Which returned more over the last year, GOVT or IUSB?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GOVT returned −1.5% and IUSB −1.2%.

Which is cheaper, GOVT or IUSB?

GOVT is cheaper, by 0.01 percentage points a year. That is about $1 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

GOVT vs IUSB: Differences, Returns & Fees

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On Jul 31, 2026 GOVT's duration was 5.5 years and IUSB's 5.5; GOVT charges 0.05% to IUSB's 0.06%.

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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $42.8bn for iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF and $49.8bn for iShares Core Universal USD Bond ETF.

GOVT on its own →IUSB on its own →

At a glance

−1.5%

GOVT total return, 1 year

−1.2%

IUSB total return, 1 year

0.05%

GOVT expense ratio

0.06%

IUSB expense ratio

Pair scorecard

GOVT costs 0.01 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.3 points; IUSB is 1.2 times larger.

GOVT vs IUSB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	GOVT	IUSB
Return
Measure	GOVT	IUSB
Total return, 1 year	−1.5%	−1.2%
Drawdown
Measure	GOVT	IUSB
Below its high	8.1%, high on Aug 4, 2020
Benchmark
Measure	GOVT	IUSB
What it tracks	ICE U.S. Treasury Core Bond Index	Bloomberg U.S. Universal Index
Cost and size
Measure	GOVT	IUSB
Expense ratio	0.05%	0.06%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$42.8bn	$49.8bn
Holdings
Measure	GOVT	IUSB
Holdings in common	27%

Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026. Method

Risk and return

Jun 20, 2014 to Oct 23, 2026 · 644 weekly returns

GOVT IUSB

Return

Total return edge IUSB +16.4% +28.3%

Annualized edge IUSB +1.2% +2.0%

Price return edge GOVT (slight) −10.0% −10.7%

Risk

Volatility edge GOVT (slight) 4.7% 5.0%

Max drawdown edge IUSB (slight) −18.7% −17.7%

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge IUSB −0.16 0.02

Sortino edge IUSB −0.21 0.02

Calmar edge IUSB 0.07 0.11

Reading

IUSB returned more: +28.3% to +16.4%. GOVT swung slightly less: 4.7% to 5.0%. IUSB fell slightly less at its worst: −17.7% to −18.7%.

Full scorecard

9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: GOVT vs IUSB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	GOVT	IUSB	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+16.4%	+28.3%	IUSB	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+1.2%	+2.0%	IUSB	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	−10.0%	−10.7%	GOVT (slight)	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	4.7%	5.0%	GOVT (slight)	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	3.4%	3.6%	GOVT (slight)	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−18.7%	−17.7%	IUSB (slight)	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	−0.16	0.02	IUSB	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	−0.21	0.02	IUSB	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Calmar	0.07	0.11	IUSB	Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 644 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

27%

By the books each fund has filed, GOVT and IUSB hold 27% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

27% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first GOVT IUSB

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Dec 31, 2029 0.78% 0.37%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due May 15, 2036 0.38% 0.37%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Feb 15, 2034 0.99% 0.36%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Feb 15, 2035 0.44% 0.35%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 15, 2035 0.80% 0.34%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due May 15, 2034 0.83% 0.34%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Nov 15, 2034 0.77% 0.34%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due May 15, 2035 0.62% 0.33%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Feb 15, 2036 0.73% 0.33%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 15, 2034 0.92% 0.33%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 15, 2032 0.49% 0.33%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Nov 15, 2035 0.61% 0.32%

Only in one fund ↓

Only in GOVT

U.S. Treasury Bonds, due Nov 15, 2027 1.38%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Feb 15, 2030 0.41%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 15, 2029 0.19%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jun 30, 2027 0.12%

U.S. Treasury Bonds, due May 15, 2039 0.09%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jul 31, 2027 0.06%

U.S. Treasury Bonds STRIPS, due Aug 15, 2036 0.06%

U.S. Treasury Bonds STRIPS, due May 15, 2043 0.05%

Only in IUSB

Uniform Mortgage-Backed Securities, due Aug 25, 2056 0.41%

Uniform Mortgage-Backed Securities, due Aug 25, 2056 0.31%

Uniform Mortgage-Backed Securities, due Aug 25, 2056 0.30%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jun 15, 2028 0.30%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jul 15, 2028 0.29%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Apr 30, 2028 0.29%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Apr 15, 2028 0.27%

Uniform Mortgage-Backed Securities, due May 1, 2050 0.26%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

GOVT iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF IUSB iShares Core Universal USD Bond ETF

Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF

Issuer iShares iShares

What it is Tracks an index of U.S. Treasury Bond Tracks an index of Universal USD Bond

Total return, 1 year −1.5% −1.2%

Expense ratio 0.05% 0.06%

Holdings 229 18338

Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 $42.8bn $49.8bn

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

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-5457CF1FDB

GOVT and IUSB do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?

What each follows. GOVT follows ICE U.S. Treasury Core Bond Index and IUSB follows Bloomberg U.S. Universal Index.
Holdings in common. 27% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026).
Number of holdings. GOVT holds 229 positions and IUSB holds 18338.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund

GOVT

GOVT tracks an index of U.S. Treasury Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −1.5% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.05% a year. It sat 8.1% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Oct 28, 2026.

IUSB

IUSB tracks an index of Universal USD Bond. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned −1.2% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.06% a year.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, GOVT or IUSB?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GOVT returned −1.5% and IUSB −1.2%.
Which is cheaper, GOVT or IUSB?: GOVT is cheaper, by 0.01 percentage points a year. That is about $1 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BOND vs GOVT GOVT vs VCIT GOVT vs MBB GOVT vs VGSH IEF vs IUSB IUSB vs VGIT IUSB vs MBB IUSB vs VGSH

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

GOVT and IUSB filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

GOVT and IUSB prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for GOVT ↗

iShares page for IUSB ↗

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

How this is computed

Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, GOVT against IUSB, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/govt-vs-iusb

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