’s expense ratio is 0.08%, or $8 a year for every $10,000 invested. That is low for a dividend fund, though slightly higher than the 0.04% now charged by VIG and VYM and the 0.06% charged by SCHD.

Like most index ETFs, DGRO has rarely distributed capital gains. Because it excludes REITs, most of its dividends have been qualified dividends, taxed at the lower long-term capital gains rates.

That makes DGRO reasonably efficient in a taxable account. FRC’s guides to qualified vs non-qualified dividends and how to choose tax-efficient ETFs explain how dividend income is taxed.

What DGRO’s History Does Not Tell You

DGRO’s 12-year record is shorter than its rivals’. It has never been tested by a crisis on the scale of 2008, when many companies cut their dividends, so its behavior in a deep financial crisis is unknown.

Its holdings also change each year at the December rebuild. Companies that stop raising their dividends, or whose payout ratios rise too high, leave the index, so the DGRO of 2026 is a different portfolio from the DGRO of 2015.

Its record also covers a specific period, including a decade of low interest rates for much of its life, a historic run for technology stocks and an oil shock in 2026. Future returns may look very different.

Is Your Money Safe in DGRO?

DGRO is a regulated investment company overseen by the SEC, with its holdings kept by an independent custodian and separate from BlackRock’s own assets. That structure protects the fund’s assets even if the fund manager runs into trouble.

When you hold DGRO at a SIPC member brokerage, your account is protected up to $500,000, including $250,000 in cash, if the brokerage fails and assets are missing. FRC’s guide to is my money safe in a brokerage account? explains how that protection works.

This protection does not cover market losses, such as DGRO’s fall of about 35% in 2020. Its safeguards protect the safekeeping of your investment, not its value.

Keep Learning

DGRO’s first 12 years show that a dividend growth fund can hold up well in bear markets, keep raising its income every year and still trail the market in strong technology-led rallies. The investors who did best were usually those who understood what the fund owned and held it through every cycle.

The FRC dictionary is more than a dictionary. It is a library of explainer videos, written explanations and on-page quizzes, so you can open any term, such as ex-dividend or diversification, and go deeper whenever something is unclear.

FRC’s programs and memberships are open to everyone. FRC’s Investing for Beginners guide and its guide to dollar-cost averaging vs lump sum are natural next steps.

Your Next Step

Since June 2014, DGRO has returned about 12.7% a year, turned $10,000 into about $43,800 and more than doubled its annual dividend. It fell less than the market in 2018 and 2022, led the major dividend funds in 2025 and reached an all-time high in November 2026.

Use that history to set realistic expectations. A dividend growth fund can still fall sharply and trail the market for years, so choose it for what it owns and hold it with a long-term view.