Which returned more over the last year, CTA or IAU?

In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, CTA returned +17.0% and IAU returned +19.2%, so IAU returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.

Which is cheaper, CTA or IAU?

CTA charges 0.75% a year and IAU charges 0.25%, so IAU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Sep 12, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.

ETFIQetfiq.com · independent ETF data

CTA vs IAU: how they differ

CTA is an equity index fund and IAU a commodity fund, and over the year IAU returned more, +19.2% against +17.0%.

Simplify Managed Futures Strategy ETF and iShares Gold Trust.

CTA and IAU on the fields both publish, as of Sep 12, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
	CTA Simplify Managed Futures Strategy ETF	IAU iShares Gold Trust
Where it sits	Core index fund	Core index fund
Issuer	Simplify	iShares
What it is	Simplify Managed Futures Strategy	Gold
Total return, 1 year	+17.0%	+19.2%
S&P 500 over the same days	+17.5%	+17.5%
Gap to the S&P 500	−0.5 pts	+1.7 pts
Expense ratio	0.75%	0.25%
Holdings	10	not filed

CTA in plain words

CTA is an index equity fund tracking the Simplify Managed Futures Strategy. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +17.0% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.75% a year. By its holdings filed for Jun 30, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 10 positions, with the top ten at 100.0%. It sat 5.3% below its high of May 4, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

IAU in plain words

IAU is a commodity fund tracking the Gold. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +19.2% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.25% a year. It sat 19.6% below its high of Jan 29, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, CTA or IAU?: In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, CTA returned +17.0% and IAU returned +19.2%, so IAU returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Which is cheaper, CTA or IAU?: CTA charges 0.75% a year and IAU charges 0.25%, so IAU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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Where these figures came from

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.

CTA against IAU, ETFIQ, data as of Sep 12, 2026. Every figure is arithmetic on a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page. ETFIQ, CTA against IAU, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/CTA-IAU Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.

A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources