Which came closer to its stated multiple, DUST or NUGT?

Over the window to Sep 30, 2026, DUST finished 3.4 points from what its multiple implies and NUGT finished 6.3 points from its own, so DUST came closer. Neither figure predicts the next window: it depends on how much the underlying moves about.

Are DUST and NUGT levered on the same thing?

Yes. Both are levered on gold miners, DUST at -2 times and NUGT at +2 times the daily move.

Which one decays faster, DUST or NUGT?

Decay follows how much the underlying moves about. Over this window DUST’s moved at 48% annualized and NUGT’s at 48%, so DUST has the rougher ride and, at the same multiple, loses more to compounding.

Can I hold DUST or NUGT for a year?

Both reset every day, so the multiple in the name applies to a single day and the daily results compound. Over a year the total is not the multiple times the year’s move, and in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less. ETFIQ makes no recommendation either way.

Which is cheaper, DUST or NUGT?

DUST charges 0.94% a year and NUGT charges 1.13%, so DUST is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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DUST vs NUGT: which held to its multiple?

Over three months against its own daily promise, DUST finished 1.7 points over and NUGT 1.7 points short. Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bear 2X ETF and Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bull 2X ETF.

−37.3%

DUST returned, 3 months

+27.6%

NUGT returned, 3 months

−3.4 pts

DUST from its stated multiple

−6.3 pts

NUGT from its stated multiple

DUST · 3 months to Sep 30, 20263.4 pts short of its stated multiple

DUST returned −37.3% while −2 times GDX's move would have been −33.9%

NUGT · 3 months to Sep 30, 20266.3 pts short of its stated multiple

NUGT returned +27.6% while 2 times GDX's move would have been +33.9%

ETFIQ Decay Resistance Score · NUGT scores higherDid it keep up with its own daily multiple, compounded day by day?

DUST among the 125 inverse ETFs over three months

DUST 60.8

0.4, the lowest in this set99.6, the highest

NUGT among the 470 leveraged ETFs, long, over three months

NUGT 80.6

0.1, the lowest in this set99.9, the highest

A percentile among the 125 inverse ETFs over three months. NUGT is a percentile among the 470 leveraged ETFs, long, over three months, a different set, so the two marks are not on one scale. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All leveraged ETFs ranked by it → How it is computed →

Performance, window by window

	Total return		Multiple would give		Difference
Window	DUST	NUGT	DUST	NUGT	DUST	NUGT
1 month	+21.4%	−22.0%	+21.7%	−21.7%	−0.3 pts	−0.2 pts
3 months	−37.3%	+27.6%	−33.9%	+33.9%	−3.4 pts	−6.3 pts
6 months	−12.6%	−27.7%	+17.1%	−17.1%	−29.7 pts	−10.6 pts
1 year	−62.2%	−3.7%	−31.5%	+31.5%	−30.7 pts	−35.1 pts
3 years	−97.0%	+474.5%	not meaningful	not meaningful	not meaningful	not meaningful
Since launch DUST Dec 2010 · NUGT Dec 2010	−100.0%	−99.8%	−134.3%	+134.3%	+34.3 pts	−234.1 pts

DUST and NUGT over each window. Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →

On the same fields

DUST

Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bear 2X ETF · Aims to return twice the opposite of the daily move of gold miners (GDX)

NUGT

Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bull 2X ETF · Aims to return twice the daily move of gold miners (GDX)

Issuer Direxion Direxion

Sets out to return -2x +2x

Underlying asset GDX GDX

Segment metal metal

Fund returned, 3 months or since launch −37.3% +27.6%

Underlying returned, over that window +17.0% +17.0%

What the stated multiple implies, over that window −33.9% +33.9%

Difference from stated, over that window −3.4 pts −6.3 pts

Fund returned, 1 year or since launch −62.2% −3.7%

Difference from stated, over that window −30.7 pts −35.1 pts

Underlying volatility 48% 48%

Expense ratio 0.94% 1.13%

Launched Dec 8, 2010 Dec 8, 2010

Net assets $104m $1.0bn

DUST and NUGT on the same fields, as of Sep 30, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

DUST in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: DUST returned −37.3% where its own daily promise gave −39.0%, 1.7 points over. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and −2 times GDX's 17.0% implies −33.9%, which makes DUST look 3.4 points short. 5.1 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any −2 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. DUST aims to return -2 times GDX's move each day, then resets. Over one day it does that. Over longer, the daily results compound, so the total is not -2 times the period's move: in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less, and in a steady run it can be more. GDX moved at 48% annualized over that window. That is what decides how far the two figures separate: the same fund on a calm underlying and a violent one is a different product.

NUGT in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: NUGT returned +27.6% where its own daily promise gave +29.3%, 1.7 points short. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and 2 times GDX's 17.0% implies +33.9%, which makes NUGT look 6.3 points short. 4.6 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any 2 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. NUGT aims to return +2 times GDX's move each day, then resets. Over longer, the daily results compound, so the total is not +2 times the period's move: in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less, and in a steady run it can be more.

Questions people ask

Which came closer to its stated multiple, DUST or NUGT?: Over the window to Sep 30, 2026, DUST finished 3.4 points from what its multiple implies and NUGT finished 6.3 points from its own, so DUST came closer. Neither figure predicts the next window: it depends on how much the underlying moves about.
Are DUST and NUGT levered on the same thing?: Yes. Both are levered on gold miners, DUST at -2 times and NUGT at +2 times the daily move.
Which one decays faster, DUST or NUGT?: Decay follows how much the underlying moves about. Over this window DUST’s moved at 48% annualized and NUGT’s at 48%, so DUST has the rougher ride and, at the same multiple, loses more to compounding.
Can I hold DUST or NUGT for a year?: Both reset every day, so the multiple in the name applies to a single day and the daily results compound. Over a year the total is not the multiple times the year’s move, and in a market that falls and comes back it is reliably less. ETFIQ makes no recommendation either way.
Which is cheaper, DUST or NUGT?: DUST charges 0.94% a year and NUGT charges 1.13%, so DUST is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

DUST vs GDXD DUST vs GDXU NUGT vs GDXD NUGT vs GDXU

GDX →DUST on its own →NUGT on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

DUST and NUGT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗DUST and NUGT prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗Direxion website ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page

ETFIQ, DUST against NUGT, data as of Sep 30, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/leverage/dust-vs-nugt

Open data

Free to use with attribution. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.