FLTR vs FTSM: Differences, Returns & Fees

On Jul 31, 2026 FLTR's duration was 0.0 years and FTSM's 0.7; FLTR charges 0.14% to FTSM's 0.29%. Net assets: $3.6bn on Oct 19, 2026 for VanEck IG Floating Rate ETF, and $6.7bn on Oct 20, 2026 for First Trust Enhanced Short Maturity ETF.

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Answers cite the figures on this page.

FLTR costs 0.15 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.3 points; FTSM is 1.9 times larger.

FLTR vs FTSM: Differences, Returns & Fees
FLTRFTSM
Expense ratio0.14%0.29%
Net assets, as of Oct 19, 2026$3.6bn$6.7bn
Total return, 1 year+4.7%+3.4%
What it tracksMVIS US Investment Grade Floating Rate IndexNo index, actively managed
Holdings in commonnot published
+4.7%
FLTR total return, 1 year
+3.4%
FTSM total return, 1 year
0.14%
FLTR expense ratio
0.29%
FTSM expense ratio

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Client brief · page 1 of 2Report BR-6EBEDAFE2B

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

  1. What each follows. FLTR follows MVIS US Investment Grade Floating Rate Index and FTSM follows No index, actively managed.
  2. Cost. FLTR charges 0.14% of assets a year and FTSM 0.29%, a gap of 0.15 points.
  3. One-year total return (similar). Over 1 year to Oct 20, 2026 FLTR returned +4.7% and FTSM +3.4% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 1.3 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

FLTR
VanEck IG Floating Rate ETF
FTSM
First Trust Enhanced Short Maturity ETF
Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF
What it is Tracks an index Actively managed
Total return, 1 year +4.7% +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 455 740
Net assets, FLTR as of Oct 19, 2026 and FTSM as of Oct 20, 2026 $3.6bn $6.7bn

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

About FLTR

FLTR tracks an index. Over the year to Oct 20, 2026 it returned +4.7% 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, FLTR or FTSM?
In the year to Oct 20, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FLTR returned +4.7% and FTSM +3.4%.
Which is cheaper, FLTR or FTSM?
FLTR 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.
Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

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

Open data

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