Data as of Sep 12, 2026. Both funds on the fields they both publish, from the same sources.
IAU vs IWC: how they differ
IAU is a commodity fund and IWC an equity index fund, and over the year IWC returned more, +31.3% against +19.2%.
iShares Gold Trust and iShares Micro-Cap ETF.
| IAU iShares Gold Trust | IWC iShares Micro-Cap ETF | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core index fund | Core index fund |
| Issuer | iShares | iShares |
| What it is | Gold | Russell Microcap |
| Total return, 1 year | +19.2% | +31.3% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +17.5% | +17.5% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | +1.7 pts | +13.8 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.25% | not published |
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.
IWC in plain words
IWC is an index equity fund tracking the Russell Microcap. Over the year to Sep 11, 2026 it returned +31.3% with distributions reinvested, against +17.5% for the S&P 500 and +23.0% for the Nasdaq-100. It sat 5.0% below its high of Aug 14, 2026 on Sep 11, 2026.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, IAU or IWC?
- In the year to Sep 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IAU returned +19.2% and IWC returned +31.3%, so IWC returned more. One year is one year; the longer windows are in the table.
Other comparisons
Where to next
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.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, IAU against IWC, data as of Sep 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/IAU-IWC Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources