Which returned more over the last year, GDX or IJR?

In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GDX returned +40.2% and IJR returned +19.9%, so GDX returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.

Which is cheaper, GDX or IJR?

GDX charges 0.51% a year and IJR charges 0.06%, so IJR is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

How much do GDX and IJR overlap with the S&P 500?

By their latest filed holdings, 11% of GDX and 0% of IJR by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.

Are GDX and IJR the same kind of fund?

No. GDX is a thematic ETF and IJR is an index ETF, so they are built for different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and what each actually holds.

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

ETFIQetfiq.com · independent ETF data

GDX vs IJR: how they differ

Over the year GDX returned more, +40.2% against +19.9%, and IJR charges 0.06% against 0.51%.

VanEck Gold Miners ETF and iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF.

What they hold in common

By the books each fund has filed, GDX and IJR hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.

Largest positions each one holds and the other does not
Only in GDX	Only in IJR
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd 10.67%	FORMFACTOR INC 0.69%
Newmont Corp 10.42%	VIASAT INC 0.68%
Barrick Mining Corp 7.95%	MOLINA HEALTHCARE INC 0.66%
Wheaton Precious Metals Corp 5.61%	ARGAN INC 0.62%
Anglogold Ashanti Plc 5.04%	BRIGHTSPRING HEALTH SERVICES INC 0.61%
Franco-Nevada Corp 4.89%	ELEMENT SOLUTIONS INC 0.61%
Kinross Gold Corp 4.40%	MAXLINEAR INC 0.60%
Gold Fields Ltd 4.07%	KRYSTAL BIOTECH INC 0.54%

Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026.

GDX and IJR on the fields both publish, as of Sep 12, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
	GDX VanEck Gold Miners ETF	IJR iShares Core S&P Small-Cap ETF
Where it sits	Thematic ETF	Core index fund
Issuer	VanEck	iShares
What it is	Miners and metals	S&P SmallCap 600
Total return, 1 year	+40.2%	+19.9%
S&P 500 over the same days	+17.5%	+17.5%
Gap to the S&P 500	+22.7 pts	+2.4 pts
Expense ratio	0.51%	0.06%
Already in the S&P 500	11.0%	0.0%
Holdings	59	603

GDX in plain words

By weight, 11% of GDX's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 100%. The top ten holdings are 58% of the fund across 59 positions, as published by its issuer for Sep 10, 2026. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 the fund returned +40.2% with distributions reinvested against +17.5% for the S&P 500, so a holder was ahead by 22.7 pts. It sits 16.2% below its all-time high of Feb 27, 2026.

IJR in plain words

IJR is an index equity fund tracking the S&P SmallCap 600. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +19.9% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.06% 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 603 positions, with the top ten at 6.0%. It sat 5.5% below its high of Aug 14, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, GDX or IJR?: In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GDX returned +40.2% and IJR returned +19.9%, so GDX returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Which is cheaper, GDX or IJR?: GDX charges 0.51% a year and IJR charges 0.06%, so IJR is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
How much do GDX and IJR overlap with the S&P 500?: By their latest filed holdings, 11% of GDX and 0% of IJR by weight is stocks the S&P 500 already holds. Between the two funds, 0% of their books are the same securities at the same weight.
Are GDX and IJR the same kind of fund?: No. GDX is a thematic ETF and IJR is an index ETF, so they are built for different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and what each actually holds.

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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.

GDX against IJR, 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, GDX against IJR, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/GDX-IJR Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.

A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources