Are CAOS and TLT in the same category?

CAOS is an alternatives ETF and TLT is a bond ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.

Which returned more over the last year, CAOS or TLT?

In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, CAOS returned +1.3% and TLT −4.8%.

Which is cheaper, CAOS or TLT?

TLT 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 Nov 4, 2026.

Across categories

CAOS vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, CAOS returned +1.3% to TLT's −4.8%, and TLT charges 0.15% to CAOS's 0.63%.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $728m for Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF and $48.3bn for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF.

CAOS on its own →TLT on its own →

At a glance

+1.3%

CAOS total return, 1 year

−4.8%

TLT total return, 1 year

0.63%

CAOS expense ratio

0.15%

TLT expense ratio

Pair scorecard

TLT costs 0.48 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 6.1 points; TLT is far larger, $48.3bn against $728m.

CAOS vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	CAOS	TLT
Return
Measure	CAOS	TLT
Total return, 1 year	+1.3%	−4.8%
Total return, 52 weeks	+1.3%
Drawdown
Measure	CAOS	TLT
Below its high		41.8%, high on Aug 4, 2020
Against its benchmark
Measure	CAOS	TLT
What it tracks	not published	ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index
Treasury bills, 52 weeks	+3.7%
Against cash	2.3 points behind
Cost and size
Measure	CAOS	TLT
Expense ratio	0.63%	0.15%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026	$728m	$48.3bn
Holdings
Measure	CAOS	TLT
Holdings in common	not published
Risk
Measure	CAOS	TLT
Correlation with the S&P 500’s weekly returns	−0.15
Beta to the S&P 500	−0.01: about 0.01% for each 1%
Its average week when the S&P 500 fell	rose 0.04%
Down-week capture	−3.3%
Weeks the S&P 500 fell	26 of 52, by 1.07% on average

Method

Side by side

CAOS Alpha Architect Tail Risk ETF TLT iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF

Where it sits Alternatives ETF Bond ETF

Issuer Alpha Architect iShares

What it is Hedged equity Tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries

Total return, 1 year +1.3% −4.8%

Its benchmark over the same days not measured −4.7% (BBLB)

Gap to its benchmark not measured −0.1 pts vs BBLB

Expense ratio 0.63% 0.15%

Holdings not read by ETFIQ 47

Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $728m $48.3bn

CAOS and TLT on the fields both publish, as of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Alert

About each fund

CAOS

CAOS is a hedged equity fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of −0.15 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of −0.01, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.01% the other way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks CAOS rose 0.04% on average, a down-week capture of −3.3%. Over the same 52 weeks CAOS returned +1.3% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 2.3 percentage points behind cash.

TLT

TLT tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026 it returned −4.8% with distributions reinvested, against −4.7% for its benchmark, the ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. It sat 41.8% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Nov 4, 2026.

Questions people ask

Are CAOS and TLT in the same category?: CAOS is an alternatives ETF and TLT is a bond ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, CAOS or TLT?: In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, CAOS returned +1.3% and TLT −4.8%.
Which is cheaper, CAOS or TLT?: TLT 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 CAOS BND vs CAOS CAOS vs GLD CAOS vs QQQ HEDG vs TLT SHDG vs TLT TAIL vs TLT THEQ vs TLT

Where to next

BIL, the T-bill fund these are measured against →SPY, the S&P 500 fund these are measured against →CAOS on its own →TLT on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →TLT dividend history →TLT holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

CAOS filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

CAOS prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Alpha Architect page for CAOS ↗

TLT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

TLT prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for TLT ↗

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

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ETFIQ, CAOS against TLT, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/caos-vs-tlt

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