Table of Contents
Table of Contents

Top Gold ETFs

IAUM, BAR, and SGOL are the best gold ETFs

Gold Bars
Gold ETFs.

For investors who expect gold to keep rebounding as Fed rate hikes ease, three outperforming ETFs offer exposure to the precious metal as a key gold index jumped 9% since early November.

They are the iShares Gold Trust Micro ETF, the GraniteShares Gold Trust, and the abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF, which have outperformed the 7% drop in the Bloomberg Gold Subindex and 19% plunge in the S&P 500 Index as of Nov. 9.

Key Takeaways


  • Gold has rebounded 9% since early November as the latest U.S. inflation report shows that moderating prices may prompt the Fed to slow rate hikes.
  • The iShares Gold Trust Micro ETF, the GraniteShares Gold Trust, and the abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF are the best-performing gold ETFs.
  • The three funds have performed better than the broader U.S. equity market and a key gold index over the past year.
  • The sole holding of these ETFs is gold bullion.

Some 10 gold-focused ETFs that trade in the U.S., excluding leveraged and inverse funds as well as those with less than $50 million in assets under management (AUM). They invest directly in either gold bullion or gold futures contracts as opposed to companies that mine for the metal.

After rising above $1800 an ounce in late 2022, on January 5, 2023, gold prices reached their highest point since July 2022.

While gold rose to near-records in March after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the precious metal plunged as the Federal Reserve's rate hikes to tame inflation pushed two-year Treasurys to the highest in 15 years, attracting investors instead of gold. Now, gold is rising, fueled by the latest moderate U.S. inflation report suggesting that Fed rate hikes will slow.

We take a closer look at the top gold ETFs below. All numbers below are as of Nov. 11, 2022.

iShares Gold Trust Micro ETF (IAUM)

  • Performance Over One Year: -5.1%
  • Expense Ratio: 0.09%
  • Annual Dividend Yield: N/A
  • Three-Month Average Daily Volume: 148,026
  • Assets Under Management: $1.1 billion
  • Inception Date: June 15, 2021
  • Issuer: BlackRock Financial Management

Unlike many other gold exchange-traded products, IAUM is structured as a true ETF. It trades on the NYSE Arca and also uses the LBMA Gold Price as a benchmark. IAUM can be utilized as a way to diversify a portfolio of securities and to protect against inflation. The sole holding of IAUM is gold bullion.

GraniteShares Gold Trust (BAR)

  • Performance Over One Year: -5.2%
  • Expense Ratio: 0.17%
  • Annual Dividend Yield: N/A
  • Three-Month Average Daily Volume: 1,076,315
  • Assets Under Management: $866.9 million
  • Inception Date: Aug. 31, 2017
  • Issuer: GraniteShares

BAR is a gold ETF structured as a grantor trust, which may provide investors with a certain degree of tax protection. It stores gold bullion in a vault in London. The sole holding of BAR is gold bullion.

abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF (SGOL)

  • Performance Over One Year: -5.3%
  • Expense Ratio: 0.17%
  • Annual Dividend Yield: N/A
  • Three-Month Average Daily Volume: 2,203,470
  • Assets Under Management: $2.3 billion
  • Inception Date: Sept. 9, 2009
  • Issuer: Abrdn Plc

SGOL is also structured as a grantor trust. It seeks to track the performance of the price of gold bullion minus fund expenses. It has lower expenses than many other gold ETFs. The sole holding of the fund is gold bullion, which is stored in vaults in London and Zurich.

The comments, opinions, and analyses expressed herein are for informational purposes only and should not be considered individual investment advice or recommendations to invest in any security or adopt any investment strategy. While we believe the information provided herein is reliable, we do not warrant its accuracy or completeness. The views and strategies described in our content may not be suitable for all investors. Because market and economic conditions are subject to rapid change, all comments, opinions, and analyses contained within our content are rendered as of the date of the posting and may change without notice. The material is not intended as a complete analysis of every material fact regarding any country, region, market, industry, investment, or strategy.

Article Sources
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  1. Wall Street Journal. "Gold Prices Extend Gains After Inflation Report."

  2. Yahoo! Finance. "Bloomberg Gold Subindex."

  3. VettaFi. "ETF Screener."

  4. CNBC. "Gold COMEX (Feb′23)."

  5. Wall Street Journal. "This Should Have Been a Great Year for Gold. Here’s Why It Isn’t."

  6. VettaFi. "ETF Screener."

  7. iShares. "iShares Gold Trust Micro (IAUM)."

  8. VettaFi. "iShares Gold Trust Micro ETF (IAUM)."

  9. GraniteShares. "BAR: GraniteShares Gold Trust."

  10. VettaFi. "BAR: GraniteShares Gold Trust."

  11. VettaFi. "ETF Screener: Expenses."

  12. VettaFi. "abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF (SGOL)."

  13. abrdn. "abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF (SGOL)."

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