BIL vs YEAR: Differences, Returns & Fees

BIL's duration was 0.2 years on Jun 30, 2026 and YEAR's 0.9 on May 31, 2026; BIL charges 0.14% to YEAR's 0.25%. Net assets: $51.1bn on Oct 20, 2026 for SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF, and $1.6bn on Oct 19, 2026 for AB Ultra Short Income ETF.

Ask IQ about this page

Ask IQ about BIL and YEAR

Answers cite the figures on this page.

BIL costs 0.11 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.9 points; BIL is far larger, $51.2bn against $1.6bn.

BIL vs YEAR: Differences, Returns & Fees
BILYEAR
Expense ratio0.14%0.25%
Net assets, as of Oct 19, 2026$51.2bn$1.6bn
Total return, 1 year+3.7%+2.8%
What it tracks1-3 month T-billsNo index, actively managed
Holdings in commonreport dates differ

Holdings in common uses holdings dated May 31, 2026 and Jun 30, 2026.

+3.7%
BIL total return, 1 year
+2.8%
YEAR total return, 1 year
0.14%
BIL expense ratio
0.25%
YEAR expense ratio

Get BIL's fund flows by email, every Monday.

Plus the Friday ETF note. Confirm from the link that arrives, and unsubscribe in one click. See Privacy.

Client brief · page 1 of 2Report BR-F63DF3952A

BIL and YEAR are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?

  1. What each follows. BIL follows 1-3 month T-bills and YEAR follows No index, actively managed.
  2. Number of holdings. BIL holds 18 positions and YEAR holds 141.
  3. Cost. BIL charges 0.14% of assets a year and YEAR 0.25%, a gap of 0.11 points.

Data as of Oct 20, 2026. The differences are picked by a fixed rule, in a fixed order; the PDF prints it. Page 2 has the returns, overlap, risks and sources.

Take this comparison to a client

The two-page PDF for this pair is coming. Save the comparison to follow its changes. Free. It needs an email sign-in, once.

Not advice. The brief uses the figures on this page, with the data date and a report id. Saved comparisons are listed on your saved page; privacy.

On the same fields

BIL
SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF
YEAR
AB Ultra Short Income ETF
Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF
What it is Tracks an index of 1-3 month T-bills Actively managed
Total return, 1 year +3.7% +2.8%
Its benchmark over the same days not measured −1.9% (AGG)
Gap to its benchmark not measured +4.8 pts vs AGG
Expense ratio 0.14% 0.25%
Holdings 18 141
Net assets, BIL as of Oct 20, 2026 and YEAR as of Oct 19, 2026 $51.1bn $1.6bn

BIL and YEAR on the fields both publish, as of Oct 20, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

About BIL

BIL tracks an index of 1-3 month T-bills. Over the year to Oct 20, 2026 it returned +3.7% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.14% a year.

About YEAR

YEAR is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 20, 2026 it returned +2.8% with distributions reinvested, against −1.9% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.25% a year.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, BIL or YEAR?
In the year to Oct 20, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BIL returned +3.7% and YEAR +2.8%.
Which is cheaper, BIL or YEAR?
BIL is cheaper, by 0.11 percentage points a year. That is about $11 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BIL against YEAR, data as of Oct 20, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/bil-vs-year

Open data

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