HYG vs HYLS: Differences, Returns & Fees
HYG's duration was 3.0 years on May 31, 2026 and HYLS's 2.9 on Jul 31, 2026; HYG charges 0.49% to HYLS's 0.69%. Net assets on Oct 20, 2026: $16.2bn for iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF and $1.6bn for First Trust Tactical High Yield ETF.
HYG costs 0.20 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.5 points; HYG is 10.2 times larger.
| HYG | HYLS | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.49% | 0.69% |
| Net assets | $16.2bn | $1.6bn |
| Total return, 1 year | +0.7% | +0.2% |
| What it tracks | Markit iBoxx USD Liquid High Yield Index | No index, actively managed |
| Holdings in common | not published | |
HYG and HYLS are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?
- What each follows. HYG follows Markit iBoxx USD Liquid High Yield Index and HYLS follows No index, actively managed.
- Number of holdings. HYG holds 1,334 positions and HYLS holds 332.
- Cost. HYG charges 0.49% of assets a year and HYLS 0.69%, a gap of 0.20 points.
Data as of Oct 20, 2026. The differences are picked by a fixed rule, in a fixed order; the PDF prints it. Page 2 has the returns, overlap, risks and sources.
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On the same fields
HYG and HYLS on the fields both publish, as of Oct 20, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
About HYG
HYG tracks an index of US high yield bonds. Over the year to Oct 20, 2026 it returned +0.7% with distributions reinvested, against −1.6% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Universal Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.49% a year.
About HYLS
HYLS is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 20, 2026 it returned +0.2% with distributions reinvested, against +1.2% for its benchmark, the ICE BofA US High Yield Constrained Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.69% a year.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, HYG or HYLS?
- In the year to Oct 20, 2026, with distributions reinvested, HYG returned +0.7% and HYLS +0.2%.
- Which is cheaper, HYG or HYLS?
- HYG is cheaper, by 0.20 percentage points a year. That is about $20 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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ETFIQ, HYG against HYLS, data as of Oct 20, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hyg-vs-hyls
ETFIQ. (Oct 20, 2026). HYG against HYLS. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hyg-vs-hyls
[HYG against HYLS (ETFIQ, Oct 20, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hyg-vs-hyls)
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