SGDM vs SIL

SGDMBSprott Gold Miners ETF

SILCGlobal X Silver Miners ETF

In short

SGDM SGDM doesn't just rank gold miners by size. It tracks a custom-factors index of roughly 50 larger miners listed in Canada and the US, and charges 0.46%, under its peer group's median fee.

SIL The original US silver-miner ETF, listed since 2010 and still the big, liquid name in a small aisle: about 40 global companies that mine, refine and explore for silver, rather than the metal in a vault.

Stated mandate

SGDM The fund seeks to track, before fees and expenses, the performance of the Solactive Gold Miners Custom Factors Index, which targets larger gold companies listed on Canadian and major U.S. exchanges.

SIL The fund seeks to track the performance of the Solactive Global Silver Miners Total Return Index before fees and expenses, focusing on companies economically tied to silver mining.

Why people hold it

• SGDM Fee of 0.46% sits under the median for precious-metals miner funds, and under both GDX (0.51%) and GDXJ (0.52%).
• Rules-based and named out loud: it follows the Solactive Gold Miners Custom Factors Index (SOLGMCFT), and it has stayed close to that stated mandate.
• Running since 2014, a long life for a thematic fund, and it holds about 50 larger gold companies rather than a sprawling list.
• Lands in the upper half of the gold and silver miner group in our review, with high confidence in the underlying data.

• SIL The genre's originator, trading since 2010, now a multi-billion-dollar fund that changes hands actively, so getting in and out rarely takes gymnastics.globalxetfs.com
• Miners, not metal: roughly 40 global companies engaged in silver mining, refining or exploration, so production and cost discipline matter alongside the silver price.globalxetfs.com
• Rules-based and readable: it tracks the Solactive Global Silver Miners Total Return Index, so the lineup follows published index rules, not a manager's hunches.globalxetfs.com

Worth knowing

• SGDM Thinly traded next to the category's giants, so spreads can be wider and larger orders can push the price around.
• The index sticks to Canadian and major US listings, so gold miners quoted only on other exchanges sit outside the portfolio.
• One industry, driven by the gold price and how well mines actually run, so the ride is bumpier than a broad stock fund.

• SIL It charges 0.65% a year, above the typical precious-metals miner fund. Newer rivals undercut it: SLVP at 0.39% and AGMI at 0.35%.
• A global book, much of it listed outside the US, so currency swings and country-level mining rules ride along with the silver story.globalxetfs.com
• Income is a side effect here: cash distributions land once or twice a year, not monthly.

Full SGDM profile⁠

Full SIL profile⁠