Which returned more over the last year, GVI or ISTB?

In the year to Nov 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GVI returned −0.2% and ISTB +1.0%.

Which is cheaper, GVI or ISTB?

ISTB is cheaper, by 0.14 percentage points a year. That is about $14 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 12, 2026.

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GVI vs ISTB: Differences, Returns & Fees

Return, fees and overlap, side by side.

Return gap

+1.2 pts

1 year to Nov 12, 2026: ISTB ahead, total return

Fee gap

0.14 pts

A year: GVI 0.20%, ISTB 0.06%, per filings dated Feb 23, 2026 and Jun 18, 2026

Overlap

53%

Share of the two books held in common, holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026

Net flow

+$72m / +$80m

GVI / ISTB, Oct 12, 2026 to Nov 11, 2026, daily basis

Risk and return

Jun 20, 2014 to Nov 6, 2026 · 646 weekly returns · each against IUSB

GVI ISTB

Return

Total return edge ISTB +26.0% +30.4%

Annualized edge ISTB +1.9% +2.2%

Price return edge ISTB (slight) −5.4% −5.3%

Risk

Volatility edge ISTB 3.3% 2.5%

Max drawdown edge ISTB −12.2% −9.0%

Downside capture 64.2% 39.1%

Beta 0.61 0.46

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge ISTB −0.05 0.04

Sortino edge ISTB −0.06 0.06

Treynor −0.002 0.002

Calmar edge ISTB 0.15 0.24

Against the benchmark

Alpha −0.2% a year 0.0% a year

Alpha t-stat −0.71 0.14

Information ratio −0.13 −0.01

Tracking error 2.3% 2.9%

Reading

From Jun 2014 to Nov 2026, ISTB returned more: +30.4% to +26.0%. ISTB swung less: 2.5% to 3.3%. ISTB fell less at its worst: −9.0% to −12.2%.

Full scorecard

19 measures Open ↓

Risk and return: GVI vs ISTB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	GVI	ISTB	IUSB	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+26.0%	+30.4%	+29.5%	ISTB	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+1.9%	+2.2%	+2.1%	ISTB	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	−5.4%	−5.3%	−10.2%	ISTB (slight)	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	3.3%	2.5%	5.0%	ISTB	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	2.4%	1.8%	3.6%	ISTB	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−12.2%	−9.0%	−17.7%	ISTB	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture	63.3%	43.7%	100.0%	GVI	Share of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture	64.2%	39.1%	100.0%	ISTB	Share of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta	0.61	0.46	1.00	ISTB lower	How far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared	0.87	0.84	1.00	Not an edge	Share of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	−0.05	0.04	0.03	ISTB	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	−0.06	0.06	0.04	ISTB	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor	−0.002	0.002	0.001	ISTB	Return above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar	0.15	0.24	0.12	ISTB	Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
Benchmark	IUSB	IUSB	IUSB		The ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha	−0.2% a year	0.0% a year	0.0%	Not significant	Yearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat	−0.71	0.14		Not an edge	How sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range	−0.9% to +0.4%	−0.5% to +0.6%		Both include zero	The 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio	−0.13	−0.01		ISTB	Return against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error	2.3%	2.9%	0.0%	Not an edge	How far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 646 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

Pair scorecard

ISTB costs 0.14 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.2 points; ISTB is 1.4 times larger.

GVI vs ISTB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	GVI	ISTB
Return
Measure	GVI	ISTB
Total return, 1 year	−0.2%	+1.0%
Benchmark
Measure	GVI	ISTB
What it tracks	Bloomberg U.S. Intermediate Government/Credit Bond Index	Bloomberg U.S. Universal 1-5 Year Index
Cost and size
Measure	GVI	ISTB
Expense ratio	0.20%	0.06%
Net assets	$3.8bn	$5.3bn
Holdings
Measure	GVI	ISTB
Holdings in common	53%

Method

Key numbers

−0.2%

GVI total return, 1 year

+1.0%

ISTB total return, 1 year

0.20%

GVI expense ratio

0.06%

ISTB expense ratio

What they share

53%

By the books each fund has filed, GVI and ISTB hold 53% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

53% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first GVI ISTB

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jul 15, 2028 0.65% 0.74%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Feb 28, 2030 0.62% 0.90%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Sep 30, 2030 0.55% 0.79%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jun 30, 2030 0.53% 0.61%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Oct 31, 2030 0.52% 0.88%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jul 31, 2030 0.53% 0.51%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Dec 31, 2030 0.51% 0.61%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Mar 15, 2028 0.49% 0.51%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jun 15, 2028 0.49% 1.08%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 31, 2030 0.48% 0.78%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due May 31, 2029 0.47% 0.65%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Apr 30, 2031 0.69% 0.46%

Only in one fund ↓

Only in GVI

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Feb 15, 2034 0.74%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due May 15, 2035 0.74%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Nov 15, 2034 0.73%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 15, 2035 0.73%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due May 15, 2036 0.72%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Nov 15, 2035 0.72%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 15, 2034 0.71%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Feb 15, 2036 0.69%

Only in ISTB

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 15, 2027 0.46%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jul 31, 2027 0.41%

Uniform Mortgage-Backed Security, TBA, due Aug 1, 2041 0.30%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jul 15, 2027 0.28%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Jul 31, 2027 0.25%

U.S. Treasury Notes, due Aug 31, 2027 0.20%

Freddie Mac Multifamily Structured Pass Through Certificates, due Aug 25, 2028 0.20%

Benchmark 2023-B38 Mortgage Trust, due Apr 15, 2056 0.14%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

GVI iShares Intermediate Government/Credit Bond ETF ISTB iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF

Where it sits Bond ETF Bond ETF

Issuer iShares iShares

What it is Tracks an index Tracks an index

Total return, 1 year −0.2% +1.0%

Its benchmark over the same days −1.0% (IUSB) −1.0% (IUSB)

Gap to its benchmark +0.8 pts vs IUSB +2.0 pts vs IUSB

Expense ratio 0.20% 0.06%

Holdings 6351 7602

Net assets $3.8bn $5.3bn

GVI and ISTB on the fields both publish, as of Nov 12, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

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About each fund

GVI

GVI tracks an index. Over the year to Nov 12, 2026 it returned −0.2% with distributions reinvested, against −1.0% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Universal Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.20% a year.

ISTB

ISTB tracks an index. Over the year to Nov 12, 2026 it returned +1.0% with distributions reinvested, against −1.0% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Universal Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.06% a year.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, GVI or ISTB?: In the year to Nov 12, 2026, with distributions reinvested, GVI returned −0.2% and ISTB +1.0%.
Which is cheaper, GVI or ISTB?: ISTB is cheaper, by 0.14 percentage points a year. That is about $14 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

GVI vs IGSB APCB vs GVI GVI vs NEAR GVI vs IBDT ISTB vs VCSH IBDU vs ISTB IBDT vs ISTB BSCS vs ISTB

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

GVI and ISTB filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

GVI prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for GVI ↗

ISTB prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for ISTB ↗

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, GVI against ISTB, data as of Nov 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/gvi-vs-istb

Open data →

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

Net assets on Nov 12, 2026: $3.8bn for iShares Intermediate Government/Credit Bond ETF and $5.3bn for iShares Core 1-5 Year USD Bond ETF.

GVI on its own →ISTB on its own →

Growth of 100

GVI and ISTB

Total return, distributions reinvested, 1 year.

GVI −0.2%ISTB +1.0%

Nov 12, 2025Nov 12, 2026

GVI −0.2%, ISTB +1.0%: ISTB +1.2 pts ahead, 1 year, Nov 12, 2025 to Nov 12, 2026.