GIGB vs QLTA: Grades, Fees and Holdings Compared

Goldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF

GIGBANYSE Arca

iShares Aaa - A Rated Corporate Bond ETF

QLTAANYSE Arca

Overlap

No data

Expense ratio

GIGB −0.07pt a year

GIGB0.08%QLTA0.15%

Avg volume · 30D

QLTA 3.2×the volume

GIGB83.7KQLTA271K

5Y return · a year

GIGB +0.2pt

GIGB−0.2%QLTA−0.4%

GIGB vs QLTA Performance

Oct 29, 2021 – Oct 30, 2026

−0.8%GIGB−2.2%QLTA

Expense ratio: GIGB 0.08%, better; QLTA 0.15%
Fund size: GIGB $1.04B; QLTA $1.19B
1Y total return: GIGB −0.5%, better; QLTA −0.9%
Yield (12M): GIGB 4.77%, better; QLTA 4.68%
Holdings: GIGB 2719; QLTA 3539
Avg volume (30D): GIGB 83.7K sh; QLTA 271K sh, better
NAV per share: GIGB $44.25; QLTA $45.88
52W range

ETF.net Grade

Pillar letters and Scores for GIGB, QLTA, with each pillar’s weight
Pillar	GIGB	QLTA
Cost30% weight	A94Higher	A78
Mission25% weight	A100	A100
Risk15% weight	C54Higher	C41
Tradability15% weight	C45	A83Higher
Holdings10% weight	A87	A89Higher
Durability5% weight	A74	A83Higher

Rank among Investment Grade Corporate funds

How we build Categories ›

Same Category. GIGB and QLTA are both graded against the same 49 Investment Grade Corporate funds, so their Grades compare head to head.

Investment Grade Corporate⁠

Category · 49 funds

See all 49 ›

GIGB ranks 4th and QLTA 4th of 49 funds in the Investment Grade Corporate Category.

Rank 1AUSIGiShares Broad USD Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETFScore 90
Rank 2ASPBOState Street SPDR Portfolio Corporate Bond ETFScore 89
Rank 3AVTCVanguard Total Corporate Bond ETFScore 83
Rank 4AGIGBGoldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETFScore 80
Rank 4AQLTAiShares Aaa - A Rated Corporate Bond ETFScore 80
Rank 6AIGEBiShares Investment Grade Systematic Bond ETFScore 79

Our read on each fund

ETF.net Research

GIGBAGoldman Sachs Access Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF

QLTAAiShares Aaa - A Rated Corporate Bond ETF

In short

GIGB Most investment-grade corporate bond funds just buy the biggest borrowers. Goldman's index screens the market on liquidity and fundamentals first, then spreads the money across roughly 1,600 bonds for 0.08% a year.

QLTA "Investment grade" spans a lot of ground, and its bottom rung sits one downgrade from junk. QLTA cuts that rung out and holds only Aaa through A corporate bonds: the credit-quality purist of the corporate bond aisle, running since 2012.

Stated mandate

GIGB The Fund seeks to track the FTSE Goldman Sachs Investment Grade Corporate Bond Index, which measures U.S.-dollar-denominated investment-grade corporate bonds meeting liquidity and fundamental screening criteria.

QLTA The fund seeks to track an index of U.S.-dollar investment-grade corporate bonds rated Aaa through A.

Why people hold it

GIGB Costs 0.08% a year, well under the typical investment-grade corporate bond ETF's 0.19%.
The index screens US dollar investment-grade corporates for liquidity and fundamentals rather than simply following who borrowed the most.gsam.com
Tracks that index about as tightly as passive bond funds get, and holds roughly 1,600 bonds so no single issuer carries the load.
Pays monthly, matching how corporate bond coupons tend to land in a portfolio.

QLTA The whole design in one line: only Aaa through A rated corporate bonds, so the BBB tier that sits a single notch above junk never enters the portfolio.ishares.com
Charges 0.15% a year, below the typical fee among investment-grade corporate bond ETFs.
Spreads across thousands of bonds from US and non-US corporations, and pays income monthly.ishares.com
Has hugged its benchmark, the Bloomberg U.S. Corporate Aaa - A Capped Index, closely since launching in 2012, one of the tighter implementations in its peer group.

Worth knowing

GIGB Cheap, but not the cheapest shelf: VCIT, USIG and SPIB run at 0.03% to 0.04%. You are paying a few basis points for the screening.
Broad-maturity corporate credit moves on two levers, interest rates and credit spreads, so it swings more than short-dated bond funds.
A mid-sized, moderately traded fund rather than a giant, so trading spreads can run wider than the largest names in the category.

QLTA The quality filter has a price. Broad investment-grade rivals such as USIG and VCIT own the full ladder, BBB included, for a fraction of this fee.
High ratings are credit protection, not rate protection. This is still a corporate bond fund, and its share price moves when interest rates move.ishares.com
A multi-billion-dollar fund, but a moderately traded one rather than a household-name corporate bond ETF, so spreads can widen when markets get busy.

Full GIGB profile⁠

Full QLTA profile⁠

GIGB vs QLTA Holdings

How GIGB and QLTA differ

No overlap figure

Two bond funds rarely hold the same issues.

Level by level

Countryby domicile97.5%
Asset classFixed Income100%

Sector

No Sector split for GIGB.

Country, concentration and asset class

Country by domicile

Country weights in GIGB and QLTA, widest gap first
Country	More in GIGBMore in QLTA	GIGB	QLTA
Japan	QLTA +0.9 points	2.2%	3.1%
Canada	GIGB +0.7 points	3.9%	3.2%
Ireland	GIGB +0.5 points	0.6%	0.1%
United Kingdom	QLTA +0.5 points	3.2%	3.7%
Other countries (19)	GIGB +0.1 points	90.1%	90.0%

Concentration

Weight in the 10 largest Holdings

GIGB2.3%
QLTA2.2%

Securities held

GIGB2,717
QLTA3,537

Asset class

GIGB: Fixed Income
QLTA: Fixed Income

Holdings

Two bond funds rarely hold the same issues, so this page lists no shared Holdings. GIGB holds 2,717 securities, QLTA 3,537.

All 2,717 GIGB holdings⁠All 3,563 QLTA holdings⁠

How we measure overlap

Each holding counts at its smaller weight in the two funds, summed over the full Holdings. Sector, country and asset class use the same rule on each fund’s split. Cash, FX and derivative lines stay out of the counts. Two bond funds get no overlap figure.

GIGB vs QLTA Cost

Overpaying QLTA vs GIGB

$1,448

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

GIGB 0.08%
$1,689
QLTA 0.15%
$3,137

Amount$10,000

Years30 years

Cost over time

GIGB 0.08%
QLTA 0.15%
Overpaying

Year by year

Year	GIGB	QLTA	Overpaying
10	$147	$274	$127
20	$575	$1,071	$496
30	$1,689	$3,137	$1,448

Expense ratio

0.08%GIGB, cheaper
0.15%QLTA

GIGB0.08%QLTA0.15%

0.03%0.53%

Middle half of Investment Grade Corporate funds
Median 0.25%

GIGB 4th cheapest of 49 funds

QLTA 10th cheapest of 49 funds

GIGB vs QLTA Dividends

Last 12 months to Oct 30, 2026

Yield (12M): GIGB 4.77%, better; QLTA 4.68%
Payout (12M): GIGB $2.12; QLTA $2.15
Last payment: GIGB $0.18; QLTA $0.18
Ex-dividend: GIGB Oct 1, 2026; QLTA Oct 1, 2026
Paid on: GIGB Oct 7, 2026; QLTA Oct 6, 2026
Frequency: GIGB Monthly; QLTA Monthly

Distribution history

Per share, 2023 to 2026, same scale for both

GIGBMonthly · 45 paymentsAll GIGB payments⁠

QLTAMonthly · 45 paymentsAll QLTA payments⁠

GIGB vs QLTA Risk

Fall from peak · 5 years

GIGB
QLTA

Risk facts

VolatilityStd dev, 3 years: GIGB 6.5%QLTA 6.3%, better
Return per unit of riskSharpe ratio, 3 years: GIGB 0.30, betterQLTA 0.21
Worst fallMax drawdown, 5 years: GIGB −21.9%QLTA −21.0%, better
Market sensitivityBeta, 5 years: GIGB 1.04QLTA 1.10; Market = 1

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