Are AGG and GDX in the same category?

AGG is a bond ETF and GDX is a thematic ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.

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

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AGG returned −1.4% and GDX +19.0%.

Which is cheaper, AGG or GDX?

AGG is cheaper, by 0.48 percentage points a year. That is about $48 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

AGG vs GDX: Differences, Returns & Fees

Share on X Download as PDF

Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, AGG returned −1.4% to GDX's +19.0%, and AGG charges 0.03% to GDX's 0.51%.

askIQ about this page

askIQ about AGG and GDX

Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $139.4bn for iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF and $25.6bn for VanEck Gold Miners ETF.

AGG on its own →GDX on its own →

At a glance

−1.4%

AGG total return, 1 year

+19.0%

GDX total return, 1 year

0.03%

AGG expense ratio

0.51%

GDX expense ratio

Pair scorecard

AGG costs 0.48 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 20.4 points; AGG is 5.4 times larger.

AGG vs GDX: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	AGG	GDX
Return
Measure	AGG	GDX
Total return, 1 year	−1.4%	+19.0%
Drawdown
Measure	AGG	GDX
Below its high	3.4%, high on Aug 4, 2020
Below its all-time high		27.5%, high on Feb 27, 2026
Against its benchmark
Measure	AGG	GDX
What it tracks	Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index	Gold miners
Against its benchmark, 1 year		ahead by 5.6 pts
Cost and size
Measure	AGG	GDX
Expense ratio	0.03%	0.51%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$139.4bn	$25.6bn
Active share vs the S&P 500		100%
Holdings
Measure	AGG	GDX
Holdings in common	0%
In the S&P 500, by weight		12%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund		60%

Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method

What they share

By the books each fund has filed, AGG and GDX hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first AGG GDX

Only in one fund ↓

Only in AGG

BLACKROCK CASH CL INST SL AGENCY 3.02%

TREASURY NOTE 0.40%

TREASURY NOTE (OLD) 0.40%

TREASURY NOTE 0.40%

TREASURY NOTE 0.39%

TREASURY NOTE 0.38%

Only in GDX

Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd 11.45%

Newmont Corp 11.42%

Barrick Mining Corp 8.07%

Wheaton Precious Metals Corp 5.50%

Franco-Nevada Corp 5.33%

Anglogold Ashanti Plc 4.78%

Gold Fields Ltd 3.96%

Kinross Gold Corp 3.88%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

AGG iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF GDX VanEck Gold Miners ETF

Where it sits Bond ETF Thematic ETF

Issuer iShares VanEck

What it is Tracks an index of US aggregate bonds Gold miners

Total return, 1 year −1.4% +19.0%

Its benchmark over the same days −1.3% (SCHZ) +13.4% (ACWI)

Gap to its benchmark −0.1 pts vs SCHZ +5.6 pts vs ACWI

Expense ratio 0.03% 0.51%

Holdings 13469 59

Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 $139.4bn $25.6bn

AGG and GDX on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Alert

About each fund

AGG

AGG tracks an index of US aggregate bonds. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −1.4% with distributions reinvested, against −1.3% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year. It sat 3.4% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Oct 28, 2026.

GDX

By weight, 12% 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 60% of the fund across 59 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +19.0% with distributions reinvested against +13.4% for its benchmark, the MSCI ACWI Index, so a holder was ahead by 5.6 pts. It sits 27.5% below its all-time high of Feb 27, 2026.

Questions people ask

Are AGG and GDX in the same category?: AGG is a bond ETF and GDX is a thematic ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, AGG or GDX?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AGG returned −1.4% and GDX +19.0%.
Which is cheaper, AGG or GDX?: AGG is cheaper, by 0.48 percentage points a year. That is about $48 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AGG vs AIRR AGG vs IBB AGG vs XBI AGG vs REMX BND vs GDX GDX vs SGOV BNDX vs GDX GDX vs VCIT

Where to next

AGG on its own →GDX on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →AGG dividend history →AGG holdings →GDX dividend history →GDX holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

AGG filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

AGG prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for AGG ↗

GDX filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

GDX prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

VanEck website ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

How this is computed

Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, AGG against GDX, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/agg-vs-gdx

Open data →

Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.