# How iShares Core Universal USD Bond ETF (IUSB) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/iusb
> Data as of October 20, 2026. Total returns include reinvested dividends. Past performance does not predict future results; nothing here is investment advice.

Built by QuantCommons' quantitative engine, this page is about relative opportunity, not data on IUSB alone. It places IUSB (iShares Core Universal USD Bond ETF) against 20+ popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken, behavior in real market crashes and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where IUSB stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: IUSB's full trading record, from June 2014 through September 2026. The crash tests reach back to 2000 using older funds and the S&P 500. All returns include reinvested dividends. Data as of October 20, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** IUSB has gone against the market, falling 2.4% over the past 6 months while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%. On the flip side, both IUSB and the S&P 500 are within a few percent of a record high.
- **Fund or market?:** A move of its own: IUSB fell 1.7% over the past 3 months, while the S&P 500 rose 3.9%.
- **Long term:** Over the past decade, IUSB returned 1.6% a year against 15.5% a year for the S&P 500 (16.9% in total against 321%). IUSB's 10-year return of 16.9% puts it behind 91% of the ETFs with at least $100 million in assets with that much history. The S&P 500 returned 321%.
- **In a crash:** Across four sell-offs, IUSB has typically lost about 27% as much as the S&P 500. The 2022 bear market took 14.8% off IUSB, against 24.5% for the S&P 500. That was more than TOTL (State Street DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF, 13.2%) but less than VCIT (Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF, 17.4%).
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, IUSB has a correlation of 0.64 over 5 years, less closely than 68% of ETFs with at least $100 million in assets. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge. IUSB cushions stocks less than it used to: its correlation with the S&P 500 rose to 0.64 over the past 5 years, from 0.21 in the 5 years before.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** HYG (iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF) was ahead of IUSB in most short and long periods, though with much bigger swings (7.5% volatility against 5.9%).
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** BIL (State Street SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF, treasury bonds) and VTIP (Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities ETF, treasury bonds) earned more than IUSB with less volatility over the past 5 years. BIL returned 3.7% a year at 0.3% volatility, against 0.0% a year at 5.9%.
  - **Whole market:** 82 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than IUSB with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them SGOV (iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF), VTIP (Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities ETF) and BSV (Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETF).

## How much would $10,000 in IUSB have grown?

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in IUSB over the past 12 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of IUSB over the same span and IUSB's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in IUSB at the end of September 2014 would have grown to $12,555 by September 2026, less than the $47,240 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- All eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of IUSB, and HYG finished highest, at $15,928.

## IUSB at a glance

This section summarizes the key facts about the fund, its returns over periods from one to ten years and the risk it has carried, with dividends reinvested throughout.

- IUSB's deepest decline since it began trading in 2014 was 17.9%, from December 2020 to October 2022. It took about three years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 11 full calendar years, IUSB's best was 2019, when it returned 9.1%, and its worst was 2022, when it lost 13.0%. It lost money in three of those years.
- IUSB is 3.2% below its all-time high.

- Type: ETF, Bonds (Asset Management - Bonds)
- Trading since: June 12, 2014
- Assets: $49B
- Expense ratio: 0.06%
- Volatility (5 years): 5.9%; Sharpe ratio: 0.04
- Worst decline ever: −17.9%, from December 31, 2020 to October 20, 2022; back at its high by October 20, 2025

| Period | IUSB total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −0.7% |
| 3 months | −1.7% |
| 6 months | −2.4% |
| year to date | −1.5% |
| 1 year | −1.6% |
| 3 years | +17.5% |
| 5 years | +0.2% |
| 10 years | +16.9% |

## IUSB against the whole market

Where IUSB ranks among every stock and fund, and what across the market has done better.

### How does IUSB rank among all ETFs?

This section ranks IUSB on return, volatility, risk-adjusted return and worst decline against every ETF worth at least $100 million with enough history.

- IUSB's worst decline of the past 10 years ranks in the top 9% of the 951 ETFs with at least $100 million in assets, where the top fell the least.
- IUSB's 10-year return ranks in the bottom 10% of the 958 ETFs with at least $100 million in assets with 10 years of history.

| Measure | IUSB | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −1.6% | 2,101 of 2,485 (top 85%) |
| 3-year return | +17.5% | 1,657 of 1,949 (top 86%) |
| 5-year return | +0.2% | 1,369 of 1,560 (top 88%) |
| 10-year return | +16.9% | 867 of 958 (top 91%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 5.9% | 172 of 1,560 (top 12%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.04 | 1,394 of 1,560 (top 90%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −17.9% | 84 of 951 (top 9%) |

### What has beaten IUSB on both return and risk?

Each dot is an investment, placed by how much it earned a year over the past 5 years (higher is better) and how much its price swung, its volatility (further left is calmer).

- 82 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than IUSB over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 2% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half IUSB's swings, BALT has the best return for its risk: 6.3% a year at 3.3% volatility, 43% less than IUSB's 5.9%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.85 against 0.04 for IUSB.
- None of IUSB's popular alternatives made it, but BIL (treasury bonds) did: 3.7% a year at 0.3% volatility, 96% less than IUSB's 5.9%.

### Is there a better investment than IUSB?

The table below lists investments that beat IUSB over the past 5 years on at least one of these measures: a higher annual return with lower volatility, a higher annual return at similar volatility, a similar return with lower volatility, a higher Sharpe ratio with a smaller worst decline, a higher total return in most periods from 3 months to 10 years, or smaller losses in recent market crashes, and, for funds, the same exposure at a lower expense ratio.

- Among IUSB's popular alternatives, HYG was ahead of IUSB in most short and long periods, though with much bigger swings (7.5% volatility against 5.9%).
- VCIT tracks the same thing for 0.03% a year against IUSB's 0.06%, and has kept pace over the past decade: about $30 less in fees on $10,000 over 10 years.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, BIL (treasury bonds) and VTIP (treasury bonds) earned more than IUSB with less volatility over the past 5 years. BIL returned 3.7% a year at 0.3% volatility, against 0.0% a year at 5.9%.

The 15 strongest of 82 investments that beat IUSB over the past 5 years, out of 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million.

| Investment | Group | Annual return (5 years) | Volatility | Sharpe | Worst decline (10 years) | 10Y return | Correlation with IUSB | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| IUSB: iShares Core Universal USD Bond ETF (this page) |  | 0.0% | 5.9% | 0.04 | −17.9% | +16.9% |  |  |
| [BIL](https://easycompare.io/research/bil): State Street SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF | Treasury Bonds | +3.7% | 0.3% | 14.05 | −0.2% | +25.8% | 0.28 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| JAAA: Janus Henderson AAA CLO ETF | CLO Bonds | +5.1% | 1.7% | 2.98 | −2.6% | — | 0.30 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| BALT: Innovator Defined Wealth Shield ETF | Crypto | +6.3% | 3.3% | 1.85 | −4.9% | — | 0.63 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [BSV](https://easycompare.io/research/bsv): Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETF | Short-Term Bonds | +1.7% | 2.8% | 0.63 | −8.5% | +20.5% | 0.92 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| USTB: VictoryShares Short-Term Bond ETF | Bonds | +3.6% | 2.0% | 1.73 | −5.3% | — | 0.89 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| RAVI: Northern Trust Ultra-Short Fixed Income ETF | Bonds | +3.8% | 1.4% | 2.61 | −3.7% | +30.8% | 0.55 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| MEAR: iShares Short Maturity Municipal Bond Active ETF | Bonds | +2.4% | 1.0% | 2.37 | −2.7% | +19.3% | 0.75 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| LMBS: First Trust Low Duration Opportunities ETF | Mortgage-Backed Securities | +3.0% | 2.6% | 1.14 | −6.5% | +25.6% | 0.89 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VTIP](https://easycompare.io/research/vtip): Vanguard Short-Term Inflation-Protected Securities ETF | Treasury Bonds | +2.7% | 2.9% | 0.94 | −6.3% | +32.7% | 0.71 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| SPSB: State Street SPDR Portfolio Short Term Corporate Bond ETF | Investment Grade Bonds | +2.8% | 2.0% | 1.38 | −11.8% | +29.2% | 0.92 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| SHY: iShares 1-3 Year Treasury Bond ETF | Treasury Bonds | +1.8% | 2.0% | 0.89 | −5.7% | +17.7% | 0.85 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| LDUR: PIMCO Enhanced Low Duration Active Exchange-Traded Fund | Bonds | +2.4% | 2.1% | 1.13 | −8.7% | +26.7% | 0.78 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| STOT: State Street DoubleLine Short Duration Total Return Tactical ETF | Bonds | +2.9% | 1.7% | 1.65 | −6.1% | +26.0% | 0.82 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| VRIG: Invesco Variable Rate Investment Grade ETF | Bonds | +4.7% | 1.3% | 3.51 | −13.1% | +40.5% | 0.29 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| FLRT: Pacer Aristotle Pacific Floating Rate High Income ETF | Financials | +6.0% | 2.3% | 2.55 | −21.0% | +58.0% | 0.44 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |

## IUSB against its popular alternatives

The investments people most often weigh against IUSB, compared period by period and year by year.

### How do IUSB's risk and return compare with its alternatives?

This map plots each investment's annual return over the past 5 years against its volatility, the size of its typical price swings.

- JCPB, BNDX and TOTL were both more rewarding and calmer than IUSB over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, IUSB returned 0.1% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with lower volatility (5.9% against 17.1%).

### Has IUSB consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

This section compares IUSB with the investments people most often weigh against it, checking each one over eight periods from one month to ten years.

- Two of the 25 popular alternatives, JNK and HYG, outperformed IUSB in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- JCPB, FBND and BNDX earned more for the risk they took than IUSB (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in their worst decline of the past 10 years.
- VCIT outperformed IUSB over all three long-term periods but in none of the five short-term ones, so IUSB has had the better of it lately.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of IUSB | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| IUSB: iShares Core Universal USD Bond ETF (this page) | −1.6% | +17.5% | +0.2% | +16.9% |  |  | 0.04 |
| JNK: State Street SPDR Bloomberg High Yield Bond ETF | +1.1% | +27.8% | +16.1% | +49.7% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.43 |
| HYG: iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF | +0.7% | +27.5% | +16.8% | +49.5% | 3/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | consistent | 0.45 |
| EMB: iShares J.P. Morgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF | −0.6% | +32.6% | +6.7% | +26.4% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.18 |
| FALN: iShares Fallen Angels USD Bond ETF | −1.3% | +27.4% | +13.5% | +65.5% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.38 |
| IGIB: iShares 5-10 Year Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | −2.7% | +21.9% | +3.9% | +28.8% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.15 |
| [VCIT](https://easycompare.io/research/vcit): Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF | −2.6% | +21.5% | +3.2% | +26.4% | 0/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.13 |
| GTO: Invesco Total Return Bond ETF | −1.7% | +18.3% | −2.1% | +25.8% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | -0.05 |
| SPBO: State Street SPDR Portfolio Corporate Bond ETF | −2.2% | +20.5% | +0.4% | +25.1% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.05 |
| USIG: iShares Broad USD Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | −2.5% | +19.7% | +0.3% | +23.5% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.04 |
| FBND: Fidelity Total Bond ETF | −1.9% | +17.8% | +1.5% | +21.9% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.08 |
| LQD: iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | −3.9% | +19.7% | −4.3% | +20.5% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | -0.06 |
| BOND: PIMCO Active Bond Exchange-Traded Fund | −1.9% | +19.5% | −0.3% | +19.3% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.02 |
| JCPB: JPMorgan Core Plus Bond ETF | −1.3% | +19.8% | +3.0% | — | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.14 |
| [BNDX](https://easycompare.io/research/bndx): Vanguard Total International Bond ETF | −1.4% | +13.4% | +0.8% | +15.0% | 4/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.06 |
| BINC: iShares Flexible Income Active ETF | +0.7% | +21.2% | — | — | 3/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | — |
| TIP: iShares TIPS Bond ETF | −1.5% | +13.3% | −0.3% | +23.5% | 2/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.02 |
| MBB: iShares MBS ETF | −1.9% | +18.5% | −0.8% | +9.5% | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.01 |
| CGCP: Capital Group Core Plus Income ETF | −2.0% | +18.5% | — | — | 0/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | — |
| SCHZ: Schwab U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF | −1.9% | +16.2% | −1.6% | +15.0% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.02 |
| [AGG](https://easycompare.io/research/agg): iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF | −1.9% | +16.2% | −1.5% | +13.3% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.02 |
| [BND](https://easycompare.io/research/bnd): Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF | −2.1% | +15.7% | −1.8% | +13.2% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.03 |
| SPAB: State Street SPDR Portfolio Aggregate Bond ETF | −1.9% | +16.1% | −1.6% | +13.1% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.02 |
| TOTL: State Street DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF | −2.6% | +17.4% | +0.7% | +12.7% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.05 |
| [GOVT](https://easycompare.io/research/govt): iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF | −1.8% | +12.7% | −3.5% | +7.1% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.09 |
| BKAG: BNY Mellon Core Bond ETF | −1.9% | +16.1% | −1.8% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.03 |

### How did IUSB do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2015, along with where IUSB ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- IUSB finished ahead of the S&P 500 in two of its 11 full calendar years, and behind it in each of the last three.
- Among its popular alternatives, JCPB came out ahead of IUSB most often, in five of the six years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, IUSB finished in the top quarter in no of 11 years and in the bottom quarter in no. In 2025, it ranked 16 of 22.

| Year | IUSB | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +7.4% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +2.1% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +6.2% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −13.0% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | −1.3% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +7.6% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +9.1% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | −0.3% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +3.8% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +4.0% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How IUSB has fallen, how it held up in crashes beside the S&P 500 and its popular alternatives, and what moves independently of it.

### What were IUSB's worst declines?

A drawdown is the decline from a peak to the lowest point before a new high.

- Not every decline was the market's doing: IUSB fell 17.9% from December 2020 to October 2022, while the S&P 500 rose 0.2%.
- The slowest recovery came after IUSB fell 17.9% from December 2020 to October 2022; it did not regain that peak until October 2025, three years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −17.9% | December 31, 2020 | October 20, 2022 | October 20, 2025 | +0.2% | 2022 bear market |
| −9.9% | March 6, 2020 | March 19, 2020 | June 10, 2020 | −19.1% | Covid crash |

### How did IUSB do in stock market crashes?

This section measures how far IUSB, the S&P 500 and each alternative fell from peak to trough during every major market crash since 2000.

- IUSB fell less than the S&P 500 in all six crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when IUSB fell 9.9% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.
- Among its popular alternatives, BNDX held up best, falling less than IUSB in four of the six crashes they both traded through.
- IUSB began trading after the 2008 financial crisis, but seven of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was MBB's 3.8%, against 55.2% for the S&P 500.

| Crash | Dates | IUSB fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | not trading | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | not trading | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | not trading | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | not trading | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −1.7% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −0.8% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −1.1% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −9.9% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −14.8% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | 0.0% | −3.4% |

### How closely does IUSB move with the S&P 500?

Upside capture measures how much of the S&P 500's gains an investment kept in the months the market rose, and downside capture how much of its losses it took in the months the market fell.

- Over the past 10 years, IUSB captured 15% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 20% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.16. Its share of the market's losses was slightly larger than its share of the gains.
- Nine of the 19 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than IUSB's 0.74, led by FALN, TIP and HYG.

Measured over the past 10 years of monthly returns against SPY.

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| IUSB: iShares Core Universal USD Bond ETF (this page) | 15.0% | 20.0% | 0.16 |
| JNK: State Street SPDR Bloomberg High Yield Bond ETF | 35.0% | 43.0% | 0.41 |
| HYG: iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond ETF | 34.0% | 40.0% | 0.39 |
| EMB: iShares J.P. Morgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF | 36.0% | 56.0% | 0.46 |
| FALN: iShares Fallen Angels USD Bond ETF | 42.0% | 47.0% | 0.49 |
| IGIB: iShares 5-10 Year Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | 22.0% | 29.0% | 0.27 |
| [VCIT](https://easycompare.io/research/vcit): Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond ETF | 22.0% | 29.0% | 0.26 |
| GTO: Invesco Total Return Bond ETF | 19.0% | 24.0% | 0.22 |
| SPBO: State Street SPDR Portfolio Corporate Bond ETF | 22.0% | 31.0% | 0.27 |
| USIG: iShares Broad USD Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | 22.0% | 31.0% | 0.27 |
| FBND: Fidelity Total Bond ETF | 17.0% | 21.0% | 0.18 |
| LQD: iShares iBoxx $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF | 25.0% | 39.0% | 0.33 |
| BOND: PIMCO Active Bond Exchange-Traded Fund | 16.0% | 22.0% | 0.19 |
| [BNDX](https://easycompare.io/research/bndx): Vanguard Total International Bond ETF | 11.0% | 13.0% | 0.14 |
| TIP: iShares TIPS Bond ETF | 15.0% | 17.0% | 0.18 |
| MBB: iShares MBS ETF | 13.0% | 21.0% | 0.14 |
| SCHZ: Schwab U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF | 14.0% | 20.0% | 0.16 |
| [AGG](https://easycompare.io/research/agg): iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF | 12.0% | 17.0% | 0.14 |
| TOTL: State Street DoubleLine Total Return Tactical ETF | 13.0% | 18.0% | 0.15 |
| [GOVT](https://easycompare.io/research/govt): iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF | 6.0% | 8.0% | 0.06 |

### What diversifies IUSB?

Correlation measures how closely two investments move together, on a scale from 1 (in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to -1 (in opposite directions).

- Moving a fifth of the money in IUSB into DBMF would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 33% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (-0.3% for IUSB alone, +2.0% for the mix).
- FIX made money in three of the three calendar years in which IUSB lost money.
- Among large ETFs, DXJ, EMLP and GLD have moved largely independently of IUSB over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.49 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with IUSB | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in IUSB's 3 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.27 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 2 of 3 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.49 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 2 of 3 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.40 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 0 of 3 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.43 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 1 of 3 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.10 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 2 of 3 |
| AMLP: Alerian MLP ETF | 0.22 | +111% | 18.9% | 0.89 | 2 of 3 |
| PTLC: Pacer Trendpilot US Large Cap ETF | 0.47 | +57.4% | 11.8% | 0.83 | 2 of 3 |
| DBMF: iMGP DBi Managed Futures Strategy ETF | -0.55 | +59.7% | 12.4% | 0.82 | 2 of 3 |

## Common questions

### What was IUSB's worst drawdown?

IUSB's deepest decline since it began trading in 2014 was 17.9%, from December 2020 to October 2022. It took about three years from the low to climb back to its old high. Because IUSB launched in June 2014, that record does not include the dot-com bust, the 2008 financial crisis or two other sell-offs.

### What were IUSB's best and worst years?

Over 11 full calendar years, IUSB's best year was 2019, when it returned 9.1%. Its worst was 2022, with a return of -13.0%.

### Is there a better investment than IUSB?

Among IUSB's popular alternatives, HYG was ahead of IUSB in most short and long periods, though with much bigger swings (7.5% volatility against 5.9%). VCIT tracks the same thing for 0.03% a year against IUSB's 0.06%, and has kept pace over the past decade: about $30 less in fees on $10,000 over 10 years.

### Is IUSB more volatile than the S&P 500?

No. IUSB's volatility over the past 5 years was 5.9%, 34% of the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, IUSB's return lands within 5.9% of its average, either way. The higher it is, the rougher the ride and the harder it is to hold through a slump.

### What is IUSB's Sharpe ratio?

IUSB's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.04, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so IUSB earned less for each unit of risk than an index fund did. The Sharpe ratio is the return earned above cash for each unit of volatility: two investments with the same return are not equal if one got there with far bigger swings.

### How correlated is IUSB with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, IUSB's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.64 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They often move together: some diversification next to an index fund, but not a cushion. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against IUSB instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a IUSB holding.

### What are the best alternatives to IUSB?

Of the 25 popular alternatives we compared, two outperformed IUSB in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: JNK and HYG.

### Did IUSB outperform the S&P 500?

IUSB finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in two of 11 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +7.4%, against +17.7% for the index.

### How did IUSB do in stock market crashes?

IUSB fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in six of the six major crashes it has traded through, and further in no. The clearest case was the Covid crash, when IUSB fell 9.9% and the S&P 500 fell 33.7%.

### What diversifies IUSB?

These had a low correlation with IUSB over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, DXJ (correlation 0.27), EMLP (correlation 0.49) and GLD (correlation 0.40); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.25), CLS (correlation 0.12) and FIX (correlation 0.19). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

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## Explore further

- Full page with charts: https://easycompare.io/research/iusb
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against IUSB live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=IUSB&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research