Which returned more over the last year, HYG or IAU?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, HYG returned +1.3% and IAU +2.7%.

Which is cheaper, HYG or IAU?

IAU is cheaper, by 0.24 percentage points a year. That is about $24 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

HYG vs IAU: Differences, Returns & Fees

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HYG is a bond index fund and IAU a commodity fund, and over the year to Oct 28, 2026, IAU returned +2.7% against +1.3%.

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Net assets: $17.5bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF, and $60.1bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares Gold Trust.

HYG on its own →IAU on its own →

At a glance

+1.3%

HYG total return, 1 year

+2.7%

IAU total return, 1 year

0.49%

HYG expense ratio

0.25%

IAU expense ratio

Pair scorecard

IAU costs 0.24 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.4 points; IAU is 3.4 times larger.

HYG vs IAU: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	HYG	IAU
Return
Measure	HYG	IAU
Total return, 1 year	+1.3%	+2.7%
Drawdown
Measure	HYG	IAU
Below its high		24.6%, high on Jan 29, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	HYG	IAU
What it tracks	Markit iBoxx USD Liquid High Yield Index	Gold
Cost and size
Measure	HYG	IAU
Expense ratio	0.49%	0.25%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$17.5bn	$60.3bn
Holdings
Measure	HYG	IAU
Holdings in common	not published

Method

Side by side

HYG iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF IAU iShares Gold Trust

Where it sits Bond ETF Commodity ETF

Issuer iShares iShares

What it is Tracks an index of US high yield bonds Holds gold

Total return, 1 year +1.3% +2.7%

Its benchmark over the same days −1.2% (IUSB) +2.5% (GLD)

Gap to its benchmark +2.5 pts vs IUSB +0.2 pts vs GLD

Expense ratio 0.49% 0.25%

Holdings 1332 not counted

Net assets, HYG as of Oct 27, 2026 and IAU as of Oct 28, 2026 $17.5bn $60.1bn

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

Alert

About each fund

HYG

HYG tracks an index of US high yield bonds. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +1.3% with distributions reinvested, against −1.2% for its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Universal Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.49% a year.

IAU

Its expense ratio is 0.25% a year, for the three months to Jun 30, 2026, as its 10-Q states.

IAU holds gold. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +2.7% with distributions reinvested, against +2.5% for its benchmark, the price of gold. It sat 24.6% below its high of Jan 29, 2026 on Oct 28, 2026.

Questions people ask

Which returned more over the last year, HYG or IAU?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, HYG returned +1.3% and IAU +2.7%.
Which is cheaper, HYG or IAU?: IAU is cheaper, by 0.24 percentage points a year. That is about $24 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Other comparisons

HYG vs SLV HYG vs USO GLD vs HYG HYG vs SIVR IAU vs USHY IAU vs JNK IAU vs LQD IAU vs IEI

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

HYG filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

HYG prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for HYG ↗

iShares page for IAU ↗

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

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, HYG against IAU, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hyg-vs-iau

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