Are ISMF and TLT in the same category?

ISMF is an alternatives ETF and TLT is a bond ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.

Which returned more over the last year, ISMF or TLT?

In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, ISMF returned +10.9% and TLT −4.8%.

Which is cheaper, ISMF or TLT?

TLT is cheaper, by 0.65 percentage points a year. That is about $65 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Across categories

ISMF vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees

Share on X Download as PDF

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, ISMF returned +10.9% to TLT's −4.8%, and TLT charges 0.15% to ISMF's 0.80%.

askIQ about this page

askIQ about ISMF and TLT

Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $37m for iShares Managed Futures Active ETF and $48.3bn for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF.

ISMF on its own →TLT on its own →

At a glance

+10.9%

ISMF total return, 1 year

−4.8%

TLT total return, 1 year

0.80%

ISMF expense ratio

0.15%

TLT expense ratio

Pair scorecard

TLT costs 0.65 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 15.7 points; TLT is far larger, $48.3bn against $37m.

ISMF vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	ISMF	TLT
Return
Measure	ISMF	TLT
Total return, 1 year	+10.9%	−4.8%
Total return, 52 weeks	+10.5%
Drawdown
Measure	ISMF	TLT
Below its high		41.8%, high on Aug 4, 2020
Against its benchmark
Measure	ISMF	TLT
What it tracks	not published	ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index
Treasury bills, 52 weeks	+3.7%
Against cash	6.8 points ahead
Cost and size
Measure	ISMF	TLT
Expense ratio	0.80%	0.15%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026	$37m	$48.3bn
Holdings
Measure	ISMF	TLT
Holdings in common	not published
Risk
Measure	ISMF	TLT
Correlation with the S&P 500’s weekly returns	+0.48
Beta to the S&P 500	+0.31: about 0.31% for each 1%
Its average week when the S&P 500 fell	fell 0.38%
Down-week capture	35.9%
Weeks the S&P 500 fell	26 of 52, by 1.07% on average

Method

Side by side

ISMF iShares Managed Futures Active ETF TLT iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF

Where it sits Alternatives ETF Bond ETF

Issuer iShares iShares

What it is Managed futures Tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries

Total return, 1 year +10.9% −4.8%

Its benchmark over the same days not measured −4.7% (BBLB)

Gap to its benchmark not measured −0.1 pts vs BBLB

Expense ratio 0.80% 0.15%

Holdings not read by ETFIQ 47

Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $37m $48.3bn

ISMF and TLT on the fields both publish, as of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Alert

About each fund

ISMF

ISMF is a managed futures fund. ETFIQ measures what every alternatives fund is sold on: whether it moves differently from the stock market. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, its weekly returns had a correlation of +0.48 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.31, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.31% the same way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks ISMF fell 0.38% on average, a down-week capture of 35.9%. Over the same 52 weeks ISMF returned +10.5% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 6.8 percentage points ahead of cash.

TLT

TLT tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries. Over the year to Nov 4, 2026 it returned −4.8% with distributions reinvested, against −4.7% for its benchmark, the ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.15% a year. It sat 41.8% below its high of Aug 4, 2020 on Nov 4, 2026.

Questions people ask

Are ISMF and TLT in the same category?: ISMF is an alternatives ETF and TLT is a bond ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, ISMF or TLT?: In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, ISMF returned +10.9% and TLT −4.8%.
Which is cheaper, ISMF or TLT?: TLT is cheaper, by 0.65 percentage points a year. That is about $65 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AGG vs ISMF BND vs ISMF GLD vs ISMF ISMF vs QQQ MFUT vs TLT ASMF vs TLT PRAE vs TLT AHLT vs TLT

Where to next

BIL, the T-bill fund these are measured against →SPY, the S&P 500 fund these are measured against →ISMF on its own →TLT on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →ISMF dividend history →TLT dividend history →TLT holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

ISMF filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

ISMF prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for ISMF ↗

TLT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

TLT prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

iShares page for TLT ↗

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

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, ISMF against TLT, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ismf-vs-tlt

Open data →

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