What are gold miners ETFs?
Gold miners ETFs own shares of companies that dig gold out of the ground, not the metal itself. That means company costs matter as well as the gold price. No single stock sits in every fund. Of the 15 ETFs, 7 hold Coeur Mining, and 6 each hold Newmont, Agnico Eagle Mines, Wheaton Precious Metals, IAMGOLD and Alamos Gold. In VanEck's GDX, the largest fund, the two biggest holdings are Agnico Eagle (10.67%) and Newmont (10.41%).
Most of these funds track an index. GDX follows the MarketVector Global Gold Miners Index across 61 stocks. Its sibling GDXJ follows the MVIS Global Junior Gold Miners Index and holds 116 smaller miners. iShares' RING is the most concentrated stock fund, with 69.63% in its top 10 and 17.23% in Newmont. Sprott's SGDM and SGDJ track Solactive indexes that pick and weight stocks by set company traits, called factors. Global X's GOEX targets explorers and developers. Sprott's GBUG is actively managed and adds silver miners, while WisdomTree's GDMN mixes gold with gold miner stocks.
Six funds are leveraged or inverse, meaning they magnify or reverse daily moves. Direxion's NUGT and JNUG aim for twice the daily return of gold miner and junior gold miner indexes, and DUST and JDST aim for twice the daily opposite. Two exchange-traded notes, GDXU and GDXD, target 3x and -3x. An exchange-traded note is debt from a financial firm that pays an index-linked return. GDXY, a YieldMax fund, seeks income from options and holds mainly Treasury bills.
Fees run from 0.35% a year for Themes' AUMI to 1.13% for NUGT. The median is 0.60%, or 0.51% for funds without leverage, inverse bets or options. The money is concentrated: GDX, GDXJ, RING, NUGT and SGDM hold 95.5% of the roughly $35.3 billion in these ETFs, and GDX alone has about $22.8 billion.
Gold miners ETF holdings: the stocks most funds own
The stocks that show up most often among the largest positions of the 15 biggest gold miners ETFs with holdings reports, from their latest N-PORT filings.
| Stock | Funds holding it | Typical weight |
|---|---|---|
| Coeur Mining Inc | 7 of 15 | 3.79% |
| Newmont Corp | 6 of 15 | 7.1% |
| Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd | 6 of 15 | 6.98% |
| Wheaton Precious Metals Corp | 6 of 15 | 5.6% |
| IAMGOLD Corp | 6 of 15 | 2.92% |
| Alamos Gold Inc | 6 of 15 | 2.69% |
| DPM Metals Inc | 5 of 15 | 4.83% |
| Kinross Gold Corp | 5 of 15 | 4.56% |
| Equinox Gold Corp | 5 of 15 | 3.24% |
| Barrick Mining Corp | 4 of 15 | 7.78% |
| Franco-Nevada Corp | 4 of 15 | 4.89% |
| OceanaGold Corp | 4 of 15 | 3.51% |
Typical weight is the median share of each fund’s assets in the stock, among the funds that hold it in their 25 largest positions.
The largest gold miners ETFs, side by side
Swipe the table to see all 5 funds.
| GDX | GDXJ | RING | SGDM | SGDJ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net assets | $22.75B | $7.08B | $2.52B | $558.7M | $265.1M |
| Expense ratio | 0.51% | 0.52% | 0.39% | 0.46% | 0.5% |
| Holdings | 61 | 116 | 48 | 49 | 31 |
| In the 10 largest | 58.64% | 42.69% | 69.63% | 55.17% | 45.75% |
| Biggest holding | Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd (10.67%) | Evolution Mining Ltd (6.37%) | Newmont Corporation (17.23%) | Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd (9.32%) | Centerra Gold Inc (5.21%) |
| Yield | 0.8% | 2.56% | 1.26% | 0.74% | 8.92% |
| 1-year return | +10.6% | +15.8% | +22.8% | +24.9% | +23.5% |
| 3 years, a year | +42.6% | +46.9% | +49.4% | +43.9% | +52.0% |
| 5 years, a year | +21.9% | +19.9% | +23.6% | +21.6% | +18.5% |
| Worst drop, past year | -38.9% | -41.3% | -38.6% | -38.3% | -38.0% |
| Launched | 2006 | 2009 | 2012 | 2014 | 2015 |
The largest ordinary funds by net assets (leveraged and inverse funds are listed further down). Holdings from each fund’s latest N-PORT report; returns include reinvested distributions, as of Nov 2, 2026.
Head to head
GDX vs GDXJ
GDX holds 61 larger gold miners, with 58.64% in its top 10 and Agnico Eagle Mines the biggest at 10.67%. GDXJ spreads across 116 smaller, or junior, miners, with 42.69% in its top 10 and Evolution Mining the largest at 6.37%. Only 36.8% of their assets overlap. Fees are almost the same: 0.51% and 0.52%. Over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, GDX returned 19.8% and GDXJ 15.8%. GDXJ's worst drop was deeper, 41.3% against 38.9%. GDX may suit investors who want the big producers, and GDXJ those who want smaller companies.
GDX vs RING
These two overlap heavily: 65.1% of their assets are in common, across 27 shared stocks. RING is more concentrated, with 69.63% in its top 10 and Newmont alone at 17.23%. GDX has 58.64% in its top 10, led by Agnico Eagle Mines at 10.67%. RING costs less: 0.39% a year against 0.51%. Over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, RING returned 22.8% and GDX 19.8%, with similar worst drops of 38.6% and 38.9%. GDX is far larger and older and may suit investors who value a long record. RING may suit cost-conscious investors comfortable with bigger single-stock bets.
GDXJ vs SGDJ
Both focus on junior miners, yet only 13.5% of their assets overlap. GDXJ holds 116 stocks, led by Evolution Mining at 6.37%, with 42.69% in its top 10. SGDJ holds 31, led by Centerra Gold at 5.21%, with 45.75% in its top 10, and its Solactive index uses custom factor rules. Fees are close: 0.50% for SGDJ and 0.52% for GDXJ. Over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, SGDJ returned 23.5% to GDXJ's 15.8%, and its worst drop was smaller, 38% against 41.3%. GDXJ may suit those who want breadth, and SGDJ those who want a shorter, rules-screened list.
How much do the largest gold miners ETFs overlap?
Owning two funds that hold the same stocks adds little diversification. Overlap here is the share of assets two funds have in common: for each stock both own, the smaller of its two weights, added up.
| Funds | Assets in common | Shared holdings | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GDX and RING | 65.1% | 27 | |
| GDX and SGDM | 59.8% | 35 | |
| RING and SGDM | 56.6% | 23 | |
| GDX and GDXJ | 36.8% | 47 | |
| GDXJ and SGDM | 32.6% | 37 | |
| GDXJ and RING | 30.4% | 27 | |
| GDXJ and SGDJ | 13.5% | 29 | |
| SGDM and SGDJ | 8.7% | 11 | |
| RING and SGDJ | 6.1% | 11 | |
| GDX and SGDJ | 3% | 7 |
From each fund’s full holdings in its latest N-PORT report.
How have gold miners ETFs performed?
The five largest ordinary funds: growth from the start of the range, distributions reinvested. The dashed gray line is the S&P 500 (SPY).
Best-performing gold miners ETFs over the past year
| # | Fund | Net assets | Cost | 1 mo | YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SGDM Sprott Gold Miners ETF | $558.7M | 0.46% | -10.0% | +1.2% | +24.9% | +43.9% |
| 2 | GBUG Sprott Active Gold & Silver Miners ETF | $140.8M | 0.9% | -12.8% | -2.0% | +24.0% | — |
| 3 | SGDJ Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF | $265.1M | 0.5% | -16.1% | -6.2% | +23.5% | +52.0% |
| 4 | RING iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF | $2.52B | 0.39% | -11.0% | -1.0% | +22.8% | +49.4% |
| 5 | GOEX Global X Gold Explorers ETF | $104.4M | 0.65% | -14.5% | -6.4% | +19.9% | +51.2% |
| 6 | GDXJ VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF | $7.08B | 0.52% | -14.6% | -9.1% | +15.8% | +46.9% |
| 7 | GOAU US Global GO GOLD and Precious Metal Miners ETF | $164.8M | 0.6% | -11.8% | -5.2% | +13.3% | +39.5% |
| 8 | GDX VanEck Gold Miners ETF | $22.75B | 0.51% | -9.8% | -7.7% | +10.6% | +42.6% |
| 9 | GDMN WisdomTree Efficient Gold Plus Gold Miners Strate… | $209.5M | 0.45% | -14.0% | -16.9% | +6.8% | +57.3% |
| 10 | GDXY YieldMax Gold Miners Option Income Strategy ETF | $207.7M | 1% | -8.7% | -9.4% | +5.3% | — |
Funds with at least $25 million in net assets; leveraged and inverse funds left out. Past returns don’t predict future returns.
How gold miners ETFs did in past market crashes
| Fund | 2008 crash | 2020 crash | 2022 drop |
|---|---|---|---|
| GDX | -28.8% | -26.3% | -23.1% |
| GDXJ | not yet launched | -38.5% | -27.6% |
| RING | not yet launched | -26.6% | -29.3% |
| SGDM | not yet launched | -25.9% | -21.1% |
| SGDJ | not yet launched | -37.6% | -40.5% |
| S&P 500 (SPY) | -55.2% | -33.7% | -24.5% |
Total return from the stock market’s peak to its low in each fall, distributions reinvested.
What drives gold miners ETFs?
A gold miner's revenue rises and falls with the gold price, but many of its costs, such as fuel, labor and equipment, stay largely fixed. This is called operating leverage: a modest change in the gold price can mean a much larger change in profit, so miners' shares can move further than the metal. The gold price itself is swayed by interest rates, because gold pays no interest, and by the US dollar and demand from investors seeking safety. Company events matter too: mine output, cost overruns, permits, and taxes and politics in host countries. Junior miners also depend on raising money and building new mines.
These funds' record in stock market slumps has been mixed. During the 2008 financial crisis, GDX fell 28.8%, against 55.2% for the S&P 500. In the 2020 COVID crash, GDX, RING and SGDM each lost about 26%, less than the S&P 500's 33.7%, but GDXJ (38.5%) and SGDJ (37.6%) fell further. In the 2022 bear market, SGDM (21.1%) and GDX (23.1%) fell slightly less than the S&P 500's 24.5%, while GDXJ lost 27.6%, RING 29.3% and SGDJ 40.5%. In both 2020 and 2022, the junior funds fell more than GDX.
Gold miners ETFs with the lowest expense ratios
| # | Fund | Expense ratio | On $10,000 | Net assets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AUMI Themes Gold Miners ETF | 0.35% | $35 a year | $24.7M |
| 2 | RING iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF | 0.39% | $39 a year | $2.52B |
| 3 | GDMN WisdomTree Efficient Gold Plus Gold Miners St… | 0.45% | $45 a year | $209.5M |
| 4 | SGDM Sprott Gold Miners ETF | 0.46% | $46 a year | $558.7M |
| 5 | SGDJ Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF | 0.5% | $50 a year | $265.1M |
Ordinary funds with at least $10 million in net assets. The median ordinary gold miners ETF charges 0.51% a year; leveraged and inverse funds usually charge more.
Do gold miners ETFs pay dividends?
11 of the 11 ordinary gold miners ETFs with a page here paid distributions over the last 12 months, with a median yield of 1.59%.
| Highest yields | Yield | Net assets |
|---|---|---|
| GDMN WisdomTree Efficient Gold Plus Gold Miners St… | 10.83% | $209.5M |
| SGDJ Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF | 8.92% | $265.1M |
| GDXJ VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF | 2.56% | $7.08B |
| GOEX Global X Gold Explorers ETF | 2.34% | $104.4M |
| GBUG Sprott Active Gold & Silver Miners ETF | 1.59% | $140.8M |
Distributions over the last 12 months divided by the price; funds with at least $25 million in net assets.
How to choose a gold miners ETF
- Cost, and the fund size behind it. AUMI charges the least, 0.35% a year, but has only about $25 million in assets. RING costs 0.39% with about $2.5 billion, and GDX 0.51% with about $22.8 billion. The actively managed GBUG charges 0.90%.
- Big producers, juniors or explorers. GDX, RING and SGDM lean on large companies such as Newmont and Agnico Eagle. GDXJ and SGDJ hold smaller junior miners and fell more than GDX in the 2020 and 2022 slumps. GOEX targets earlier-stage explorers and developers.
- How concentrated the top holdings are. RING puts 69.63% in its top 10 stocks and 17.23% in Newmont alone. GDX has 58.64% in its top 10. GDXJ (42.69%), GBUG (38.97%) and GOEX (37.72%) spread their money more evenly.
- Index rules or a manager's picks. GDX and GDXJ track global MarketVector and MVIS indexes. SGDM and SGDJ use Solactive indexes that pick and weight stocks by set company traits. GBUG is actively managed and launched in February 2025, so its record is short.
- Miners only, or gold and silver too. Most funds stick to gold miners. GBUG adds silver miners. GOAU covers precious metal miners and is led by Franco-Nevada, OR Royalties and Wheaton Precious Metals. GDMN combines gold exposure with mining stocks.
- Leveraged, inverse and option-income versions. NUGT and JNUG aim for 2x the daily move, and DUST and JDST for -2x. The GDXU and GDXD notes offer 3x and -3x. GDXY gives up some upside in exchange for option income. All can behave very differently from GDX.
What are the risks of gold miners ETFs?
- Profits hinge on the gold price. Miners' revenue follows the gold price while many costs stay fixed, so a drop in gold can hit profits hard. Holding miners around the world also brings political, tax and currency risk from the countries where the mines are.
- Big swings, even without leverage. Over the year to October 27, 2026, GDX's volatility, a measure of how widely its price moved, was 51%, and GDXJ's was 56.5%. At their worst, GDX fell 38.9% and GDXJ 41.3% from a peak.
- A few big stocks carry the weight. RING has 69.63% in its top 10 and 17.23% in Newmont. GDX and RING share 65.1% of their assets, so owning both adds little variety. A setback at one big miner can hit several funds at once.
- Leveraged and inverse funds drift over time. NUGT and JNUG reset to 2x every day, so longer-term results drift. Over the year to October 27, 2026, NUGT returned 4.6% and JNUG lost 8.5%, while GDX gained 19.8% and GDXJ 15.8%. DUST lost 63.3%.
- Option income can cap the gains. GDXY seeks income through options and holds mostly Treasury bills, not mining stocks. This approach can cap gains in a rally. In the year to October 27, 2026, its share price rose 5.3% against GDX's 19.8%, excluding payouts.
Leveraged and inverse gold miners ETFs (2x and 3x)
These funds aim for a multiple, or the opposite, of one day’s return, and reset every day. Held for longer than a day, their results can drift far from that multiple, especially when prices swing. They are trading tools, not long-term holdings. Why leveraged ETFs decay →
| Fund | Daily aim | Net assets | 1-year return |
|---|---|---|---|
| NUGT Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bull 2x Shares | 2× | $836.2M | +4.6% |
| JNUG Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 2x S… | 2× | $354.3M | -8.5% |
| DUST Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bear 2x Shares | −2× | $70.7M | -63.3% |
| JDST Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bear 2X S… | −2× | $31.6M | -66.9% |
| GDXD MicroSectors Gold Miners -3X Inverse Leveraged ET… | −3× | — | -87.0% |
| GDXU MicroSectors Gold Miners 3X Leveraged ETN | 3× | — | -41.9% |
List of all gold miners ETFs, by size
| # | Fund | Net assets | Cost | Yield | YTD | 1 yr | 5 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GDX VanEck Gold Miners ETF | $22.75B | 0.51% | 0.8% | -7.7% | +10.6% | +21.9% |
| 2 | GDXJ VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF | $7.08B | 0.52% | 2.56% | -9.1% | +15.8% | +19.9% |
| 3 | RING iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF | $2.52B | 0.39% | 1.26% | -1.0% | +22.8% | +23.6% |
| 4 | NUGT Direxion Daily Gold Miners Index Bull 2x Shares Leveraged | $836.2M | 1.13% | 0.86% | -28.8% | +4.6% | +20.6% |
| 5 | SGDM Sprott Gold Miners ETF | $558.7M | 0.46% | 0.74% | +1.2% | +24.9% | +21.6% |
| 6 | JNUG Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 2x S… Leveraged | $354.3M | 1.03% | 2.94% | -41.0% | -8.5% | +12.2% |
| 7 | SGDJ Sprott Junior Gold Miners ETF | $265.1M | 0.5% | 8.92% | -6.2% | +23.5% | +18.5% |
| 8 | GDMN WisdomTree Efficient Gold Plus Gold Miners Strate… | $209.5M | 0.45% | 10.83% | -16.9% | +6.8% | — |
| 9 | GDXY YieldMax Gold Miners Option Income Strategy ETF | $207.7M | 1% | 78.11% | -9.4% | +5.3% | — |
| 10 | GOAU US Global GO GOLD and Precious Metal Miners ETF | $164.8M | 0.6% | 0.99% | -5.2% | +13.3% | +18.2% |
Questions investors ask about gold miners ETFs
What is the largest gold miners ETF?
VanEck Gold Miners ETF (GDX) is the largest, with about $22.8 billion in net assets. It launched on May 16, 2006, tracks the MarketVector Global Gold Miners Index and holds 61 stocks, led by Agnico Eagle Mines and Newmont. Next come VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ), with about $7.1 billion, and iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners ETF (RING), with about $2.5 billion. GDX charges 0.51% a year.
What is the cheapest gold miners ETF?
Themes Gold Miners ETF (AUMI) has the lowest expense ratio at 0.35%. The expense ratio is the yearly fee taken from fund assets. AUMI is small, though, with about $25 million in assets. The next cheapest is iShares' RING at 0.39%, with about $2.5 billion. After it come GDMN at 0.45%, SGDM at 0.46% and SGDJ at 0.50%. The largest fund, GDX, charges 0.51%, and the leveraged NUGT charges 1.13%.
GDX vs GDXJ: what's the difference?
GDX holds larger gold miners and GDXJ holds smaller, or junior, ones. GDX owns 61 stocks with 58.64% in its top 10, and GDXJ owns 116 with 42.69% in its top 10. Only 36.8% of their assets overlap. Fees are 0.51% and 0.52%. Over the 12 months to October 27, 2026, GDX returned 19.8% and GDXJ 15.8%. GDXJ's yield was higher, 2.56% against 0.76%, but it fell further in the 2020 and 2022 slumps.
Do gold miners ETFs pay dividends?
Yes. All 11 funds with a reported yield made payouts, and the median yield was 1.59%. WisdomTree's GDMN had the highest yield at 10.83%, then Sprott's SGDJ at 8.92%, GDXJ at 2.56% and GOEX at 2.34%. GDX yields 0.76% and RING 1.26%. These are trailing yields based on past payouts. Unusually high figures can reflect one-off payouts that may not repeat.
Do gold miners ETFs hold Newmont?
Several do. Newmont (NEM) is held by 6 of the 15 gold miners ETFs, with a median weight of 7.1% in those funds. It is the largest holding in RING, at 17.23%, and in WisdomTree's GDMN, at 10.91%. It is the second largest in GDX, at 10.41%, just behind Agnico Eagle Mines. Sprott's SGDM holds 7.1%. Funds focused on junior miners, such as GDXJ, center on smaller companies.
How many gold miners ETFs are there?
There are 17 US-listed gold miners funds: 15 ETFs and two exchange-traded notes (ETNs). Six are leveraged or inverse: Direxion's NUGT, JNUG, DUST and JDST, plus the GDXU and GDXD notes. GDXY is an option-income fund. The rest, including GDX, GDXJ, RING and SGDM, hold mining shares directly. Together the ETFs hold about $35.3 billion, with 95.5% in the five largest.
Is there a 3x gold miners ETF?
Not as an ETF, but there are exchange-traded notes. GDXU offers 3x leveraged exposure to gold miners and GDXD offers -3x inverse exposure. ETNs are debt of the firm that issues them, so they also carry that firm's credit risk. Direxion's NUGT and JNUG aim for 2x the daily move, and DUST and JDST for -2x. They reset each day, so results over longer periods can drift far from the multiple. Over the year to October 27, 2026, GDXU lost 41.9% and NUGT gained 4.6%, while GDX gained 19.8%. These products are built for short-term trading.
Gold miners ETF vs gold ETF: what's the difference?
A gold ETF typically holds the metal or tracks its price, while a gold miners ETF owns mining companies such as Newmont and Agnico Eagle Mines. Miners' profits depend on the gold price and on costs that are largely fixed, so their shares can swing more than gold. GDX fell as much as 38.9% in the year to October 27, 2026. Miners can pay dividends, but gold pays none. WisdomTree's GDMN, as its name suggests, combines gold exposure with miner stocks.
Is there a Vanguard, Fidelity or Schwab gold miners ETF?
No. None of the three offers a gold miners ETF. The largest gold miners ETFs come from VanEck (GDX), VanEck (GDXJ) and iShares (RING), and customers of all three firms can buy other companies’ ETFs in their brokerage accounts. For a broader fund, VAW (Vanguard Materials ETF) and FMAT (Fidelity MSCI Materials Index ETF) are covered in our materials ETF guide.
