At a glance
IAU and IAUM are both trusts that hold physical gold directly, so what sets them apart is cost, size and trading. IAUM costs less: 0.09% a year against 0.25% for IAU, or $90 against $250 on every $100,000. IAU has $60.11B in assets and IAUM $6.31B. Over the past year IAU returned −1.6% and IAUM +1.8%; over five years, +16.9% and +17.6% a year. In the 2022 bear market IAU fell 20.9% at its worst and IAUM 20.9%; both were back at their earlier highs 14 months after the low.
Key differences
| IAU | IAUM | |
|---|---|---|
| Fund | iShares Gold Trust | iShares Gold Trust Micro ETF of Benef Interest |
| Sponsor | iShares | iShares |
| Structure | Grantor trust | Grantor trust |
| Type | Gold | Gold |
| Launched | Jan 21, 2005 | Jun 15, 2021 |
| Expense ratio | 0.25% | 0.09% |
| Cost a year on $100,000 | $250 | $90 |
| Net assets | $60.11B | $6.31B |
| Price data from | Jun 6, 2005 | Jun 30, 2021 |
Structure and tax notes
- Both: Structured as a grantor trust registered under the Securities Act of 1933, not as a 1940 Act investment company, so it lacks some fund-specific investor protections.
- Both: Physically backed precious-metal trusts are taxed like the metal itself: in the US, long-term gains can be taxed at the collectibles rate of up to 28% rather than the usual capital-gains rates.
Holdings and overlap
Both trusts hold physical gold directly rather than stocks or bonds, so there is no holdings list to compare: each share is a claim on the same asset, and the difference between them is what each charges, how large it is and how its shares trade.
Returns
$10,000 put into IAU on Jun 30, 2021 was worth $21,632 on Oct 27, 2026, and in IAUM $22,863 (+15.6% and +16.8% a year). That is as far back as the price data for both goes.
| 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IAU price data to Nov 2, 2026 | -1.6% | +25.4% | +16.9% | +11.6% |
| IAUM price data to Oct 27, 2026 | +1.8% | +26.4% | +17.6% | — |
Calendar years
| Year | IAU | IAUM | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | -8.7% * | -5.9% * | IAUM +2.8 |
| 2025 | +64.0% | +64.3% | IAUM +0.3 |
| 2024 | +26.9% | +27.0% | IAUM +0.2 |
| 2023 | +12.8% | +13.1% | IAUM +0.3 |
| 2022 | -0.6% | -0.5% | IAUM +0.1 |
| 2021 | -3.9% | — | |
| 2020 | +25.8% | — | |
| 2019 | +18.0% | — | |
| 2018 | -1.8% | — | |
| 2017 | +12.9% | — |
Downturns and recovery
| IAU | IAUM | |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | −29.2% at the worst; back at its high 10 months after the low | Before it launched |
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | −12.5% at the worst; back at its high within a month after the low | Before it launched |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | −20.9% at the worst; back at its high 14 months after the low | −20.9% at the worst; back at its high 14 months after the low |
| Worst fall in the price data | −45.1% (Aug 22, 2011 – Dec 2, 2015) | −26.3% (Jan 29, 2026 – Jul 16, 2026) |
Costs
IAUM charges 0.09% a year and IAU 0.25%: on $100,000 that is $160 a year less with IAUM ($800 on $500,000). The fee comes out of each fund's assets, so it is already in the returns above.