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Launched · SEC filings

iShares Gold Trust

IAUNYSE ArcaiSharesB

$74.15+1.23 (+1.69%)

At close: Nov 2, 2026, 4:00 PM ET

B57/ 100

Rank 8 of 10 in Physical Gold

B57/100Rank 8 of 10inPhysical Gold
Intraday session: up, 79 prints from 72.92 to 74.15. Range 74.02 to 74.58. Use the arrow keys to read each point.73.2573.5073.7574.5010 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM
Expense ratio
0.25%
Fund size
$58.1B
1Y total return
−3.3%
Yield · Last 12 months
No data
Holdings
1
Avg volume · 30D
5.1M sh
52W range
low $72.72high $104.40
Launched
Filings
SEC EDGAR

The ETF.net IAU Grade

Based on 5 of 6 pillars

B

Score 57 out of 100

Category
Physical Gold⁠
Rank
8 of 10
Six-pillar profile for IAU. Scores out of 100: Cost 26, Risk 49, Mission 100, Tradability 51, Holdings not scored, Durability 82. Strongest: Mission (100). Weakest: Cost (26). Based on 5 of 6 pillars.

Score 57 of 100 falls in the B band. A is 70 or higher, B 55 to under 70, C 40 to under 55, D 25 to under 40, F under 25.

  • Cost

    The fund’s net expense ratio, ranked against its category.
    D26 out of 100
    Rank 8 of 10

  • Mission

    Whether the fund did what it promised, tested against its stated mandate.
    A100 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 9

  • Risk

    How the fund held up when markets fell: downside volatility, drawdowns and tail loss.
    C49 out of 100
    Rank 2 of 10

  • Tradability

    How easy the fund is to trade: daily volume, and how far its price strays from net asset value.
    C51 out of 100
    Rank 5 of 10

  • Holdings

    How concentrated the fund is, and how complete and current its disclosed holdings are.
    Not scored

  • Durability

    Whether the fund is likely to stay open, judged by its age, its assets and its issuer’s assets.
    A82 out of 100
    Rank 1 of 10

Our read on IAU

ETF.net Research

In short

BGold bars in a London vault, wrapped in a ticker since 2005. IAU is the veteran heavyweight of physical gold funds: bullion held by a custodian bank, priced off the London gold benchmark, tradable all day.

Stated mandate

The Trust seeks to reflect the price of gold bullion, after accounting for its expenses and liabilities. It provides exposure to physical gold.

Why people hold it

  • A twenty-year paper trail. Launched in 2005, with bullion held by JPMorgan Chase Bank's London branch and two decades of SEC filings anyone can read.sec.gov
  • No futures, no swaps, no roll mechanics. Each share is a fractional undivided interest in gold the trust actually holds, marked to the LBMA gold price.sec.gov
  • Costs less than the original US gold ETF: 0.25% a year against GLD's 0.40%. It's also one of the most actively traded funds in the physical gold group.
  • Simple mandate, cleanly executed: the trust aims to reflect the gold price minus its expenses, and it has tracked that job about as closely as the structure allows.

Worth knowing

  • Fees sit above the cohort median (0.25% vs 0.17%). iShares sells a micro version of the same exposure, IAUM, at 0.09%, and GLDM charges 0.10%.
  • The trust earns no income, so it sells gold to pay the sponsor's fee. The gold behind each share declines over time, and shareholders get no distributions.sec.gov
  • Tax wrinkle: gains on a trust holding gold are treated as collectibles gains, which can carry a higher top long-term rate than most stock gains.sec.gov

IAU Holdings

Asset class
Other
Holdings
1
Top-10 weight
100%
Largest holding
Physical Gold100.0%
The fund’s holdings, weight-ordered — page 1 of 1.
#TickerCompanyWeight %SharesMarket valueHeld by ETFs
1No dataPhysical Gold100.00%0$58.1B8

Showing 1–1 of 1 holdings

IAU Performance

Launched Jan 21, 2005

Shows how $10,000 changes over the selected period, with cash distributions reinvested at the closing price on each ex-dividend date.

IAU$9,672
SPY tracks large US stocks. It provides market context, rather than representing this fund’s strategy, asset class or investment benchmark.$11,199
Oct 31, 2025 to Oct 30, 2026. IAU $9,672. SPY $11,199. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$10,000$12,000Oct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026

Oct 31, 2025 – Oct 30, 2026

Returns run to the Oct 30, 2026 close, with cash distributions reinvested. Each period starts on the same date that many months or years earlier. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.

Trailing total return for IAU. Periods over one year show the average yearly return.
PeriodIAU
Year to date−10.2%
1 month−6.6%
3 months−4.3%
1 year−3.3%
3 yearsper year+24.7%
5 yearsper year+16.5%
10 yearsper year+11.5%

With distributions reinvested.

Calendar-year total return with cash distributions hypothetically reinvested at the ex-dividend date’s closing price. The current year shows year to date.

Annual total returns for IAU
YearReturn barIAU
2026 YTD−10.2%
2025+63.9%
2024+26.9%
2023+12.8%
2022−0.6%
2021−4.0%
2020+25.0%

IAU in the news

IAU Dividends

This fund pays no distributions.
No dataLast 12 months
Payout per share
No dataLast 12 months

No distributions in the last 12 months.

IAU Risk

Risk pillarC49 out of 100Rank 2 of 10 in Physical Gold
How much the fund’s monthly returns vary, scaled to a year.
19.4%
Annualised · 36 months to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: standard deviation

The sample standard deviation of monthly total returns, multiplied by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Total returns include reinvested distributions.

Return above 3-month US Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
1.01
vs 3-month T-bills · to Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: Sharpe ratio

Subtract each month’s Treasury-bill return from the fund’s monthly total return.

Divide the average of those excess returns by their sample standard deviation, then multiply by the square root of 12.

Uses up to 36 complete months, with at least 12 required. Each month uses the Treasury yield quoted at the end of the previous month.

The largest fall from a peak to the low that followed.
−28.2%
Trough Oct 2026
How it’s calculated: maximum drawdown

The largest percentage decline from an earlier peak, using total returns with reinvested distributions.

Uses up to five years through the last close, with at least 12 months required.

How strongly the fund’s returns move with its asset-class index.
0.41
vs its asset-class index
How it’s calculated: beta

The beta figure is supplied by FMP. The comparison index depends on the fund’s broad asset class.

FMP measures it over up to five years of monthly returns.

IAU Cost

Compare IAU and IAUM

Overpaying vs IAUM, cheapest in Physical Gold

$3,261

On $10,000 over 30 years. 7% growth a year before fees, expense ratio only.

  • IAU 0.25%

    $5,159

  • IAUM 0.09% Cheapest

    $1,898

$10,000
30 years

Cost over time

  • IAU 0.25%
  • IAUM 0.09%
  • Overpaying
One line per fund, from year 0 to year 30. Use the arrow keys to read each point.$0$2K$4K$6K051015202530IAU $5,159IAUM $1,898

Year by year

YearIAUIAUMOverpaying
10$455$165$290
20$1,769$646$1,123
30$5,159$1,898$3,261

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