Are BIL and LYTE in the same category?

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

Which is cheaper, BIL or LYTE?

BIL is cheaper, by 0.51 percentage points a year. That is about $51 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

BIL vs LYTE: Differences, Returns & Fees

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BIL and LYTE are measured over different days, and BIL charges 0.14% to LYTE's 0.65%.

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Net assets: $48.7bn on Oct 27, 2026 for SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF, and $165m on Oct 28, 2026 for Roundhill Photonics & Optics ETF.

BIL on its own →LYTE on its own →

At a glance

+3.7%

BIL total return, 1 year

−19.6%

LYTE total return, since launch, Aug 6, 2026

0.14%

BIL expense ratio

0.65%

LYTE expense ratio

Pair scorecard

BIL costs 0.51 points a year less; BIL is far larger, $48.7bn against $163m.

BIL vs LYTE: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	BIL	LYTE
Return
Measure	BIL	LYTE
Total return, 1 year	+3.7%	not published
Drawdown
Measure	BIL	LYTE
Below its all-time high		28.5%, high on Aug 17, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	BIL	LYTE
What it tracks	Bloomberg 1-3 Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index	Photonics and optics
Cost and size
Measure	BIL	LYTE
Expense ratio	0.14%	0.65%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$48.7bn	$163m
Holdings
Measure	BIL	LYTE
Holdings in common	not published

Method

Side by side

BIL SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF LYTE Roundhill Photonics & Optics ETF

Where it sits Bond ETF Thematic ETF

Issuer State Street Roundhill

What it is Tracks an index of 1-3 month T-bills Photonics and optics

Total return, 1 year +3.7% −19.6% (since launch, Aug 6, 2026)

Expense ratio 0.14% 0.65%

Holdings 26 not yet filed

Net assets, BIL as of Oct 27, 2026 and LYTE as of Oct 28, 2026 $48.7bn $165m

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

Alert

About each fund

BIL

BIL tracks an index of 1-3 month T-bills. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +3.7% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.14% a year.

LYTE

LYTE has no public holdings filing captured yet. Since it first traded on Aug 6, 2026 the fund returned −19.6% with distributions reinvested. It sits 28.5% below its all-time high of Aug 17, 2026.

Questions people ask

Are BIL and LYTE in the same category?: BIL is a bond ETF and LYTE is a thematic ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which is cheaper, BIL or LYTE?: BIL is cheaper, by 0.51 percentage points a year. That is about $51 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BIL vs GDX BIL vs REMX BIL vs XBI BIL vs IBB BOXX vs LYTE LYTE vs VBIL LYTE vs SGOV LYTE vs TLT

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

BIL filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

BIL prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

State Street website ↗

LYTE filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

LYTE prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Roundhill page for LYTE ↗

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

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BIL against LYTE, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/bil-vs-lyte

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