Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
HYG vs JAAA: Differences, Returns & Fees
HYG's duration was 2.9 years on Aug 31, 2026 and JAAA's 0.0 on Jul 31, 2026; JAAA charges 0.20% to HYG's 0.49%.
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Net assets: $17.5bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF, and $32.5bn on Oct 28, 2026 for Janus Henderson AAA CLO ETF.
Pair scorecard
JAAA costs 0.29 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.4 points; JAAA is 1.9 times larger.
| Measure | HYG | JAAA |
|---|---|---|
| Return | ||
| Total return, 1 year | +1.3% | +4.7% |
| Benchmark | ||
| What it tracks | Markit iBoxx USD Liquid High Yield Index | No index, actively managed |
| Cost and size | ||
| Expense ratio | 0.49% | 0.20% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026 | $17.5bn | $32.5bn |
| Holdings | ||
| Holdings in common | 0% | |
Holdings in common uses holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Aug 31, 2026. Method
Risk and return
Oct 30, 2020 to Oct 23, 2026 · 312 weekly returnsJAAA returned more: +31.1% to +27.1%. JAAA swung less: 1.3% to 6.7%. JAAA fell less at its worst: −2.5% to −15.4%.
Full scorecard
9 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓
| Measure | HYG | JAAA | Edge | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return | ||||
| Total return | +27.1% | +31.1% | JAAA | Price change plus distributions, reinvested. |
| Annualized | +4.1% | +4.6% | JAAA | Total return as a yearly rate. |
| Price return | −8.1% | +1.6% | JAAA | Price change alone, distributions left out. |
| Risk | ||||
| Volatility | 6.7% | 1.3% | JAAA | Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier. |
| Downside deviation | 4.5% | 1.0% | JAAA | Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate. |
| Max drawdown | −15.4% | −2.5% | JAAA | Deepest fall from a high to the low after it. |
| Risk-adjusted | ||||
| Sharpe | 0.14 | 0.93 | JAAA | Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility. |
| Sortino | 0.20 | 1.24 | JAAA | Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation. |
| Calmar | 0.26 | 1.82 | JAAA | Annualized return divided by the max drawdown. |
Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 312 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.
What they share
By the books each fund has filed, HYG and JAAA 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
HYG and JAAA on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.
HYG and JAAA do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?
- What each follows. HYG follows Markit iBoxx USD Liquid High Yield Index and JAAA follows No index, actively managed.
- Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Aug 31, 2026 and Jul 31, 2026).
- One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 HYG returned +1.3% and JAAA +4.7% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 3.4 points.
Data as of Oct 28, 2026.
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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.
JAAA
JAAA is actively managed and tracks no index. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +4.7% with distributions reinvested. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.20% a year.
Questions people ask
- Which returned more over the last year, HYG or JAAA?
- In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, HYG returned +1.3% and JAAA +4.7%.
- Which is cheaper, HYG or JAAA?
- JAAA is cheaper, by 0.29 percentage points a year. That is about $29 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.
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ETFIQ, HYG against JAAA, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hyg-vs-jaaa
ETFIQ. (Oct 28, 2026). HYG against JAAA. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hyg-vs-jaaa
[HYG against JAAA (ETFIQ, Oct 28, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/any/hyg-vs-jaaa)
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