Data as of Sep 19, 2026.
AGG vs CAOS: how they differ
Over the year CAOS returned more, +1.1% to AGG's −0.4%, and AGG charges 0.03% to CAOS's 0.63%.
iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF and Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF.
| AGG iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF | CAOS Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | Core fund | Alternatives ETF |
| Issuer | iShares | Alpha Architect |
| What it is | Tracks an index of US aggregate bonds | Hedged equity |
| Total return, 1 year | −0.4% | +1.1% |
| S&P 500 over the same days | +16.6% | +16.6% |
| Gap to the S&P 500 | −17.0 pts | −15.5 pts |
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.63% |
| Holdings | 13428 | not filed |
| Net assets | $137.3bn | $705m |
AGG in plain words
AGG tracks an index of US aggregate bonds. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026 it returned −0.4% with distributions reinvested, against +16.6% for the S&P 500 and +21.8% for the Nasdaq-100. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. It sat 3.7% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Sep 18, 2026.
CAOS in plain words
CAOS is a hedged equity fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of −0.40 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of −0.04, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.04% the other way. The S&P 500 fell in 22 of those 52 weeks, by 1.24% on average. In the same weeks CAOS rose 0.08% on average, a down-week capture of −6.2%. Over the same 52 weeks CAOS returned +1.1% and a Treasury bill fund +3.6%, so it finished 2.6 percentage points behind cash.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, AGG or CAOS?
- In the year to Sep 19, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AGG returned −0.4% and CAOS returned +1.1%, so CAOS returned more.
- Which is cheaper, AGG or CAOS?
- AGG charges 0.03% a year and CAOS charges 0.63%, so AGG is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
- Are AGG and CAOS the same kind of fund?
- No. AGG is an index ETF and CAOS is an alternatives 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.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, AGG against CAOS, data as of Sep 19, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/agg-vs-caos Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.
A comparison is not a recommendation. Standards and sources