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BILS vs FTSM: Differences, Returns & Fees

BILS's duration was 0.4 years on Jun 30, 2026 and FTSM's 0.7 on Jul 31, 2026; BILS charges 0.14% to FTSM's 0.29%. Net assets on Oct 20, 2026: $3.9bn for State Street SPDR Bloomberg 3-12 Month T-Bill ETF and $6.7bn for First Trust Enhanced Short Maturity ETF.

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Answers cite the figures on this page.

BILS costs 0.15 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.2 points; FTSM is 1.7 times larger.

BILS vs FTSM: Differences, Returns & Fees
BILSFTSM
Expense ratio0.14%0.29%
Net assets$3.9bn$6.7bn
Total return, 1 year+3.6%+3.4%
What it tracksnot read by ETFIQNo index, actively managed
Holdings in commonreport dates differ

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

+3.6%
BILS total return, 1 year
+3.4%
FTSM total return, 1 year
0.14%
BILS expense ratio
0.29%
FTSM expense ratio

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Client brief · page 1 of 2Report BR-C6E6A75292

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

  1. What each follows. BILS follows not read by ETFIQ and FTSM follows No index, actively managed.
  2. Number of holdings. BILS holds 23 positions and FTSM holds 740.
  3. Cost. BILS charges 0.14% of assets a year and FTSM 0.29%, a gap of 0.15 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.

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On the same fields

BILS
State Street SPDR Bloomberg 3-12 Month T-Bill ETF
FTSM
First Trust Enhanced Short Maturity ETF
Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF
Issuer State Street First Trust
What it is Tracks an index Actively managed
Total return, 1 year +3.6% +3.4%
Its benchmark over the same days not measured −1.9% (AGG)
Gap to its benchmark not measured +5.4 pts vs AGG
Expense ratio 0.14% 0.29%
Holdings 23 740
Net assets $3.9bn $6.7bn

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

About BILS

BILS tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 20, 2026 it returned +3.6% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.14% a year.

About FTSM

FTSM is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 20, 2026 it returned +3.4% with distributions reinvested, against −1.9% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.29% a year.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, BILS or FTSM?
In the year to Oct 20, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BILS returned +3.6% and FTSM +3.4%.
Which is cheaper, BILS or FTSM?
BILS is cheaper, by 0.15 percentage points a year. That is about $15 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
BILS vs TFLOBILS vs TBILBILS vs GBILBILS vs ICSHFTSM vs GSYFTSM vs IBDSFLTR vs FTSMBSCR vs FTSM
BILS on its own →FTSM on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →BILS dividend history →BILS holdings →FTSM dividend history →FTSM holdings →Standards and sources →
Where these figures came from
BILS filings on SEC EDGAR ↗BILS prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗State Street website ↗FTSM filings on SEC EDGAR ↗FTSM prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗First Trust page for FTSM ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure; a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BILS against FTSM, data as of Oct 20, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/bils-vs-ftsm

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