Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
AGG vs IBB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, AGG returned −1.4% to IBB's +37.5%, and AGG charges 0.03% to IBB's 0.44%.
askIQ about this page
askIQ about AGG and IBB
Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $139.4bn for iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF and $11.0bn for iShares Biotechnology ETF.
Pair scorecard
AGG costs 0.41 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 38.9 points; AGG is 12.7 times larger.
| Measure | AGG | IBB |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −1.4% | +37.5% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 3.4%, high on Aug 4, 2020 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index | Biotech |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.03% | 0.44% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $139.4bn | $11.0bn |
| Active share vs the S&P 500 | 99% | |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
| In the S&P 500, by weight | 40% | |
| Top ten holdings, share of the fund | 50% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 27, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 3, 2003 to Oct 23, 2026 · 1,203 weekly returnsIBB returned more: +770.5% to +97.2%. AGG swung less: 5.1% to 22.4%. AGG fell less at its worst: −18.2% to −37.5%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | AGG | IBB | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +97.2% | +770.5% | IBB | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +3.0% | +9.8% | IBB | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −5.7% | +733.3% | IBB | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 5.1% | 22.4% | AGG | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 3.8% | 15.6% | AGG | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −18.2% | −37.5% | AGG | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.25 | 0.45 | IBB | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.33 | 0.65 | IBB | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.16 | 0.26 | IBB | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 1,203 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, AGG and IBB hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 27, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
AGG and IBB on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
AGG and IBB do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. AGG follows Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index and IBB follows Biotech.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 27, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 AGG returned −1.4% and IBB +37.5% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 38.9 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
The two-page PDF for this pair is coming. Save the comparison to follow its changes. Free. It needs an email sign-in, once.
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.
IBB
By weight, 40% of IBB's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 99%. The top ten holdings are 50% of the fund across 245 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +37.5% with distributions reinvested.
Questions people ask
- Are AGG and IBB in the same category?
- AGG is a bond ETF and IBB 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 IBB?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, AGG returned −1.4% and IBB +37.5%.
- Which is cheaper, AGG or IBB?
- AGG is cheaper, by 0.41 percentage points a year. That is about $41 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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 IBB, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/agg-vs-ibb
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). AGG against IBB. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/agg-vs-ibb
[AGG against IBB (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/agg-vs-ibb)
Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.