Which returned more over the last year, EFA or GLDM?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, EFA returned +12.1% and GLDM +2.8%.

Which is cheaper, EFA or GLDM?

GLDM is cheaper, by 0.22 percentage points a year. That is about $22 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

EFA vs GLDM: Differences, Returns & Fees

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EFA is an equity index fund and GLDM a commodity fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, EFA returned +12.1% against +2.8%.

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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $76.8bn for iShares MSCI EAFE ETF and $30.6bn for SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust.

EFA on its own →GLDM on its own →

At a glance

+12.1%

EFA total return, 1 year

+2.8%

GLDM total return, 1 year

0.32%

EFA expense ratio

0.10%

GLDM expense ratio

Pair scorecard

GLDM costs 0.22 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 9.3 points; EFA is 2.5 times larger.

EFA vs GLDM: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	EFA	GLDM
Return
Measure	EFA	GLDM
Total return, 1 year	+12.1%	+2.8%
Drawdown
Measure	EFA	GLDM
Below its high	4.7%, high on Aug 25, 2026	24.5%, high on Jan 29, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	EFA	GLDM
What it tracks	MSCI EAFE Index	Gold
Cost and size
Measure	EFA	GLDM
Expense ratio	0.32%	0.10%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$76.8bn	$30.6bn
Holdings
Measure	EFA	GLDM
Holdings in common	not published
In the S&P 500, by weight	0%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund	14.3%

Method

Side by side

EFA iShares MSCI EAFE ETF GLDM SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust

Where it sits Stock ETF Commodity ETF

Issuer iShares State Street

What it is Tracks an index of Developed markets ex US Holds gold

Total return, 1 year +12.1% +2.8%

Its benchmark over the same days +14.3% (ACWX) +2.5% (GLD)

Gap to its benchmark −2.2 pts vs ACWX +0.3 pts vs GLD

Expense ratio 0.32% 0.10%

Holdings 665 not counted

Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 $76.8bn $30.6bn

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

Alert

About each fund

EFA

EFA tracks an index of Developed markets ex US. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +12.1% with distributions reinvested, against +14.3% for its benchmark, the MSCI ACWI ex USA Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.32% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 0% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 665 positions, with the top ten at 14.3%. It sat 4.7% below its high of Aug 25, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

GLDM

Its expense ratio is 0.10% a year, for the three months to Jun 30, 2026, as its 10-Q states.

GLDM holds gold. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.8% with distributions reinvested, against +2.5% for its benchmark, the price of gold. It sat 24.5% below its high of Jan 29, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, EFA or GLDM?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, EFA returned +12.1% and GLDM +2.8%.
Which is cheaper, EFA or GLDM?: GLDM is cheaper, by 0.22 percentage points a year. That is about $22 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Other comparisons

EFA vs GLD EFA vs IAU EFA vs USO EFA vs SLV GLDM vs VXUS GLDM vs IEFA GLDM vs VEA GLDM vs SCHF

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

EFA filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

EFA prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for EFA ↗

State Street website ↗

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

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ETFIQ, EFA against GLDM, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/efa-vs-gldm

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