The best ETFs for German Dividend Stocks

How do I invest in German dividend stocks?

An investment in high-dividend-yielding stocks is a solid investment. Dividends are usually paid by profitable and established companies. For investors seeking regular income in times of low interest rates, dividend stocks can provide attractive yields.

There are two main indices available to invest with ETFs in German high-dividend equities. This Investment Guide for German dividend stocks will help you navigate between the peculiarities of the DivDAX® index and the DAXplus® Maximum Dividend index as well as the ETFs that track them. It will allow you to find the most suitable ETFs for you by ranking them according to your preferences.

0.25% p.a. - 0.31% p.a.
annual total expense ratio (TER) of German dividend ETFs
on German dividend stocks, which are tracked by ETFs
on German dividend stocks
 
The best indices for German dividend ETFs

The best German dividend ETF by 1-year fund return as of 29.02.24

All German dividend ETFs ranked by fund return

 

The largest German dividend ETF by fund size in EUR

All German dividend ETFs ranked by fund size

 

The cheapest German dividend ETF by total expense ratio

All German dividend ETFs ranked by total expense ratio

 
 

Indices on German Dividend Stocks compared

DivDax® vs. DAXplus Maximum Dividend®

DivDax® DAXplus® Maximum Dividend
Number of ETFs 3 ETFs 1 ETF
Number of constituents 15 25
Investment universe DAX®: 40 German stocks HDAX®: appr. 100 German stocks. All stocks included in DAX®, MDAX® and TecDAX®
Index rebalancing Annually
(September)
Semi-annually
(May and November)
Selection criteria Historical dividend yield,
last dividend paid in relation to the stock price on the distribution date
Expected dividend yield,
companies that pay a dividend in the next 6 months and have the highest expected dividend yield, based on the closing price at the reporting date
Index weighting Market cap (free float)
(quarterly)
Expected dividend yield
(semi-annually)
Maximum weight per constituent 10% 10%

Source: justETF Research; as of 28/02/22

 

DivDax® index: The 15 best dividend stocks in the DAX® index

The DivDax® index contains the 15 companies with the highest dividend yield of all 40 DAX® companies. Stock selection is based on the historical dividend yield, the last dividend paid in relation to the stock price on the distribution date. The index is weighted by free-float market capitalisation.

 

Methodology of the DivDAX® Factsheet Methodology

  • 15 DAX® stocks with the highest dividend yield
  • Index rebalancing takes place annually in September
  • Stock selection is based on historical dividend yield
  • Index weighted by free-float market capitalisation
  • Maximum weight per constituent is 10%
 

DAXplus® Maximum Dividend index: The 25 best dividend stocks in the HDAX® index

The DAXplus® Maximum Dividend index focuses on stocks' expected dividends. This index only includes companies that will pay a dividend in the next six months. Theoretically, it is possible that on the rebalancing date all companies in the index are replaced.

The selection universe of the DAXplus® Maximum Dividend index consists of all companies included in DAX®, MDAX® and TecDAX®. These three benchmark indices are summarised in the HDAX® index. In the DAXplus® Maximum Dividend index, the selected stocks are weighted according to their expected dividend yield, which is calculated on the basis of the closing price of the shares at the time of selection.

 

Methodology of the DAXplus® Maximum Dividend Factsheet Methodology

  • 25 stocks with the highest dividend yield from the HDAX® index
  • Prerequisite: ranked among the largest 75 percent and the most liquid 65 percent of all companies in the HDAX®
  • The HDAX® includes all companies in the DAX®, MDAX® and TecDAX®
  • Index rebalancing takes place semi-annually in May and November
  • Stock selection is based on companies that pay a dividend in the next 6 months and have the highest expected dividend yield, as calculated on the basis of the closing price on the reporting date
  • Index weighted according to expected dividend yield
  • Maximum weight per constituent is 10%
 

German Dividend ETFs in comparison

The most important factors at a glance

When choosing a German dividend ETF one should consider several other factors in addition to the methodology of the underlying index and performance of an ETF. For better comparison, you will find a list of all German dividend ETFs with details on size, cost, age, income, domicile and replication method ranked by fund size.

Compare all German dividend ETFs in detail
Compare all German dividend ETFs in a chart

Provider
ISIN
  Fund size
in m EUR
TER
in %
Use of profits Fund domicile Replication method
iShares DivDAX UCITS ETF (DE)DE0002635273 549 0.31% p.a. Distributing Germany Full replication
Deka DAXplus Maximum Dividend UCITS ETFDE000ETFL235 285 0.30% p.a. Distributing Germany Full replication
Amundi DIVDAX UCITS ETF DistLU2611731741 77 0.25% p.a. Distributing Luxembourg Full replication
Amundi DivDAX II UCITS ETF DistDE000ETF9033 63 0.25% p.a. Distributing Germany Full replication

Source: justETF.com; As of 18.03.24

 

Return comparison of all German dividend ETFs

The table shows the returns of all German dividend ETFs in comparison. All return figures are including dividends as of month end. Besides the return the reference date on which you conduct the comparison is important. In order to find the best ETFs, you can also perform a chart comparison.

ETF   1 month
in %
3 months
in %
6 months
in %
1 year
in %
3 years
in %
Deka DAXplus Maximum Dividend UCITS ETF 2.63% 5.56% 7.53% 14.23% 10.27%
Amundi DivDAX II UCITS ETF Dist 3.74% 9.21% 4.84% 7.67% 20.09%
Amundi DIVDAX UCITS ETF Dist 3.72% 9.19% 4.80% 7.64% 20.07%
iShares DivDAX UCITS ETF (DE) 3.78% 9.23% 4.83% 7.55% 19.72%
ETF   2024
in %
2023
in %
2022
in %
2021
in %
2020
in %
iShares DivDAX UCITS ETF (DE) 3.19% 17.08% -11.17% 13.68% 2.13%
Amundi DivDAX II UCITS ETF Dist 3.18% 17.11% -10.92% 13.56% 1.68%
Amundi DIVDAX UCITS ETF Dist 3.16% 17.10% -10.99% 13.81% 1.82%
Deka DAXplus Maximum Dividend UCITS ETF 2.12% 26.53% -20.03% 9.01% -2.96%

Source: justETF.com; As of 29.02.24; Calculations in EUR including dividends