Abrdn Physical Silver Shares ETF vs iShares Silver Trust: Which Fund Helps Investors Ride the Commodity Boom?
Key Points
Abrdn Physical Silver Shares ETF offers a lower expense ratio than iShares Silver Trust.
iShares Silver Trust maintains a much larger scale with $33.8 billion in assets under management (AUM).
Both funds track physical silver and have delivered total returns exceeding 79% over the past year.
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The Abrdn Physical Silver Shares ETF (NYSEMKT:SIVR) and iShares Silver Trust (NYSEMKT:SLV) both offer direct exposure to physical silver, but they differ primarily in their cost structures and total assets under management.
Investors seeking to hedge against inflation or diversify their portfolios often turn to precious metals. These funds serve as liquid proxies for physical bullion, allowing investors to bet on silver prices without the logistical challenges of holding the metal itself. While they share the same objective, the iShares trust offers significantly higher liquidity for active traders, whereas the abrdn fund provides a more cost-efficient entry point.
Snapshot (cost & size)
| Metric | SIVR | SLV |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | Aberdeen Investments | iShares |
| Share price | $65.95 (as of 2026-08-27) | $62.77 (as of 2026-08-27) |
| Expense ratio | 0.3% | 0.5% |
| 1-yr return (as of Aug. 27, 2026) | 79.7% | 79.4% |
| Dividend yield | n/a | n/a |
| Beta | 0.54 | 0.55 |
| AUM | $4.8B | $33.8B |
Beta measures price volatility relative to the S&P 500; beta is calculated from monthly returns over the available fund history (up to five years). The 1-yr return represents total return over the trailing 12 months as of Aug. 27, 2026.
The Abrdn fund is more affordable than the iShares trust, featuring an expense ratio of 0.3% compared to 0.5% for its larger rival. For investors holding for the long haul, this 0.20 percentage point difference can lead to a noticeable gap in total return over several years, as evidenced by the slightly higher growth of a $1,000 investment in the Abrdn fund.
Performance & risk comparison
| Metric | SIVR | SLV |
|---|---|---|
| Max drawdown (5 yr) | (52.3%) | (52.3%) |
| Growth of $1,000 over 5 years (total return) | $2,837 | $2,811 |
What's inside
The iShares Silver Trust is designed to track the market price movements of silver bullion. This trust operates outside the regulatory framework of the 1940 Investment Company Act and is not subject to the same rules as typical mutual funds. Its sole position is physical silver at 100%, plus some cash on occassion as part of fund operations. The iShares trust was launched in 2006 and manages $33.8 billion in assets under management (AUM). This significant scale provides high trading volume for investors who prioritize ease of entry and exit.
The Abrdn Physical Silver Shares ETF also endeavors to replicate the market value of physical silver while accounting for fund operating expenditures. Like its rival ETF, its sole position is physical silver at 100% of the portfolio. The Abrdn fund was launched in 2009 and currently manages $4.8 billion in assets under management (AUM). While smaller than its iShares counterpart, it offers a nearly identical investment experience with lower annual overhead, which may appeal to cost-conscious investors.
For more guidance on ETF investing, check out the full guide at this link.
Which looks like the better buy?
Silver has been on a historic rally. The shiny metal has nearly tripled since the start of 2024, and more than doubled since 2025 partly in tandem with the rush into gold on inflation fears and partly due to industrial demand from renewable energy applications. Even while silver is down from its peak of $120 an ounce in February, it remains in a bullish trend.
Investors seeking exposure to the metal rally without the time and expense of buying physical commodities can buy either of these ETFs and gain access to their preferred precious metal.
Given that the funds provide investors with the exact same thing -- ETF ownership of physical silver -- the only differentiator to consider is performance. And it is in performance where the Abrdn ETF, SIVR, outperforms the slightly more expensive, if larger, iShares Silver Trust, SLV.
Year to date, SIVR is down 2.6% compared to a loss of 2.73% for SLV. Over the past three years, SIVR has returned 41.6% annualized versus 41.3% for SLV. Similarly over the previous five years, SIVR returned 23.55%, 0.25 percentage points better than the iShares rival. In the 10-year look-back, SIVR returned an annualized 13.8% to 13.6% for SLV.
In short, these funds offer a commodity product, physical silver. The only difference is expenses, which leads to better performance. Buy SIVR for silver exposure.
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Brendan Coffey has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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