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Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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GARP vs IAU: Differences, Returns & Fees

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GARP is an equity index fund and IAU a commodity fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, GARP returned +18.0% against +2.7%.

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Net assets: $3.6bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares MSCI USA Quality GARP ETF, and $60.1bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares Gold Trust.

GARP on its own →IAU on its own →
At a glance
+18.0%
GARP total return, 1 year
+2.7%
IAU total return, 1 year
0.15%
GARP expense ratio
0.25%
IAU expense ratio

Pair scorecard

GARP costs 0.10 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 15.3 points; IAU is 16.8 times larger.

GARP vs IAU: Differences, Returns & Fees
MeasureGARPIAU
Return
Total return, 1 year+18.0%+2.7%
Drawdown
Below its high7.0%, high on Oct 6, 202624.6%, high on Jan 29, 2026
Benchmark
What it tracksMSCI USA Quality GARP Select IndexGold
Cost and size
Expense ratio0.15%0.25%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026$3.6bn$60.3bn
Holdings
Holdings in commonnot published
In the S&P 500, by weight94%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund43.5%

Method

Side by side

GARP iShares MSCI USA Quality GARP ETF IAU iShares Gold Trust
Where it sits Stock ETF Commodity ETF
Issuer iShares iShares
What it is Tracks the MSCI USA Quality GARP Holds gold
Total return, 1 year +18.0% +2.7%
Its benchmark over the same days +13.3% (PBUS) +2.5% (GLD)
Gap to its benchmark +4.7 pts vs PBUS +0.2 pts vs GLD
Expense ratio 0.15% 0.25%
Holdings 131 not counted
Net assets, GARP as of Oct 27, 2026 and IAU as of Oct 28, 2026 $3.6bn $60.1bn

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

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About each fund
GARP

GARP tracks the MSCI USA Quality GARP. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +18.0% with distributions reinvested, against +13.3% for its benchmark, the MSCI USA Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 94% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 131 positions, with the top ten at 43.5%. It sat 7.0% below its high of Oct 6, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

IAU

Its expense ratio is 0.25% a year, for the three months to Jun 30, 2026, as its 10-Q states.

IAU holds gold. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.7% with distributions reinvested, against +2.5% for its benchmark, the price of gold. It sat 24.6% below its high of Jan 29, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, GARP or IAU?
In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GARP returned +18.0% and IAU +2.7%.
Which is cheaper, GARP or IAU?
GARP is cheaper, by 0.10 percentage points a year. That is about $10 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.
Other comparisons
GARP vs GLDMGARP vs GLDGARP vs SLVGARP vs SIVRIAU vs VOOGIAU vs VONGIAU vs SPYGIAU vs SCHG
Where to next
GARP on its own →IAU on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →GARP dividend history →GARP holdings →Standards and sources →
Sources and dates
GARP filings on SEC EDGAR ↗
GARP prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗
iShares page for GARP ↗
iShares page for IAU ↗

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

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ETFIQ, GARP against IAU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/garp-vs-iau

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