Are TAIL and TLT in the same category?

TAIL 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, TAIL or TLT?

In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, TAIL returned −13.1% and TLT −4.8%.

Which is cheaper, TAIL or TLT?

TLT is cheaper, by 0.45 percentage points a year. That is about $45 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Across categories

TAIL vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees

Share on X Download as PDF

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, TAIL returned −13.1% to TLT's −4.8%, and TLT charges 0.15% to TAIL's 0.60%.

askIQ about this page

askIQ about TAIL and TLT

Net assets: $147m on Jul 31, 2026 for Cambria Tail Risk ETF, and $48.3bn on Nov 3, 2026 for iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF.

TAIL on its own →TLT on its own →

At a glance

−13.1%

TAIL total return, 1 year

−4.8%

TLT total return, 1 year

0.60%

TAIL expense ratio

0.15%

TLT expense ratio

Pair scorecard

TLT costs 0.45 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 8.3 points.

TAIL vs TLT: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	TAIL	TLT
Return
Measure	TAIL	TLT
Total return, 1 year	−13.1%	−4.8%
Total return, 52 weeks	−12.4%
Drawdown
Measure	TAIL	TLT
Below its high		41.8%, high on Aug 4, 2020
Against its benchmark
Measure	TAIL	TLT
What it tracks	not published	ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index
Treasury bills, 52 weeks	+3.7%
Against cash	16.0 points behind
Cost and size
Measure	TAIL	TLT
Expense ratio	0.60%	0.15%
Net assets, TAIL as of Jul 31, 2026 and TLT as of Nov 3, 2026	$147m	$48.3bn
Holdings
Measure	TAIL	TLT
Holdings in common	not published
Risk
Measure	TAIL	TLT
Correlation with the S&P 500’s weekly returns	−0.74
Beta to the S&P 500	−0.36: about 0.36% for each 1%
Its average week when the S&P 500 fell	rose 0.17%
Down-week capture	−15.9%
Weeks the S&P 500 fell	26 of 52, by 1.07% on average

Method

Side by side

TAIL Cambria Tail Risk ETF TLT iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF

Where it sits Alternatives ETF Bond ETF

Issuer Cambria iShares

What it is Hedged equity Tracks an index of 20+ year Treasuries

Total return, 1 year −13.1% −4.8%

Its benchmark over the same days +14.8% (VOO) −4.7% (BBLB)

Gap to its benchmark −27.9 pts vs VOO −0.1 pts vs BBLB

Expense ratio 0.60% 0.15%

Holdings not read by ETFIQ 47

Net assets, TAIL as of Jul 31, 2026 and TLT as of Nov 3, 2026 $147m $48.3bn

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

Alert

About each fund

TAIL

TAIL is a hedged equity 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 −0.74 with the S&P 500’s and a beta of −0.36, so for each 1% the index moved it moved about 0.36% the other way. The S&P 500 fell in 26 of those 52 weeks, by 1.07% on average. In the same weeks TAIL rose 0.17% on average, a down-week capture of −15.9%. Over the same 52 weeks TAIL returned −12.4% and a Treasury bill fund +3.7%, so it finished 16.0 percentage points behind 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 TAIL and TLT in the same category?: TAIL 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, TAIL or TLT?: In the year to Nov 4, 2026, with distributions reinvested, TAIL returned −13.1% and TLT −4.8%.
Which is cheaper, TAIL or TLT?: TLT is cheaper, by 0.45 percentage points a year. That is about $45 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AGG vs TAIL BND vs TAIL GLD vs TAIL TAIL vs VOO HELO vs TLT PHEQ vs TLT KSPY vs TLT SHDG vs TLT

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

TAIL filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

TAIL prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Cambria website ↗

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

Open data →

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