Are LALT and TLT in the same category?

LALT 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, LALT or TLT?

In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, LALT returned +12.0% and TLT −4.8%.

Which is cheaper, LALT or TLT?

TLT is cheaper, by 1.03 percentage points a year. That is about $103 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Across categories

LALT vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, LALT returned +12.0% to TLT's −4.8%, and TLT charges 0.15% to LALT's 1.18%.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $442m for First Trust Multi-Strategy Alternative ETF and $48.3bn for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF.

LALT on its own →TLT on its own →

At a glance

+12.0%

LALT total return, 1 year

−4.8%

TLT total return, 1 year

1.18%

LALT expense ratio

0.15%

TLT expense ratio

Pair scorecard

TLT costs 1.03 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 16.8 points; TLT is far larger, $48.3bn against $442m.

LALT vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	LALT	TLT
Return
Measure	LALT	TLT
Total return, 1 year	+12.0%	−4.8%
Total return, 52 weeks	+11.6%
Drawdown
Measure	LALT	TLT
Below its high		41.8%, high on Aug 4, 2020
Against its benchmark
Measure	LALT	TLT
What it tracks	not published	ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index
Treasury bills, 52 weeks	+3.7%
Against cash	8.0 points ahead
Cost and size
Measure	LALT	TLT
Expense ratio	1.18%	0.15%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026	$442m	$48.3bn
Holdings
Measure	LALT	TLT
Holdings in common	not published
Risk
Measure	LALT	TLT
Correlation with the S&P 500’s weekly returns	+0.34
Beta to the S&P 500	+0.17: about 0.17% for each 1%
Its average week when the S&P 500 fell	fell 0.10%
Down-week capture	8.9%
Weeks the S&P 500 fell	26 of 52, by 1.07% on average

Method

Side by side

LALT First Trust Multi-Strategy Alternative ETF TLT iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF

Where it sits Alternatives ETF Bond ETF

Issuer First Trust iShares

What it is Multi-strategy Tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries

Total return, 1 year +12.0% −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 1.18% 0.15%

Holdings not read by ETFIQ 47

Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $442m $48.3bn

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

Alert

About each fund

LALT

LALT is a multi-strategy 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 +0.34 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of +0.17, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.17% the same way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks LALT fell 0.10% on average, a down-week capture of 8.9%. Over the same 52 weeks LALT returned +11.6% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 8.0 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 LALT and TLT in the same category?: LALT 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, LALT or TLT?: In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, LALT returned +12.0% and TLT −4.8%.
Which is cheaper, LALT or TLT?: TLT is cheaper, by 1.03 percentage points a year. That is about $103 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AGG vs LALT BND vs LALT GLD vs LALT LALT vs QQQ FLSP vs TLT QAI vs TLT QALT vs TLT QIS vs TLT

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

LALT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

LALT prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

First Trust page for LALT ↗

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.

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

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