IYM vs. SLV

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF (IYM) and iShares Silver Trust (SLV).

IYM and SLV are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. IYM is a passively managed fund by iShares that tracks the performance of the Dow Jones U.S. Basic Materials Index. It was launched on Jun 20, 2000. SLV is a passively managed fund by iShares that tracks the performance of the LBMA Silver Price. It was launched on Apr 21, 2006. Both IYM and SLV are passive ETFs, meaning that they are not actively managed but aim to replicate the performance of the underlying index as closely as possible.

Performance

IYM vs. SLV - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF (IYM) and iShares Silver Trust (SLV). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

IYM vs. SLV - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017
IYM iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF	14.57%	20.41%	-4.54%	12.83%	-9.15%	25.62%	17.87%	19.22%	-16.63%	24.83%
SLV iShares Silver Trust	5.77%	144.66%	20.89%	-1.09%	2.37%	-12.45%	47.30%	14.88%	-9.19%	5.82%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, IYM achieves a 14.57% return, which is significantly higher than SLV's 5.77% return. Over the past 10 years, IYM has underperformed SLV with an annualized return of 10.95%, while SLV has yielded a comparatively higher 16.87% annualized return.

IYM

• 1D: 2.70%
• 1M: -6.45%
• YTD: 14.57%
• 6M: 19.61%
• 1Y: 32.51%
• 3Y*: 11.71%
• 5Y*: 8.58%
• 10Y*: 10.95%

SLV

• 1D: 7.27%
• 1M: -19.83%
• YTD: 5.77%
• 6M: 60.82%
• 1Y: 119.88%
• 3Y*: 45.50%
• 5Y*: 24.10%
• 10Y*: 16.87%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

IYM vs. SLV - Expense Ratio Comparison

IYM has a 0.42% expense ratio, which is lower than SLV's 0.50% expense ratio.

SLV

iShares Silver Trust

IYM

iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF

Return for Risk

IYM vs. SLV — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

IYM

IYM Risk / Return Rank: 80
IYM Sharpe Ratio Rank: 80
IYM Sortino Ratio Rank: 81
IYM Omega Ratio Rank: 76
IYM Calmar Ratio Rank: 82
IYM Martin Ratio Rank: 80

SLV

SLV Risk / Return Rank: 89
SLV Sharpe Ratio Rank: 93
SLV Sortino Ratio Rank: 86
SLV Omega Ratio Rank: 92
SLV Calmar Ratio Rank: 90
SLV Martin Ratio Rank: 83

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

IYM vs. SLV - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF (IYM) and iShares Silver Trust (SLV). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	IYM	SLV	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	1.46	2.11	-0.65
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	2.05	2.20	-0.15
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.28	1.39	-0.12
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	2.29	2.82	-0.54
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	8.49	8.79	-0.30
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

IYM vs. SLV - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current IYM Sharpe Ratio is 1.46, which is lower than the SLV Sharpe Ratio of 2.11. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of IYM and SLV, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	IYM	SLV	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	1.46	2.11	-0.65
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	0.42	0.69	-0.26
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	0.51	0.54	-0.03
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.33	0.25	+0.08

Correlation

The correlation between IYM and SLV is 0.35, which is considered to be low. This implies their price changes are not closely related. A low correlation is generally favorable for portfolio diversification, as it helps to reduce overall risk by spreading it across multiple assets with different performance patterns.

Dividends

IYM vs. SLV - Dividend Comparison

IYM's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 1.32%, while SLV has not paid dividends to shareholders.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
IYM iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF	1.32%	1.51%	1.65%	1.77%	2.14%	1.48%	1.39%	2.08%	1.68%	1.43%	1.47%	2.04%
SLV iShares Silver Trust	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%

Drawdowns

IYM vs. SLV - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum IYM drawdown since its inception was -67.78%, smaller than the maximum SLV drawdown of -76.28%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for IYM and SLV.

Drawdown Indicators

	IYM	SLV	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-67.78%	-76.28%	+8.50%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-14.54%	-42.45%	+27.91%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	-29.94%	-42.45%	+12.51%
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	-42.76%	-42.81%	+0.05%
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-6.96%	-35.47%	+28.51%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-11.51%	-44.76%	+33.25%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	3.92%	13.63%	-9.71%

Volatility

IYM vs. SLV - Volatility Comparison

The current volatility for iShares U.S. Basic Materials ETF (IYM) is 7.53%, while iShares Silver Trust (SLV) has a volatility of 18.91%. This indicates that IYM experiences smaller price fluctuations and is considered to be less risky than SLV based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	IYM	SLV	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	7.53%	18.91%	-11.38%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	14.86%	57.27%	-42.41%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	22.37%	57.07%	-34.70%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	20.32%	35.28%	-14.96%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	21.66%	31.36%	-9.70%