ASX investors can't seem to get enough of the Vanguard MSCI Index International Shares ETF (ASX: VGS).

As it currently stands, the VGS exchange-traded fund (ETF) currently has close to $11 billion in assets under management, and has no doubt helped the Australian ETF sector to hit that $250 billion milestone we discussed yesterday.

Investors seem to love the international diversification that VGS offers ASX investors, with the current portfolio containing approximately 1,400 underlying shares. These shares hail from more than 20 different advanced economies around the world.

Many of the Vanguard International Shares ETF's top holdings are household names. These include Apple, NVIDIA, and Microsoft, as well as Amazon, Tesla, Alphabet, and Meta Platforms.

It's these top shares that have arguably helped VGS units to return almost 29% over the 12 months to 31 January 2025.

But how much does this popular ASX ETF pay out in dividends? That's what we'll be diving into today.

ASX VGS: How much can investors expect in dividends?

So, like any ASX ETF, VGS can only pay out in dividend distributions what it receives from its own holdings and what it banks from its periodic rebalances. Many of its holdings, including Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta Platforms, pay dividends themselves. So, we should expect to see at least some dividend income.

And indeed, we can. Over the past 12 months, VGS has paid out four dividend distributions, totaling $4.19 per share.

If we plug that into the current VGS unit price ($142.85 at the time of writing), we get a trailing dividend distribution yield of 2.93%. As VGS is an internationally focused fund, these dividends typically do not come with any franking credits attached.

So, we can say that VGS' current ASX dividend yield is 2.93%. However, like with any dividend investment, investors cannot expect to receive that if they buy VGS units today.

This ETF's payouts usually fluctuate quite substantially from year to year. To illustrate, VGS paid out $2.57 in annual dividend distributions in 2023, close to half of what investors enjoyed last year.

2022's total came in at just $1.61, while 2021 saw investors enjoy $1.90 in annual dividend distributions.

Given the volatility evident in VGS' dividend distributions, ASX investors arguably can't assume much consistency when it comes to income from this ETF. However, perhaps many won't mind too much, given that 12-month return of nearly 29% we discussed earlier.