GLL vs UGLD: which held to its multiple?

Over three months against its own daily promise, GLL finished 3.0 points over and UGLD 2.4 points short. ProShares UltraShort Gold and Direxion Daily Gold Bull 2X ETF.

−6.6%
GLL returned, 3 months
+1.6%
UGLD returned, 3 months
−1.0 pts
GLL from its stated multiple
−3.9 pts
UGLD from its stated multiple
GLL · 3 months to Sep 30, 20261 pt short of its stated multiple
1 pt short of its stated multipleGLL returned −6.6% while −2 times GLD's move would have been −5.5%GLD +2.8% ×−2 implies−5.5%GLL returned−6.6%1 pt short of its stated multipleGLL returned −6.6% while −2 times GLD's move would have been −5.5%GLD +2.8% ×−2 implies−5.5%GLL returned−6.6%

GLL returned −6.6% while −2 times GLD's move would have been −5.5%

UGLD · 3 months to Sep 30, 20263.9 pts short of its stated multiple
3.9 pts short of its stated multipleUGLD returned +1.6% while 2 times GLD's move would have been +5.5%GLD +2.8% ×2 implies+5.5%UGLD returned+1.6%3.9 pts short of its stated multipleUGLD returned +1.6% while 2 times GLD's move would have been +5.5%GLD +2.8% ×2 implies+5.5%UGLD returned+1.6%

UGLD returned +1.6% while 2 times GLD's move would have been +5.5%

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

GLL among the 125 inverse ETFs over three months

GLL 82.8
0.4, the lowest in this set99.6, the highest

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

UGLD 57
0.1, the lowest in this set99.9, the highest

A percentile among the 125 inverse ETFs over three months. UGLD 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 returnMultiple would giveDifference
WindowGLLUGLDGLLUGLDGLLUGLD
1 month+14.6%−14.0%+13.5%−13.5%+1.1 pts−0.5 pts
3 months−6.6%+1.6%−5.5%+5.5%−1.0 pts−3.9 pts
6 months+27.9%not published+26.0%not published+1.9 ptsnot published
1 year−25.1%not published−14.3%not published−10.8 ptsnot published
3 years−80.6%not publishednot meaningfulnot publishednot meaningfulnot published
Since launch
GLL Jan 2010 · UGLD May 2026
−96.8%−19.6%not meaningful−15.5%not meaningful−4.2 pts

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

On the same fields

GLL
ProShares UltraShort Gold · Aims to return twice the opposite of the daily move of gold (GLD)
UGLD
Direxion Daily Gold Bull 2X ETF · Aims to return twice the daily move of gold (GLD)
Issuer ProShares Direxion
Sets out to return -2x +2x
Underlying asset GLD GLD
Segment metal metal
Fund returned, 3 months or since launch −6.6% +1.6%
Underlying returned, over that window +2.8% +2.8%
What the stated multiple implies, over that window −5.5% +5.5%
Difference from stated, over that window −1.0 pts −3.9 pts
Fund returned, 1 year or since launch −25.1% −19.6%
Difference from stated, over that window −10.8 pts −4.2 pts
Underlying volatility 25% 25%
Difference over the days both have traded no shared window −3.9 pts
Expense ratio 0.95% 1.07%
Launched Jan 4, 2010 May 28, 2026
Net assets $108m $10m

GLL and UGLD on the same fields, as of Sep 30, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

GLL in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: GLL returned −6.6% where its own daily promise gave −9.5%, 3.0 points over. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and −2 times GLD's 2.8% implies −5.5%, which makes GLL look 1.0 points short. 4.0 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any −2 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. GLL aims to return -2 times GLD'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. GLD moved at 25% 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.

UGLD in plain words

Three months to Sep 30, 2026: UGLD returned +1.6% where its own daily promise gave +4.0%, 2.4 points short. Read the multiple against the whole window instead and 2 times GLD's 2.8% implies +5.5%, which makes UGLD look 3.9 points short. 1.5 of that is daily compounding, which happens to any 2 times fund over the same path, and the rest is the fund. UGLD aims to return +2 times GLD'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, GLL or UGLD?
Over the window to Sep 30, 2026, GLL finished 1.0 points from what its multiple implies and UGLD finished 3.9 points from its own, so GLL came closer. Neither figure predicts the next window: it depends on how much the underlying moves about.
Are GLL and UGLD levered on the same thing?
Yes. Both are levered on gold, GLL at -2 times and UGLD at +2 times the daily move.
Which one decays faster, GLL or UGLD?
Decay follows how much the underlying moves about. Over this window GLL’s moved at 25% annualized and UGLD’s at 25%, so GLL has the rougher ride and, at the same multiple, loses more to compounding.
Can I hold GLL or UGLD 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, GLL or UGLD?
GLL charges 0.95% a year and UGLD charges 1.07%, so GLL is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
Where these figures came from

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, GLL against UGLD, data as of Sep 30, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/leverage/gll-vs-ugld

Open data

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