MEAR vs SUB

MEARBiShares Short Maturity Municipal Bond Active ETF

SUBAiShares Short-Term National Muni Bond ETF

In short

MEAR Active muni investing at the short end. Since 2015, iShares has hand-picked roughly 300 short-term municipal bonds here, chasing income exempt from federal tax and the AMT in a corner of the market most rivals index.

SUB Munis, but only the near end of the curve. Since 2008 SUB has tracked an AMT-free index of investment-grade municipal bonds maturing inside five years, paying tax-exempt income monthly with far less rate sensitivity than long-dated muni funds.

Stated mandate

MEAR The Fund seeks to maximize tax-free current income through active management of short-term municipal securities. It generally invests at least 80% of assets in municipal securities whose interest is exempt from U.S. federal income tax and the federal AMT.

SUB The fund seeks to track an index of short-term, investment-grade U.S. municipal bonds maturing from one month through five years, providing tax-exempt income while managing interest-rate risk.

Why people hold it

• MEAR Costs 0.26% a year, below the typical muni ETF, and that buys a manager picking bonds rather than a rulebook.
• At least 80% of assets sit in bonds whose interest is exempt from federal income tax and the federal AMT, spread across about 300 positions.ishares.com
• Short maturities mean milder price swings when rates move than long-dated muni portfolios face.
• A multi-billion-dollar fund that changes hands steadily, which tends to keep bid-ask costs contained.

• SUB Charges 0.07% a year against a category median near 0.30%. On tax-exempt bond income, that fee gap is a meaningful slice of what actually reaches you.
• Two dials set on purpose: maturities from one month to five years, and an AMT-free index, so neither rate swings nor the alternative minimum tax hit the same way.ishares.com
• A multi-billion-dollar fund running since 2008 under iShares, with tight tracking of its ICE benchmark. One of the sturdier implementations in the muni group.
• Pays monthly, so the tax-exempt income arrives on a regular cadence rather than in quarterly lumps.

Worth knowing

• MEAR Index muni funds go far cheaper: VTEB at 0.03% and MUB at 0.05%. Active security selection is the thing you are paying the difference for.
• No index to check the work against. Outcomes ride on the manager's credit and maturity calls.
• Payouts land on an irregular schedule, and the tax break is federal. State and local taxes can still apply.

• SUB The five-year ceiling is the whole design, and it cuts both ways: less rate sensitivity, but a shorter stretch of the curve to draw income from than full-maturity muni funds.
• This is a national portfolio. Single-state funds like NYF chase a home-state tax break that a nationwide muni basket cannot offer.
• Broad-maturity peers VTEB and SCMB run at 0.03%. The short-end tilt here costs a few basis points more.

Full MEAR profile⁠

Full SUB profile⁠