Forget SCHD: $100,000 in DGRO Became $168,700 Over Five Years. SCHD Reached $155,870.
SCHD dominates dividend investing conversations, but a BlackRock fund has been compounding investor money at a faster pace across every long window measured. The tax and timing questions around switching are more complicated than the return gap suggests.
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The Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHD) is a default holding for income investors who want dividend-paying U.S. stocks in one simple fund. People own SCHD for good reasons: it pays quarterly and spreads money across established dividend payers. Over five years, though, a less-discussed BlackRock fund, the iShares Core Dividend Growth ETF (NYSEARCA:DGRO), did more with the same money. DGRO turned a $100,000 position opened on October 8, 2021 into $168,700 by the close on Friday, October 9, 2026, a 68.7% return. SCHD grew that same $100,000 to $155,870, or 55.87%. Both windows start on the same date, so the 12.83 percentage-point gap is a true like-for-like comparison.
What These Five-Year Returns Assume About Your Dividends
Both figures assume every distribution went straight back into the fund. If you took the dividends as cash and spent them, your results were different from these. That matters here, because many SCHD holders own it to collect and use the income. If that describes you, read the five-year numbers as a measure of each fund’s total return potential, but do not use them to forecast your own account balance, since your actual cash distributions reduce reinvested growth.
SCHD Has Beaten DGRO Decisively Over the Past Year
The long-run record favors DGRO. The recent record favors SCHD by a wide margin. In the year ending October 9, 2026, SCHD returned 26.64% against 15.77% for DGRO. That puts the Schwab fund ahead by 10.87 points.
Year to date through the same Friday close, SCHD is up 23.41% versus 12.9% for DGRO, a 10.51-point gap. SCHD buyers from a year ago have done much better than those who bought DGRO at the same time. That outperformance is significant, but nothing in the available data tells us whether it will last or fade. This case for DGRO rests on five- and ten-year results rather than the last 12 months, and you should judge it on that basis.
Ten Years of Data Point the Same Way as Five
Over ten years, DGRO’s lead grows. DGRO returned 258.3% over the decade, compared with 233.8% for SCHD. The gap works out to 24.5 percentage points.
The pattern holds across both long windows, with DGRO ahead over five years and over ten. SCHD’s recent lead is the newer development. For an investor with decades ahead, two long-term windows that point the same way carry more weight than one strong year. Even so, past results guarantee nothing.
Both Funds Slipped Over the Past Month
Both funds fell over the latest month: SCHD lost 2.3% while DGRO lost only 0.47%. The one-month move shows how quickly these two funds can move apart.
Why These Gaps Call for Caution Before You Act
Both are U.S. stock funds built around dividends, but they choose their holdings differently. Those differences may contribute to the gaps in both directions. The same selection choices that helped DGRO over five and ten years appear to have held it back over the past year. Switching changes what you own, so you trade one set of strengths and weaknesses for another.
Taxes also change the math. Selling SCHD in a taxable brokerage account can trigger capital gains, and a long-time holder may be sitting on a large profit. Any tax you pay now reduces the amount left to grow in DGRO. Inside an IRA or 401(k), switching costs nothing in immediate taxes.
In a taxable account, some investors may send new contributions and reinvested dividends to a different fund while continuing to hold existing shares. That shifts the mix over time without realizing gains. For reference, SCHD closed at $33.02 and DGRO at $77.32 as of last Friday. A share price by itself says nothing about value.
Your Time Horizon Decides This Swap
DGRO’s longer record is most relevant to investors with ten or more years ahead who don’t need to spend the income, since it led by 12.83 points over five years and 24.5 points over ten. SCHD’s recent lead is most relevant to investors who judge results over a year or two, and a switch carries real costs for anyone who would owe significant capital gains tax. Sending new contributions is one way some investors shift the mix gradually. If SCHD’s recent outperformance lasts long enough to close the five-year gap, the case for DGRO weakens.
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Ryne Mauck is an investment writer covering exchange-traded funds, retirement planning, and portfolio strategy. Through his work at 24/7 Wall St. and other investment platforms, including Seeking Alpha, he aims to provide clear, research-driven insights that help investors make more informed decisions while maintaining a long-term approach to investing.
Ryne holds a B.Sc. in Finance and an M.A. in Political Science. He is a formerly registered Municipal Advisor Representative and has passed the Series 50, Series 63, and Series 65 exams. His articles are not intended to be, nor should they be interpreted as, financial advice.
