Are IAU and IBB in the same category?

IAU is a commodity ETF and IBB is a thematic ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.

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

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IAU returned +2.7% and IBB +37.5%.

Which is cheaper, IAU or IBB?

IAU is cheaper, by 0.19 percentage points a year. That is about $19 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

IAU vs IBB: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, IAU returned +2.7% to IBB's +37.5%, and IAU charges 0.25% to IBB's 0.44%.

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Net assets: $60.1bn on Oct 28, 2026 for iShares Gold Trust, and $11.0bn on Oct 27, 2026 for iShares Biotechnology ETF.

IAU on its own →IBB on its own →

At a glance

+2.7%

IAU total return, 1 year

+37.5%

IBB total return, 1 year

0.25%

IAU expense ratio

0.44%

IBB expense ratio

Pair scorecard

IAU costs 0.19 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 34.8 points; IAU is 5.5 times larger.

IAU vs IBB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	IAU	IBB
Return
Measure	IAU	IBB
Total return, 1 year	+2.7%	+37.5%
Drawdown
Measure	IAU	IBB
Below its high	24.6%, high on Jan 29, 2026
Benchmark
Measure	IAU	IBB
What it tracks	Gold	Biotech
Cost and size
Measure	IAU	IBB
Expense ratio	0.25%	0.44%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$60.3bn	$11.0bn
Active share vs the S&P 500		99%
Holdings
Measure	IAU	IBB
Holdings in common	not published
In the S&P 500, by weight		40%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund		50%

Method

Side by side

IAU iShares Gold Trust IBB iShares Biotechnology ETF

Where it sits Commodity ETF Thematic ETF

Issuer iShares iShares

What it is Holds gold Biotech

Total return, 1 year +2.7% +37.5%

Its benchmark over the same days +2.5% (GLD) not measured

Gap to its benchmark +0.2 pts vs GLD not measured

Expense ratio 0.25% 0.44%

Holdings not counted 245

Net assets, IAU as of Oct 28, 2026 and IBB as of Oct 27, 2026 $60.1bn $11.0bn

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

Alert

About each fund

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.

IBB

By weight, 40% of IBB's portfolio is stocks that are also in the S&P 500; its active share against the S&P 500 is 99%. The top ten holdings are 50% of the fund across 245 positions, as published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 the fund returned +37.5% with distributions reinvested.

Questions people ask

Are IAU and IBB in the same category?: IAU is a commodity ETF and IBB is a thematic ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, IAU or IBB?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IAU returned +2.7% and IBB +37.5%.
Which is cheaper, IAU or IBB?: IAU is cheaper, by 0.19 percentage points a year. That is about $19 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's own filings.

Other comparisons

IAU vs XBI GDX vs IAU AIRR vs IAU IAU vs LYTE IBB vs SIVR GLDM vs IBB IBB vs SLV GLD vs IBB

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

iShares page for IAU ↗

IBB filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

IBB prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for IBB ↗

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

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

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

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