Commodity ETFs

• Futures, not physical goods. These funds hold futures contracts and Treasury collateral, so returns include roll yield and interest, not just price.
• Cost range. Expense ratios run from 0.26% to 1.05%, which is $790 a year on $100,000.
• Tax form. DBC, GSG and USCI issue a Schedule K-1. PDBC, BCI and COMT issue a 1099.
• Oil-heavy. Energy is 52% to 57% of four of the six funds and 39% of BCI and 34% of USCI.
• Heavy overlap. Pairs share 42% to 96% of their exposure by commodity.
• Volatile. One-year NAV returns ran from 40% to 55% on the dates shown. Commodities can fall as fast as they rise.

Dates differ by issuer and are shown on each comparison page. Energy share is each fund’s weight in energy futures, computed from issuer holdings or published index weights. GSG and BCI do not publish commodity weights, so reference weights are used, as the method section explains. Net assets are issuer figures dated Nov 9, 2026.

None of these funds stores oil in tanks or grain in silos. Each holds futures contracts, which are agreements to buy or sell a commodity on a set date, and keeps the rest of its money in Treasury bills, cash or similar holdings that back the contracts. A futures fund earns three things: the change in commodity prices, the roll yield or roll cost when it replaces an expiring contract with a later one, and interest on the collateral. That is why a commodity fund can differ from the price of oil or copper itself.

Production-weighted funds, GSG and COMT, follow the S&P GSCI, which sizes each commodity by how much the world produces. Crude oil and fuels dominate that index, so energy was 56% of COMT and 52% of GSG in the data used here. DBC and PDBC pick a smaller set of 27 commodities and favor contracts with the best expected roll yield, which still leaves energy at 53% and 57%.

BCI follows the Bloomberg Commodity Index, which limits how much one commodity or sector can weigh. Energy is 39% of BCI against 57% for PDBC, and gold, farm products and metals take a larger share. USCI goes further: it chooses 14 commodities each year using price trends, so its energy weight was 34% and industrial metals were 29%.

When DBC or PDBC fits: you want a broad 27-commodity basket with an index or an active roll. When GSG or COMT fits: you want production-weighted exposure that tracks the world economy, with COMT adding a roll rule. When BCI fits: you want capped weights and a 1099 at the lowest fee. When USCI fits: you want a different mix and accept a higher fee. These describe what the funds hold, not recommendations.

Every commodity fund has to answer three questions: which commodities count, how much of each to hold, and which contract month to own. The S&P GSCI weights by production, so a large oil market means a large oil weight. The Bloomberg Commodity Index weights by liquidity and production but caps any sector, so oil cannot take over. The DBIQ index picks the contract with the best roll yield among those it can hold. The SummerHaven index ranks commodities by momentum and carry and holds the top 14.

The effect on sector mix is large. Energy ran from 34% of USCI to 57% of PDBC. Agriculture ran from 14% of COMT to 29% of BCI, and precious metals from 8% of GSG to 14% of BCI. That is why overlap between the funds ranges from 42% to 96%, and why the choice of fund changes what you own.

The roll matters too. When later contracts cost more than the near one, called contango, rolling costs money. When they cost less, called backwardation, rolling earns money. COMT and the DBIQ-based funds try to pick contract months that lower the cost of the roll, while GSG holds one near-month index contract and takes whatever the market gives.

Sector groups use one scheme for every fund, so they are comparable across funds but will not match each issuer’s own table. Livestock is shown separately. Treasury bills, cash and collateral are left out. GSG weights are S&P GSCI 2026 reference weights and BCI weights are Bloomberg 2026 targets scaled to abrdn’s sector weights.

Issuers report returns to different month-ends, so this table uses each issuer’s own NAV total return and shows the date in the last column. DBC and PDBC are dated Oct 31, 2026 and the other four Sep 30, 2026. Because the dates differ, compare the shape of each row rather than the decimals, and use each comparison page when you want a like-for-like pair.

Source: issuer fund pages (Invesco, iShares, USCF and abrdn). NAV returns are net of fund expenses. USCI does not show a 3-year figure on the page we used and BCI launched in 2017, so it has no 10-year figure; both are marked Not captured. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Over the last year the funds ranged from 39.78% for BCI to 55.21% for GSG, a huge move for a diversified fund and a reminder that commodities swing. Over 10 years the numbers are much closer, between 9.16% and 10.32% a year where reported. Commodity returns arrive in bursts tied to supply shocks, so a strong year is not a forecast.

Read how to measure investment growth for how annualized returns work, and nominal vs real values for why commodities are often discussed as an inflation hedge.

Commodities have no earnings or dividends. A futures fund pays out the interest it earns on its Treasury collateral, less fees, and sometimes realized gains. That means distributions are small in a low-rate year and larger when short-term rates are high, and the amount can change sharply from one year to the next.

Invesco reports a 12-month distribution rate of 2.36% for DBC and 2.71% for PDBC, and a 30-day SEC yield of 2.90% for PDBC. COMT shows a 30-day SEC yield of 1.61%. The other funds did not give a comparable figure on the pages used, so they are marked Not captured on the comparison pages rather than estimated. Distribution schedules differ, and some payouts are classified as return of capital, so read each issuer page.

See what is dividend yield and yield vs total return for how to read yield next to price change.

Every comparison page matches the two funds by underlying commodity and adds up the smaller of the two weights for each commodity both hold. Futures on Brent crude held by two different funds count as one shared commodity.

The range runs from 42% for USCI and BCI to 96% for DBC and PDBC. DBC and PDBC share 96% because they use the same 27-commodity universe, while USCI overlaps least with everything because its basket is chosen by a different rule. Funds on the GSCI, GSG and COMT, share 92%.

Overlap is an estimate. Weights are shares of each fund’s futures exposure, dated Nov 9, 2026 for DBC, USCI and COMT, Oct 31, 2026 for PDBC and BCI sectors, and 2026 index reference weights for GSG and BCI. Treasury bills, cash and collateral are excluded.

Each page below puts two funds side by side on cost, overlap, sector mix, returns, tax form and the ten largest commodities. Every figure carries its date, and the data room at the bottom of each page lists the source and grade of each number. These commodity ETF comparisons are the quickest way to see what you own and what you would add.

• 1. Index Check which index the fund follows and how it weights commodities.
• 2. Structure Check whether the fund holds futures through a subsidiary and whether it files a K-1 or a 1099.
• 3. Cost Expense ratios run from 0.26% to 1.05% here. Add the bid/ask spread when you trade.
• 4. Mix Compare energy, farm, metals and livestock shares. Energy runs from 34% to 57%.
• 5. Overlap If most of the commodities repeat what you own, a second fund adds little.
• 6. Roll rule Ask how the fund picks contract months, because roll cost can matter as much as price.
• 7. Dates and sources Do not rank funds on mismatched dates. Compare returns only when the periods match.

Start with how to research an ETF if the terms are new, and size any commodity fund inside your whole allocation with asset allocation explained.

The expense ratio is the annual fee taken from the fund. On a $100,000 balance, 0.26% is $260 a year, 0.48% is $480 and 1.05% is $1050. Some funds report a total cost above the net ratio, for example DBC’s 0.89% before a waiver and PDBC’s 0.74% with acquired fund fees, so read the prospectus. Use the ETF Fee Calculator to turn a fee gap into dollars over time.

Trading costs come from the bid/ask spread. Issuers reported 30-day or median spreads of about 0.03%% to 0.25%%. Commodity prices can swing sharply, so spreads can widen on volatile days. Use limit orders for larger amounts.

Tax cost matters most for K-1 funds. A fund that files a Schedule K-1 can add forms at tax time, and futures gains are generally taxed under the 60/40 rule, while 1099 funds are simpler but can pass through ordinary income. Confirm the details with a qualified tax professional.

You want the lowest fee and a 1099: BCI at 0.26%, then COMT at 0.48%. Compare them on the BCI vs COMT page.

You want a broad basket from Invesco: DBC as an index fund or PDBC as an active fund. See DBC vs PDBC.

You want production-weighted exposure: GSG or COMT follow the S&P GSCI. Read GSG vs COMT.

You want a different mix from the oil-heavy funds: USCI chooses its basket by rule. See USCI vs BCI.

You already own stocks and bonds: commodities behave differently, so a small position can diversify, but size it against your whole portfolio and your time horizon. Check what you own with the Diversification Calculator.

Owning two broad commodity funds. DBC plus PDBC repeats about 96% of the same exposure. Two tickers can still be one holding.

Assuming a commodity fund tracks spot prices. Roll cost and collateral interest change the result, so a fund can lag or beat the price of oil.

Ignoring the tax form. A K-1 fund adds reporting and may not suit every account. Check before you buy.

Comparing returns over different dates. Issuers report to different month-ends. Compare returns only when the dates match.

Chasing last year. One-year returns ran as high as 55% on the dates shown. One strong year says little about the next.

Holding commodities as a single bet. A commodity fund concentrates risk in oil and metals, so size the position inside a diversified allocation.

Owning many commodities lowers the risk of any one market, but it does not remove commodity risk. The funds can fall together and the recovery can take years. Past gains are not a limit on future losses.

U.S.-listed funds such as DBC, PDBC, GSG, USCI, BCI and COMT trade in U.S. dollars. Buying them from a Canadian account usually involves converting Canadian dollars, which adds a cost, and a move in the U.S. dollar also changes your return in Canadian dollars.

A fund that files a Schedule K-1 can create extra reporting for a Canadian holder and may not suit an RRSP or TFSA, while a fund that issues a 1099 is simpler. The treatment depends on the account type.

Confirm the rules for your accounts with a qualified tax professional, and see how to build an ETF portfolio for how a commodity fund fits inside an allocation.

Figures come from the issuer pages and files for each fund: Invesco for DBC and PDBC, iShares for GSG and COMT, USCF for USCI and abrdn for BCI. Gaps are shown as Not captured, and nothing was filled from memory or from another fund.

Weights are computed by underlying commodity. DBC, USCI and COMT come from issuer holdings dated Nov 9, 2026, and PDBC from Invesco’s Oct 31, 2026 commodity exposure. GSG publishes no commodity weights, so S&P Dow Jones Indices’ 2026 reference weights are used. BCI publishes sector weights only, so Bloomberg 2026 target weights are scaled to abrdn’s sector weights. Overlap sums the smaller weight of each commodity and is an estimate. The pages are educational research, not personal advice, and they do not recommend any fund.

Pathways, not rankings or recommendations.