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

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GLD returned +2.5% and IEI −1.1%.

Which is cheaper, GLD or IEI?

IEI is cheaper, by 0.25 percentage points a year. That is about $25 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

GLD vs IEI: Differences, Returns & Fees

Share on X Download as PDF

GLD is a commodity fund and IEI a bond index fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, GLD returned +2.5% against −1.1%.

askIQ about this page

askIQ about GLD and IEI

Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $135.8bn for SPDR Gold Shares and $17.0bn for iShares 3-7 Year Treasury Bond ETF.

GLD on its own →IEI on its own →

At a glance

+2.5%

GLD total return, 1 year

−1.1%

IEI total return, 1 year

0.40%

GLD expense ratio

0.15%

IEI expense ratio

Pair scorecard

IEI costs 0.25 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.6 points; GLD is 8.0 times larger.

GLD vs IEI: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	GLD	IEI
Return
Measure	GLD	IEI
Total return, 1 year	+2.5%	−1.1%
Drawdown
Measure	GLD	IEI
Below its high	24.7%, high on Jan 29, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	GLD	IEI
What it tracks	Gold	ICE U.S. Treasury 3-7 Year Bond Index
Cost and size
Measure	GLD	IEI
Expense ratio	0.40%	0.15%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$135.8bn	$17.0bn
Holdings
Measure	GLD	IEI
Holdings in common	not published

Method

Side by side

GLD SPDR Gold Shares IEI iShares 3-7 Year Treasury Bond ETF

Where it sits Commodity ETF Bond ETF

Issuer State Street iShares

What it is Holds gold Tracks an index of 3-7 Year Treasury Bond

Total return, 1 year +2.5% −1.1%

Its benchmark over the same days +2.7% (IAU) not measured

Gap to its benchmark −0.2 pts vs IAU not measured

Expense ratio 0.40% 0.15%

Holdings not counted 82

Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 $135.8bn $17.0bn

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

Alert

About each fund

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 Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.5% with distributions reinvested, against +2.7% for its benchmark, the price of gold. It sat 24.7% below its high of Jan 29, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

IEI

IEI tracks an index of 3-7 Year Treasury Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −1.1% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, GLD or IEI?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GLD returned +2.5% and IEI −1.1%.
Which is cheaper, GLD or IEI?: IEI is cheaper, by 0.25 percentage points a year. That is about $25 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Other comparisons

GLD vs SHY GLD vs VGSH GLD vs SCHP GLD vs HYG IAU vs IEI GLDM vs IEI IEI vs SLV IEI vs SIVR

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

State Street website ↗

IEI filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

IEI prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for IEI ↗

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

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, GLD against IEI, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/gld-vs-iei

Open data →

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