Are FMF and GLD in the same category?

FMF is an alternatives ETF and GLD is a commodity ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.

Which returned more over the last year, FMF or GLD?

In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FMF returned +11.1% and GLD +2.8%.

Which is cheaper, FMF or GLD?

GLD is cheaper, by 0.58 percentage points a year. That is about $58 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Across categories

FMF vs GLD: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, FMF returned +11.1% to GLD's +2.8%, and GLD charges 0.40% to FMF's 0.98%.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $298m for First Trust Managed Futures Strategy Fund and $131.3bn for SPDR Gold Shares.

FMF on its own →GLD on its own →

At a glance

+11.1%

FMF total return, 1 year

+2.8%

GLD total return, 1 year

0.98%

FMF expense ratio

0.40%

GLD expense ratio

Pair scorecard

GLD costs 0.58 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 8.3 points; GLD is far larger, $131.3bn against $298m.

FMF vs GLD: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	FMF	GLD
Return
Measure	FMF	GLD
Total return, 1 year	+11.1%	+2.8%
Total return, 52 weeks	+10.6%
Drawdown
Measure	FMF	GLD
Below its high		24.9%, high on Jan 29, 2026
Against its benchmark
Measure	FMF	GLD
What it tracks	not published	Gold
Treasury bills, 52 weeks	+3.7%
Against cash	6.9 points ahead
Cost and size
Measure	FMF	GLD
Expense ratio	0.98%	0.40%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026	$298m	$131.3bn
Holdings
Measure	FMF	GLD
Holdings in common	not published
Risk
Measure	FMF	GLD
Correlation with the S&P 500’s weekly returns	+0.16
Beta to the S&P 500	+0.11: about 0.11% for each 1%
Its average week when the S&P 500 fell	fell 0.11%
Down-week capture	9.9%
Weeks the S&P 500 fell	26 of 52, by 1.07% on average

Method

Side by side

FMF First Trust Managed Futures Strategy Fund GLD SPDR Gold Shares

Where it sits Alternatives ETF Commodity ETF

Issuer First Trust State Street

What it is Managed futures Holds gold

Total return, 1 year +11.1% +2.8%

Its benchmark over the same days not measured +2.9% (IAU)

Gap to its benchmark not measured −0.1 pts vs IAU

Expense ratio 0.98% 0.40%

Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $298m $131.3bn

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

Alert

About each fund

FMF

FMF is a managed futures 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 +0.16 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.11, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.11% the same way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks FMF fell 0.11% on average, a down-week capture of 9.9%. Over the same 52 weeks FMF returned +10.6% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 6.9 percentage points ahead of cash.

GLD

Its expense ratio is 0.40% a year, for the three months to Jun 30, 2026, as its 10-Q states.

GLD holds gold. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026 it returned +2.8% with distributions reinvested, against +2.9% for its benchmark, the price of gold. It sat 24.9% below its high of Jan 29, 2026 on Nov 4, 2026.

Questions people ask

Are FMF and GLD in the same category?: FMF is an alternatives ETF and GLD is a commodity ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, FMF or GLD?: In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, FMF returned +11.1% and GLD +2.8%.
Which is cheaper, FMF or GLD?: GLD is cheaper, by 0.58 percentage points a year. That is about $58 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Other comparisons

FMF vs VOO FMF vs QQQ FMF vs SPY FMF vs IVV GLD vs MFUT GLD vs ISMF GLD vs HFMF GLD vs PRAE

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

FMF filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

FMF prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

First Trust page for FMF ↗

State Street website ↗

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

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ETFIQ, FMF against GLD, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/fmf-vs-gld

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