10 Best-Performing ETFs of 2025

No matter what is going wrong on Wall Street, you can almost always find an opportunity that’s doing well. And right now, while U.S. investors may be biting their fingernails over the performance of the S&P 500, investors overseas are popping bottles of champagne as they watch the UK’s FTSE 100 index, Germany’s DAX or China’s Hang Seng.

This isn’t to say that you should give up on domestic stocks, and short-term trends can and do reverse. Most investment research shows that a long-term approach is the best way for regular folks to save for retirement, and while blue-chip stocks may be having a rough start to 2025, that hardly means favorites like Apple Inc. (ticker: AAPL) are at risk of losing their leadership status.

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Still, it’s good to know the lay of the land and keep track of who’s winning and who’s losing. And in the first quarter, these top funds rank among the best-performing ETFs of 2025. The only caveat is that this list excludes “leveraged” funds, and every pick has to have at least $150 million in assets to ensure it has the scale to stick around.

With that said, here are the 10 best-performing ETFs of 2025 so far:

iShares MSCI Poland ETF (EPOL)

Assets: $240 million Expenses: 0.60% YTD return: 29%

Poland has been a consistent outperformer lately when compared with the U.S., and even compared with its peers in the European Union. The region’s modest but resilient economy made Poland the only member of the EU to avoid a formal recession through the 2007-2008 financial crisis, and the country remains a consistent contributor to eurozone growth thanks to its strong industrial sector. The nation is predicting a 3% gross domestic product expansion in 2025 even as the rest of the world struggles to find growth, and EPOL has seen a significant tailwind as a result. Top companies in this ETF include financial institution PKO Bank Polski SA and energy company Orlen SA.

United States 12 Month Natural Gas Fund (UNL)

Assets: $490 million Expenses: 1.01% YTD return: 27%

Thanks to a fossil fuel-friendly White House boosting demand and tariffs creating uncertainty around supply from Canada, natural gas prices are having quite a run in 2025. Pricing at the critical Henry Hub for natural gas have seen their highest year-on-year increase since 2016, and as a result this gas-linked fund has also seen a significant increase.

UNL is designed to track the movement of natural gas via derivatives like futures and swaps with various contracts that expire over the next 12 months, giving a long-term link to pricing trends. Keep this in mind, as UNL is not to be confused with the short-term approach of United States Natural Gas Fund LP (UNG), which is focused on contracts expiring in the next month or so and has a decidedly near-term outlook and is “only” up 20% thus far this year as a result.

iPath Series B S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures (VXX)

Assets: $550 million Expenses: 0.89% YTD return: 24%

The Chicago Board Options Exchange’s CBOE Volatility Index, also known as the VIX, is commonly referred to as the “fear index” because it’s a measure of uncertainty among investors tied to futures markets. And considering the high degree of uncertainty right now regarding tariffs, geopolitics and the general growth outlook of the economy … well, there’s a reasonable amount of fear in the air. As a result, VXX — an ETF that is tied to short-term moves in the VIX — has seen a significant year-to-date increase.

One word of warning, however, is that the structure of VXX makes it a risky and potentially costly long-term holding; it is designed expressly as a short-term hedge against market mayhem. The same holds true for a similarly structured ETF, the ProShares VIX Short-Term Futures ETF (VIXY), which has also outperformed thanks to this focus on volatility.

Invesco China Technology ETF (CQQQ)

Assets: $1 billion Expenses: 0.65% YTD return: 24%

While the U.S. stock market has struggled, other regions including China have seen outperformance in 2025. In particular, China’s tech sector has been doing quite well — and this technology-focused ETF is up nicely thanks to this trend. Holdings include familiar leaders in the nation like Tencent Holdings Ltd. (OTC: TCEHY) along with e-commerce leaders Meituan (OTC: MPNGY) and PDD Holdings Inc. (PDD). For better or for worse, the “America first” approach in the U.S. has caused China to focus inward and the region has been seen as more resilient in the current era of trade wars — and its tech sector in particular has shined as a bright spot of the nation’s economy. Another similar fund of note is the KraneShares CSI China Internet ETF (KWEB), which has performed almost as well as CQQQ since Jan. 1.

Global X Defense Tech ETF (SHLD)

Assets: $1 billion Expenses: 0.50% YTD return: 24%

In an era of geopolitical unrest and increasing enmity between one-time allies, it’s no surprise that defense spending is going strong. Admittedly, part of SHLD’s big run has been the fact that its top holding is Big Data and artificial intelligence leader Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR), which enjoys deep relationships with the U.S. intelligence community and Department of Defense in projects that are designed to identify threats before they happen. But other holdings including Germany’s Rheinmetall AG OTC: RNMBY), which is helping the EU build up its protections against Russia, or aerospace specialist RTX Corp. (RTX), have also done quite well, leading to strong returns in this top-performing ETF of 2025.

[Read: 6 of the Best AI ETFs to Buy for 2025]

VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX)

Assets: $15 billion Expenses: 0.51% YTD return: 23%

Commodity-backed investments tend to do well in times of inflation and uncertainty, as they are tied to real physical assets. And while many investors see gold as a store of value in times of trouble, physical bullion has “only” gained about 12% since Jan. 1 while several mining stocks have done much better thanks to operational performance and investor support. GDX is among the largest gold mining ETFs on the planet, with top holdings including Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. (AEM), Newmont Corp. (NEM) and Barrick Gold Corp. (GOLD). The similar iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF (RING) has also posted strong performance in 2025, too, thanks to the favorable conditions in this sector.

iShares MSCI Europe Financials ETF (EUFN)

Assets: $2.7 billion Expenses: 0.48% YTD return: 21%

European banks are having their best start to the year since 2021, when a post-pandemic bounce rejuvenated the EU economy — and outside of that run, the only better performance period dates way back to the dot-com days of 1999. Admittedly, the eurozone economic region has had plenty of troubles including the official departure of the UK from the European Union in 2020, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and more recently the chilling of relations thanks to a second Trump administration. But industry and policymakers have been quite shrewd about bolstering the strength of their economic union to sidestep these threats and future-proof the EU. As a result, European financials that make up EUFN, including Switzerland’s UBS Group AG (UBS) and Spain’s Banco Santander SA (SAN), have helped this fund rank as one of the best-performing ETFs of 2025.

First Trust STOXX European Select Dividend Index Fund (FDD)

Assets: $180 million Expenses: 0.59% YTD return: 20%

Banks make up a large part of this First Trust fund that is focused on European dividend stocks, but other low-risk investments also play a role in driving the tremendous yield of 6.7% this ETF. Top holdings at present include financials like the UK’s NatWest Group PLC (NWG) and Amsterdam’s ING Groep NV (ING) but also Polish energy leader Orlen SA and megaminer Rio Tinto PLC (RIO). With a yield that is roughly five times that of the S&P 500, the income potential of this fund, plus is tremendous performance since Jan. 1, make it a top ETF to buy right now.

iShares MSCI Spain ETF (EWP)

Assets: $830 million Expenses: 0.50% YTD return: 19%

Returning to the theme of European banks, EWP is a geographically focused fund that only holds companies headquartered in Spain. Roughly 40% of the portfolio is in financials, however, making it a good play on regional banking leaders like Banco Santander as well as other local blue chips such as leading utility Iberdrola. There’s always risk by taking a focused approach on a smaller geographic region, but Spain ranks among the 15 largest national economies with a GDP output that is close to that of either Mexico or Australia. If you want exposure to leading European companies, this ETF has something to offer.

iShares MSCI Germany ETF (EWG)

Assets: $1.3 billion Expenses: 0.50% YTD return: 19%

Of course, the largest EU economy is Germany, whose national GDP is third worldwide behind only China and the U.S. If you want to play a part of Europe to capitalize on favorable regional trends, then, the iShares EWG may continue to be one of the best-performing ETFs of 2025. Top holdings at present include software leader SAP SE (SAP) and industrial giant Siemens AG (OTC: SIEGY), among others. The smaller Global X DAX Germany ETF (DAX) is also an option, charging only 0.20% in expenses, though it only has about $150 million in assets under management at present.

[SEE: 7 Top European Stocks to Buy Now for Growth.]

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10 Best-Performing ETFs of 2025 originally appeared on usnews.com

Update 03/13/25: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.