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

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GLD returned +2.5% and VTEB −0.4%.

Which is cheaper, GLD or VTEB?

VTEB is cheaper, by 0.37 percentage points a year. That is about $37 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 VTEB: Differences, Returns & Fees

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GLD is a commodity fund and VTEB a bond index fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, GLD returned +2.5% against −0.4%.

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Net assets: $135.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for SPDR Gold Shares, and $49.6bn on Sep 30, 2026 for Vanguard Tax-Exempt Bond ETF.

GLD on its own →VTEB on its own →

At a glance

+2.5%

GLD total return, 1 year

−0.4%

VTEB total return, 1 year

0.40%

GLD expense ratio

0.03%

VTEB expense ratio

Pair scorecard

VTEB costs 0.37 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 2.9 points; GLD is 2.9 times larger.

GLD vs VTEB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	GLD	VTEB
Return
Measure	GLD	VTEB
Total return, 1 year	+2.5%	−0.4%
Drawdown
Measure	GLD	VTEB
Below its high	24.7%, high on Jan 29, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	GLD	VTEB
What it tracks	Gold	S&P National AMT-Free Municipal Bond Index
Cost and size
Measure	GLD	VTEB
Expense ratio	0.40%	0.03%
Net assets, as of Sep 30, 2026	$141.7bn	$49.6bn
Holdings
Measure	GLD	VTEB
Holdings in common	not published

Method

Side by side

GLD SPDR Gold Shares VTEB Vanguard Tax-Exempt Bond ETF

Where it sits Commodity ETF Bond ETF

Issuer State Street Vanguard

What it is Holds gold Tracks an index of Tax-Exempt Bond

Total return, 1 year +2.5% −0.4%

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% 0.03%

Holdings not counted 11155

Net assets, GLD as of Oct 27, 2026 and VTEB as of Sep 30, 2026 $135.8bn $49.6bn

GLD and VTEB 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.

VTEB

VTEB tracks an index of Tax-Exempt Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −0.4% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.03% a year.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, GLD or VTEB?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GLD returned +2.5% and VTEB −0.4%.
Which is cheaper, GLD or VTEB?: VTEB is cheaper, by 0.37 percentage points a year. That is about $37 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Other comparisons

GLD vs MUB GLD vs HYMB GLD vs IUSB GLD vs VCSH IAU vs VTEB GLDM vs VTEB SLV vs VTEB SIVR vs VTEB

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

State Street website ↗

VTEB filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

VTEB prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Vanguard page for VTEB ↗

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

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

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

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