What is the largest gold ETF in the U.S.?

SPDR Gold Shares is the largest gold ETF by assets under management (AUM). At nearly $160 billion (as of early 2026), it had more than double the AUM of the second-largest gold ETF, iShares Gold Trust (NYSEMKT: IAU).

Which gold ETF has the lowest expense ratio?

As of early 2026, the iShares Gold Trust Micro ETF (NYSEMKT: IAUM) had the lowest expense ratio at 0.09%.

Is it too late to invest in gold?

There's no way to know for certain if it's too late to invest in gold. In early 2026, the price of gold topped $4,600 an ounce. Its price was up 50% over the past year. Given that rally, it could be too late to invest in gold. Another potential hindrance to the continuation of the gold rally is the emergence of cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), as an alternative to investing in gold. However, the price of gold could also continue going higher. Rising government debt levels and an expanding money supply are making U.S. dollars less valuable, which tends to drive up the price of gold.

Do gold ETFs track the price of gold?

Many gold ETFs, including SPDR Gold Shares, track the price of gold because they hold physical gold. Others own shares of gold mining companies, which don't track the price of gold.

Do gold ETFs pay dividends?

Gold ETFs that invest in gold mining companies typically pay dividends. Many gold mining companies pay dividends, which these funds collect and distribute to investors. However, gold ETFs that hold physical gold don't pay dividends because holding gold doesn't generate any income.

Which gold investment is the safest?

Owning a gold ETF backed by physical bars in a bank vault is the safest gold investment. There's less risk of that gold getting stolen compared to physical gold or gold jewelry you personally own and store in a safe at your house. These ETFs are also safer compared to those that own gold mining stocks, which can underperform the price of gold.

Best 7 Gold ETFs for March 2026 & How to Invest

A closer look at some of the top gold ETFs.

Key Points

Gold ETFs provide easy access to physical gold or gold mining stocks.
Investors should choose large ETFs with low expense ratios under 1% for safer investments.
Physical gold ETFs are less risky than gold mining stock ETFs.

Gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are funds that hold physical gold or gold mining stocks. They are one of many ways to invest in gold. Gold ETFs are an easy way to gain instant exposure to the gold market, making them ideal for anyone seeking to invest in gold.

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Four gold bars on a gold-colored background. — Image source: Getty Images.

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Ticker Information Table
Company name	Company ticker	Current price
SPDR Gold Shares	NYSEMKT:GLD	$483.75
iShares Gold Trust	NYSEMKT:IAU	$99.07
Abrdn Gold ETF Trust - Abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF	NYSEMKT:SGOL	$50.13
Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF	NYSEMKT:AAAU	$51.92
VanEck ETF Trust - VanEck Gold Miners ETF	NYSEMKT:GDX	$115.84
VanEck ETF Trust - VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF	NYSEMKT:GDXJ	$156.19
Franklin Templeton Trust - Franklin Responsibly Sourced Gold ETF	NYSEMKT:FGDL	$70.03

Data as of Mar 2, 2026. Showing 7 of 7 tickers.

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NYSEMKT: GLD

SPDR Gold Shares

Today's Change

(1.31%) $6.27

Current Price

$483.75

Key Data Points

Day's Range

$479.11 - $483.90

52wk Range

$265.07 - $509.70

Volume

534K

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NYSEMKT: IAU

iShares Gold Trust

Today's Change

(1.31%) $1.28

Current Price

$99.07

Key Data Points

Day's Range

$98.16 - $99.11

52wk Range

$54.20 - $104.40

Volume

798K

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iShares Gold Trust (IAU +1.31%) is almost identical to SPDR Gold Shares, making it another great means of investing directly in gold. It boasts a lower expense ratio than its larger rival (0.25%), making it an even lower-cost way to gain upside exposure to the price of gold.

Owning shares in this ETF is a great proxy for owning physical gold without the hassle and expense of storing or insuring bars and coins. The ETF handles these items, storing its bullion in the London branch of JPMorgan Chase (JPM -2.28%). Overall, this gold ETF has done an excellent job of tracking the price of gold, with only a minor underperformance due to its expense ratio.

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3. VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF

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NYSEMKT: GDX

VanEck ETF Trust - VanEck Gold Miners ETF

Today's Change

(1.71%) $1.95

Current Price

$115.84

Key Data Points

Day's Range

$114.32 - $115.99

52wk Range

$39.48 - $115.99

Volume

400K

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NYSEMKT: GDXJ

VanEck ETF Trust - VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF

Today's Change

(1.90%) $2.91

Current Price

$156.19

Key Data Points

Day's Range

$152.86 - $156.32

52wk Range

$48.11 - $156.32

Volume

52K

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VanEck Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF (GDXJ +1.90%) offers the most upside potential because it focuses on smaller mining companies, known as junior gold miners, some of which are still exploration-stage companies. These smaller miners could expand production faster and deliver higher returns than their larger rivals.

However, the higher reward potential comes with more risk because they lack the scale of their larger rivals. A misstep, such as cost overruns on a mine development, could be costlier to investors.

VanEck Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF is reasonably large and has a relatively low expense ratio (0.51%). The gold ETF has more than 100 holdings. Its five largest are:

Pan American Silver (PAAS +1.76%)
Coeur Mining (CDE +2.32%)
Alamos Gold (AGI +3.49%)
Equinox Gold (EQX +1.93%)
Royal Gold (RGLD +1.84%)

These mining companies are smaller than those held by VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF. The largest holding on the list has a market cap of about $16.7 billion. The 10 largest holdings of the ETF make up nearly 40% of its assets. The fund provides investors with broad exposure to several up-and-coming gold and silver mining stocks.

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5. Franklin Responsibly Sourced Gold ETF

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NYSEMKT: FGDL

Franklin Templeton Trust - Franklin Responsibly Sourced Gold ETF

Today's Change

(1.29%) $0.89

Current Price

$70.03

Key Data Points

Day's Range

$68.80 - $70.14

52wk Range

$38.37 - $74.24

Volume

643

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The Franklin Responsibly Sourced Gold ETF (FGDL +1.29%) holds physical gold. It only holds gold sourced from accredited refiners that demonstrate their efforts to respect the environment and combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and human rights abuses. This responsibly sourced gold ETF has a low expense ratio of 0.15%.

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6. Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF

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NYSEMKT: AAAU

Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF

Today's Change

(1.31%) $0.67

Current Price

$51.92

Key Data Points

Day's Range

$51.44 - $51.95

52wk Range

$28.41 - $54.71

Volume

34K

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The Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF (AAAU +1.31%) is another ETF that holds physical gold. Like iShares Gold Trust, this fund holds gold bullion in the London branch of JPMorgan Chase. It has a lower ETF expense ratio than its larger rivals at 0.18%.

7. abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF

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NYSEMKT: SGOL

Abrdn Gold ETF Trust - Abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF

Today's Change

(1.25%) $0.62

Current Price

$50.13

Key Data Points

Day's Range

$49.68 - $50.16

52wk Range

$27.42 - $52.84

Volume

75K

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The abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF (SGOL +1.25%) also holds physical gold. However, it seeks to only hold London Good Delivery gold bullion bars refined on or after Jan. 1, 2012. All gold refined on or after that date has been refined in accordance with the London Bullion Market Association's Responsible Gold Guidance.

In addition to holding responsibly sourced gold, this ETF has a low expense ratio of 0.17%.

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Gold ETF FAQ

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About the Author

Matt DiLallo has been a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst specializing in covering dividend-paying companies, particularly in the energy and REIT sectors, since 2012. He also covers pre-IPO companies, ETFs, and other investing topics. He holds an MBA from Liberty University.

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@MatthewDiLallo

JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Matt DiLallo has positions in JPMorgan Chase. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends JPMorgan Chase. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

What to look for in gold ETFs

Investors considering an ETF focused on gold should look for the following characteristics:

Large size: The ETF should have at least $200 million of assets under management (AUM). A larger size makes the ETF less likely to fall prey to market manipulation or trade at a significant premium to its net asset value.

Reasonable expense ratio: Look for an expense ratio of less than 1%. Any expense ratio of more than 1.5% is considered excessive.

Non-leveraged ETFs: A leveraged ETF borrows money or uses derivatives, such as options and futures contracts, to magnify its returns. These carry much higher risk, and leverage in a down market can amplify losses.

Pros and cons of investing in gold ETFs

Investing in gold ETFs has its share of benefits and drawbacks. Some pros of investing in gold ETFs include:

Lower risk: Investing in a gold ETF is less risky compared to buying physical gold and storing it at your home, where it could get stolen, or investing in individual gold stocks.

Easy access: Gold ETFs make it easy to invest in physical gold or broadly in gold mining stocks.

Passive investments: Gold ETFs are passive investments. You don't need to go buy gold and a safe to store it in or manage a portfolio of gold mining stocks.

However, investing in gold ETFs isn't without its drawbacks, which include:

Potential for underperformance: A gold stock ETF could potentially underperform the price of gold or the top gold mining stocks.

No physical possession: While gold ETFs own physical gold, you wouldn't have physical possession of the gold if you needed it during an extreme emergency situation.

Finding the best gold ETF for your portfolio

Gold ETFs allow investors to speculate on gold prices without buying physical gold. The benefit of owning a gold mining company ETF over a gold price ETF is that it can generate higher returns.

Gold miners can use the cash flow they earn from producing gold to expand production, repay debt, make dividend payments, and repurchase shares. Those investments and shareholder returns position gold mining companies to potentially deliver higher total returns than the price gains of gold over the long term.

7 Best Gold ETFs for 2026: Should You Invest?

A closer look at some of the top gold ETFs.

Key Points

Key Data Points

Key Data Points

3. VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF

Key Data Points

Key Data Points

5. Franklin Responsibly Sourced Gold ETF

Key Data Points

6. Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF

Key Data Points

7. abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF

Key Data Points

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Key Data Points

Gold ETF FAQ

What is the largest gold ETF in the U.S.?

Which gold ETF has the lowest expense ratio?

Is it too late to invest in gold?

Do gold ETFs track the price of gold?

Do gold ETFs pay dividends?

Which gold investment is the safest?

1. SPDR Gold Trust

3. VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF

5. Franklin Responsibly Sourced Gold ETF

6. Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF

What to look for in gold ETFs

Pros and cons of investing in gold ETFs

Finding the best gold ETF for your portfolio

Related investing topics

FAQ

Top gold ETFs for 2026

Key Data Points

Key Data Points

Key Data Points

Key Data Points

Key Data Points

Key Data Points

2. iShares Gold Trust

4. VanEck Vectors Junior Gold Miners ETF

7. abrdn Physical Gold Shares ETF