VYMI vs IDV vs VIGI: 9 Years of Dividend Income Growth (2017–2025)

Introduction

Does a higher starting dividend yield provide a lasting income advantage, or can faster dividend growth eventually close the gap? This interactive DividendXray visualization compares three international dividend ETFs—VYMI, IDV, and VIGI—across nine calendar years, from 2017 through 2025. By tracking annual distributions and yield on cost, the chart reveals how different starting yields and dividend growth rates shaped income from an initial investment.

Key insights

• IDV Maintained the Highest Yield on Cost

  IDV began with a 5.18% yield on cost and finished 2025 at 6.59%, maintaining the highest income relative to its original purchase price throughout the comparison. Despite having the slowest annualized dividend growth rate at 3.07%, IDV's higher starting yield preserved its income advantage over both VYMI and VIGI during the nine-year period.

• VYMI Narrowed the Gap Through Faster Dividend Growth

  VYMI increased its yield on cost from 3.79% in 2017 to 5.85% in 2025, supported by annualized dividend growth of 5.57%. Its annual distributions declined sharply in 2020 before recovering in 2021, illustrating that income growth was not consistent every year. Although VYMI achieved 54.31% cumulative dividend growth, it did not overtake IDV's yield on cost by the end of 2025.

• VIGI Delivered the Fastest Growth but the Lowest Income

  VIGI recorded the highest annualized dividend growth rate at 6.74%, with cumulative dividend growth of 68.56%. However, its lower starting yield on cost of 2.20% meant that even this faster growth only brought its yield on cost to 3.71% by 2025. VIGI's 2021 dividend figure excludes $5.1817 per share in capital gains distributions, separating that extraordinary distribution from the income growth comparison.

• Dividend Income Growth Was Uneven Across All Three ETFs

  None of the three ETFs delivered uninterrupted annual dividend increases. VYMI experienced a notable decline in 2020, IDV recorded lower annual distributions in 2023 and 2024, and VIGI experienced declines in multiple years before reaching its highest annual distribution in 2025. These fluctuations highlight the difference between a positive long-term dividend growth rate and consistent year-by-year income increases.

• Starting Yield and Growth Rate Both Shaped the Outcome

  The ETFs finished 2025 in the same yield-on-cost ranking they held in 2017: IDV first, VYMI second, and VIGI third. While VIGI delivered the fastest percentage growth and VYMI narrowed its gap with IDV, neither overcame the initial income advantage of the ETF ahead of it. The comparison demonstrates that faster dividend growth does not necessarily translate into higher income over a fixed investment horizon.

Methodology

The visualization compares annual distributions per share for VYMI, IDV, and VIGI from 2017 through 2025. Yield on cost (YOC) is calculated by dividing each year's annual distribution per share by the ETF's original purchase price, then multiplying by 100. The starting purchase prices use the December 30, 2016 closing prices: $56.63 for VYMI, $29.56 for IDV, and $52.79 for VIGI. These original prices remain fixed throughout the comparison. Consequently, ending yield on cost represents annual income relative to the original investment, not the ETF's current market dividend yield. Dividend CAGR measures the annualized change in distributions between 2017 and 2025, while cumulative dividend growth measures the total percentage change over that period. The analysis excludes dividend reinvestment and share price appreciation and therefore does not represent total investment return. VIGI's 2021 annual distribution excludes $5.1817 per share in capital gains distributions. Distribution classifications have not been fully audited, so the historical figures should be interpreted with that limitation in mind. Historical dividend growth does not guarantee future income increases.

Related links

• Blog article
• YouTube video