Statistics · 2026 · ETFs
Commodity ETF Statistics (2026)
The 6 commodity ETFs compared returned 9.6% to 22.9% a year over five years, with dividends reinvested, as of October 2, 2026. USO ranked first and CPER last. USO fell 84.6% from peak to trough (month-end prices; lows within a month are not captured), against 23.9% for the S&P 500 fund SPY. Each fund gets its exposure through futures contracts and related instruments, not the physical commodity.
Each return runs from a month-end close to the October 2, 2026 price and is annualized over the actual days: the one-year figure covers September 30, 2025 to October 2, 2026, so it will not match an issuer's month-end one-year return. Volatility uses the last 60 complete monthly returns through September 30, 2026.
Key takeaways
- Five-year returns ran from 9.6% a year (CPER) to 22.9% (USO), a 13.3-point spread.
- One-year returns ran from 9.2% (DBA) to 99.2% (USO), as of October 2, 2026.
- USO had annualized volatility of 37.7% and a worst drawdown of 84.6% (month-end prices; lows within a month are not captured); DBA had volatility of 11.3%.
- Expense ratios run from 0.45% (USO) to 0.85% (DBA and DBC), or $45 to $85 per $10,000 a year.
- 6 of 6 funds returned more than CPI inflation of 4.1% a year over five years.
- 2 of 6 funds beat SPY over five years, and 0 of 6 did over ten.
Which commodity ETFs performed best?
USO led the 6 funds over one year at 99.2% with dividends reinvested, and DBA trailed at 9.2%. Over five years USO ranked first at 22.9% a year and CPER last at 9.6%. All 6 funds have 121 complete month-end prices, so none is excluded from the multi-year comparisons.
1. One-year spread: 90.0 percentage points
USO returned 99.2% over the past year and DBA returned 9.2% (WealthyBud data · 6 funds, total return · October 2, 2026).
2. Five-year spread: 13.3 points a year
USO returned 22.9% a year and CPER returned 9.6%. Among the three diversified baskets (DBC, GSG, and PDBC), five-year returns ran from 12.7% to 16.2%, and the middle fund was DBC at 13.1% (WealthyBud data · 5-yr annualized total return · October 2, 2026).
3. Ten-year spread: 5.5 points a year
CPER returned 10.5% a year over ten years and DBA returned 5.1% (WealthyBud data · 10-yr annualized total return · October 2, 2026).
| Ticker | Fund | Expense ratio | 1-yr total return | 5-yr total return (ann.) | Volatility (ann.) | Trailing yield |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CPER | United States Copper Index Fund | 0.65% | 31.6% | 9.6% | 20.2% | 0.00% |
| DBA | Invesco DB Agriculture Fund | 0.85% | 9.2% | 10.8% | 11.3% | 3.23% |
| DBC | Invesco DB Commodity Index Tracking Fund | 0.85% | 49.1% | 13.1% | 17.3% | 2.29% |
| GSG | iShares S&P GSCI Commodity-Indexed Trust | 0.75% | 55.2% | 16.2% | 20.9% | 0.00% |
| PDBC | Invesco Optimum Yield Diversified Commodity Strategy No K-1 ETF | 0.59% | 50.1% | 12.7% | 17.4% | 2.62% |
| USO | United States Oil Fund | 0.45% | 99.2% | 22.9% | 37.7% | 0.00% |
| SPY | State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust | 0.0945% | 16.7% | 13.9% | 15.7% | 0.99% |
How much do commodity ETFs cost?
Expense ratios range from 0.45% for USO to 0.85% for DBA and DBC, with a median of 0.7%. On $10,000 that is $45 to $85 a year. The S&P 500 fund SPY charges 0.0945%; issuers say brokerage costs for some of these funds are extra.
4. USO costs 0.45% and DBA and DBC cost 0.85%
USO is the cheapest of the 6 funds and DBA and DBC are the priciest, a 1.9-fold difference (WealthyBud data · issuer-verified expense ratios · October 2, 2026). PDBC’s 0.59% is net of a fee waiver; the gross figure is 0.74%.
5. 3 of 6 funds show a trailing yield above zero
DBA at 3.23%, PDBC at 2.62%, and DBC at 2.29% paid distributions over the last 12 months; the dataset records none for CPER, GSG, and USO (WealthyBud data · trailing-12-month distributions · October 2, 2026).
Compare major ETFs by fees and returns
How volatile are commodity ETFs?
USO was the most volatile fund, with annualized volatility of 37.7%, against 11.3% for DBA. USO had the deepest drawdown at 84.6% and DBA the shallowest at 32.4%. Drawdown is the largest peak-to-trough fall, measured on month-end prices; lows within a month are not captured.
6. USO swung most: 37.7% annualized
USO had the highest volatility, followed by GSG at 20.9%. DBA had the lowest at 11.3% (WealthyBud data · annualized stdev of the last 60 complete monthly returns through September 30, 2026 · October 2, 2026).
7. USO fell 84.6% peak to trough
USO had the deepest drawdown, GSG next at 53.2%. DBA fell least, at 32.4% (WealthyBud data · max drawdown · October 2, 2026). Window: 121 month-end prices from September 30, 2016 to September 30, 2026 plus the October 2, 2026 price; lows within a month are not captured and the dataset does not record when each low occurred; all 6 funds share it.
8. 6 of 6 funds fell further than the S&P 500 fund
SPY had a worst drawdown of 23.9% on the same month-end basis, so lows within a month are not captured. The dataset has no trough dates, so no fall is tied to an episode (WealthyBud data · max drawdown vs SPY · October 2, 2026).
How do commodity ETFs compare with the S&P 500?
Over one year 5 of the 6 funds beat SPY’s 16.7%, and over five years 2 did, against SPY’s 13.9% a year. Over ten years 0 of 6 beat SPY’s 15.3%. All returns include reinvested distributions, and SPY is the benchmark throughout.
9. 5 of 6 funds beat the S&P 500 fund over one year
CPER, DBC, GSG, PDBC, and USO beat SPY’s 16.7%. Over three, five and ten years 0, 2 and 0 of 6 did (WealthyBud data · 1/3/5/10-yr total return vs SPY · October 2, 2026).
| Period | SPY | Range across the 6 commodity funds | Funds beating SPY | Funds beating CPI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-year | 16.7% | 9.2% to 99.2% | 5 of 6 | 6 of 6 |
| 3-year | 23.1% | 13.7% to 22.1% | 0 of 6 | 6 of 6 |
| 5-year | 13.9% | 9.6% to 22.9% | 2 of 6 | 6 of 6 |
| 10-year | 15.3% | 5.1% to 10.5% | 0 of 6 | 6 of 6 |
Why do commodity futures ETFs lag spot prices?
These funds hold futures contracts, which expire and must be replaced, so their returns can differ from the commodity’s spot price. An SEC and CFTC staff bulletin on Bitcoin futures funds, describing futures-based funds generally, says futures prices “differ from the underlying commodity’s spot price.” The 6 funds here gained 5.1% to 10.5% a year over ten years.
10. Regulators: futures prices can differ from spot prices
An SEC and CFTC investor bulletin (June 10, 2021) is written about funds that trade Bitcoin futures; the passage below describes funds that trade commodity futures generally. It says: “Futures contract prices can vary by delivery months and differ from the underlying commodity’s spot price. Futures contracts also expire periodically, resulting in fluctuations of portfolio exposure as expiring futures positions are typically rolled into new contracts.”
11. The CFTC explains how rolling creates drag or gain
The CFTC’s customer advisory on commodity ETPs (announced in a CFTC press release dated May 22, 2020) says: “If the prices for out-month contracts are increasing, then the pool may lose money each time front-month contracts are rolled.” It adds: “By contrast, when out-month contract prices decrease, it could have the opposite effect and result in a ‘roll yield.’”
12. Contango and backwardation, as the CFTC defines them
The CFTC’s futures glossary defines contango as a “Market situation in which prices in succeeding delivery months are progressively higher than in the nearest delivery month” and backwardation as a “Market situation in which futures prices are progressively lower in the distant delivery months.” None of these sources says which funds on this page were affected, so this page does not assign any fund’s return gap to contango.
13. What each fund says it holds
USO: “USO currently invests in oil futures contracts and over-the-counter swaps” (USCF). CPER: its index is “a portfolio of copper futures contracts on the COMEX exchange” (USCF), so it holds futures, not mining stocks. DBC and DBA: “The Fund invests in futures contracts in an attempt to track its Index” (DBC, DBA annual reports for 2025). GSG: its value “depends on the value of the Index Futures” (iShares). PDBC: “The Fund will not invest directly in physical commodities, Commodities Futures or Commodity-Linked Instruments” and instead invests through a subsidiary (Invesco summary prospectus).
14. USO’s stated objective is defined by daily changes in the spot price
USCF states USO’s objective is “for the daily changes, in percentage terms, of its shares’ net asset value (NAV) to reflect the daily changes, in percentage terms, of the spot price of light sweet crude oil delivered to Cushing, Oklahoma.” Over ten years USO returned 5.4% a year, ranking 5 of 6; the other five funds ranged from 5.1% to 10.5% (WealthyBud data · 10-yr annualized total return, computed rank · October 2, 2026).
15. EIA: WTI averaged $83.90 a barrel in August 2026
EIA’s monthly spot price table (release date September 30, 2026) lists a WTI Cushing average of $83.90 in August 2026, down 17.8% from $102.13 in May 2026 (WealthyBud’s calculation from EIA’s figures). These monthly averages cover a different period from USO’s return windows, so they are not compared with USO.
Do commodity ETFs hedge inflation?
6 of the 6 funds returned more than consumer price inflation, which ran 4.1% a year from August 2021 to August 2026. Fund returns ran from September 30, 2021 to October 2, 2026: CPER 9.6%, USO 22.9%. This compares averages only, not monthly co-movement.
16. CPI rose 22.5% over five years, 4.1% a year
The CPI-U series (all items, seasonally adjusted) stood at 334.131 in August 2026. This is the CPI-U change from August 2021 to August 2026, the latest published month, against fund returns from September 30, 2021 to October 2, 2026 (WealthyBud’s calculation from FRED data). The dates differ by one to two months.
17. 6 of 6 funds beat CPI over one year; 6 of 6 over ten
One year: CPI 3.4% (August 2025 to August 2026) against funds from September 30, 2025 to October 2, 2026. Three years: CPI 3.0% a year (August 2023 to August 2026) against September 29, 2023 to October 2, 2026; 6 of 6 beat it. Ten years: CPI 3.3% a year (August 2016 to August 2026) against September 30, 2016 to October 2, 2026.
What this means for investors
Read these as futures funds. The CFTC advisory and the SEC and CFTC staff bulletin on Bitcoin futures funds, quoted above, say futures-based funds can differ from spot prices. For gold and silver funds, which can hold the metal itself, see gold and silver ETF statistics.
Treat inflation results as history. Beating CPI in past windows is not a forecast. For how stocks compare, see inflation and stocks statistics. For the wider fund landscape, see ETF statistics.
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