SCMB vs TAXT

SCMBASchwab Municipal Bond ETF

TAXTANorthern Trust Tax-Exempt Bond ETF

In short

SCMB Schwab's take on the core muni sleeve: three basis points, thousands of AMT-free bonds from across the country, and a monthly distribution. Bottom-of-the-table pricing, no frills attached.

TAXT Northern Trust's muni index fund charges 0.05% a year, a fraction of the typical muni ETF fee, and spreads across roughly 1,300 investment-grade bonds along the full maturity curve. Cheap, plain, and brand new.

Stated mandate

SCMB The fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the total return of an index representing the U.S. AMT-free municipal bond market.

TAXT The Fund seeks results generally corresponding to the price and yield performance of the ICE All Maturity Focused Municipal Bond Index before fees and expenses. It is designed for tax-exempt income through passively managed investment-grade municipal bonds spanning the full municipal curve.

Why people hold it

• SCMB Three basis points a year, against a 0.30% median for muni bond funds. Among the top-graded names in the category, only Vanguard's VTEB matches that fee.
• Follows the ICE AMT-Free Core U.S. National Municipal Index across thousands of bonds and issuers, so no single borrower or state drives the portfolio.
• Plain passive plumbing done well: it stays close to its index, trades actively, and pays monthly. One of the stronger implementations in the muni aisle.

• TAXT Charges 0.05% a year against a 0.30% median for muni bond ETFs, so less of the tax-free coupon leaks out to fees.
• Roughly 1,300 investment-grade munis, short bonds to long, tracking the ICE All Maturity Focused Municipal Bond Index. No manager bets, no single-state tilt.
• Pays income monthly, and the build sits in the top quartile of a crowded national muni field on cost, mandate clarity and portfolio construction.

Worth knowing

• SCMB Launched in 2022, so its live record is shorter than muni staples like MUB and VTEB, even though the strategy is the same broad-market idea.
• Bond math still applies. This is a portfolio of municipal bonds, so share prices move opposite to interest rates.
• National in scope, not single-state like NYF, so it is not built around any one state's tax rules.

• TAXT Launched in August 2025, so there is no record yet across a full interest-rate cycle.
• Volume is light next to entrenched rivals like VTEB and MUB, which can widen the spread you pay on larger orders.
• Cheap, but not the floor: Vanguard's VTEB and Schwab's SCMB run 0.03%.

Full SCMB profile⁠

Full TAXT profile⁠