Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
GOVT vs SGOV: Differences, Returns & Fees
GOVT's duration was 5.5 years on Jul 31, 2026 and SGOV's 0.1 on Aug 31, 2026; GOVT charges 0.05% to SGOV's 0.09%.
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Net assets on Oct 27, 2026: $42.8bn for iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF and $117.0bn for iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF.
Pair scorecard
GOVT costs 0.04 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 5.2 points; SGOV is 2.7 times larger.
| Measure | GOVT | SGOV |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | −1.5% | +3.7% |
| Drawdown | ||
| Below its high | 8.1%, high on Aug 4, 2020 | |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | ICE U.S. Treasury Core Bond Index | ICE 0-3 Month US Treasury Securities Index |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.05% | 0.09% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $42.8bn | $117.0bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Jun 5, 2020 to Oct 23, 2026 · 333 weekly returnsSGOV returned more: +20.8% to −5.2%. SGOV swung less: 0.3% to 5.1%. SGOV fell less at its worst: 0.0% to −18.7%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | GOVT | SGOV | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | −5.2% | +20.8% | SGOV | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | −0.8% | +3.0% | SGOV | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −19.5% | +0.6% | SGOV | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 5.1% | 0.3% | SGOV | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 3.8% | 0.2% | SGOV | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −18.7% | 0.0% | SGOV | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | −0.75 | −0.46 | SGOV | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | −0.99 | −0.57 | SGOV | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | −0.04 | Not measured | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. | |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 333 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, GOVT and SGOV hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026.
half
0% in common
Only in one fund ↓
Side by side
GOVT and SGOV on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
GOVT and SGOV do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. GOVT follows ICE U.S. Treasury Core Bond Index and SGOV follows ICE 0-3 Month US Treasury Securities Index.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 GOVT returned −1.5% and SGOV +3.7% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 5.2 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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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.
SGOV
SGOV tracks an index of 0-3 month T-bills. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +3.7% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, GOVT or SGOV?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GOVT returned −1.5% and SGOV +3.7%.
- Which is cheaper, GOVT or SGOV?
- GOVT is cheaper, by 0.04 percentage points a year. That is about $4 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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 SGOV, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/govt-vs-sgov
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). GOVT against SGOV. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/govt-vs-sgov
[GOVT against SGOV (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/govt-vs-sgov)
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