Top ASX-listed commodity ETFs to watch in 2025

What are commodity ETFs?

Commodity exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are popular investment vehicles that enable share traders to gain exposure to the performance of selected hard and soft commodities with the same ease as purchasing any normal share on an exchange, like the ASX.

Types of commodity ETFs

There are a few types of commodity ETFs share traders can invest in. Here are three of them:

• Physically backed: A few of the ETFs on our list are physically backed. This means they are underpinned by the physical commodity – like gold or silver. Instead of outright owning the commodity and needing to store and insure it, investors gain exposure to it via the ETF, which is backed by, say, bullion
• Futures contracts: These are contracts where traders agree to buy or sell a specific amount of a physical commodity at a certain date and price in the future
• Shares: Shares ETFs refer to ETFs comprised of companies involved in the production of commodities – like mining stocks

What’s the difference between hard and soft commodities?

Hard commodities are natural resources that are usually mined or extracted from the ground, such as oil, gold, silver or copper. Soft commodities are grown and typically need maintenance during production, such as livestock, wheat or sugar.

How to select a commodity ETF

There are numerous factors to consider when picking a commodity ETF. These include:

• What it tracks: For example, if it’s a share ETF, what are its constituent companies and how are they weighted?
• Performance: Look at how well an ETF has performed over the past three, six, 12 months. Is it achieving or exceeding targets and benchmarks?
• Size: The larger an ETF is (both in market cap and in assets under management), the more stable it tends to be. There is, however, never a guarantee that the ETF won’t be liquidated, but it gives a good indication of its health
• Age: The older an ETF is, the more stable it’s considered. These tend to have higher trading volumes and greater liquidity, and come with a proven track record. But again, this isn’t a rule set in stone; younger ETFs can outperform older ones, and those that have been around for years aren’t guaranteed to maintain success
• Fees: ETF fees differ vastly, with some on our list as low as 0.15% and 0.18% per annum. Essentially, this point boils down to one question: How much of your profits are you willing to give up for fees?

ASX commodity ETFs: what you need to know

Commodities underpin the economic system in a fundamental way; every share on the ASX ultimately generates profit through the commodity chain.

Commodity ETFs give share traders an excellent advantage in that they provide significant diversification in a portfolio. This is because commodities’ performance historically demonstrates a low correlation with other major asset classes, such as cash, fixed income, or international and Australian equities.

For example, gold has long been viewed as a recession-proof 'safe haven’ real asset inflation-hedge. But for practical reasons, it makes far more sense to buy into a gold ETF rather than take delivery of physical bars.

Benefits of commodity ETFs

There are numerous advantages to trading commodity ETFs, such as:

• Diversification: As we already mentioned, you can gain wide diversification in your portfolio by investing in ETFs. You could share trade an ETF that is backed by gold bullion, or one that replicates an index for a basket of commodities
• Inflation hedging: Some commodities follow inflation, meaning if it rises, so do they. This means your purchasing power stays the same
• Convenience: It’s much easier to buy into an ETF than it is to store and insure physical commodities – where would you keep your gold bullion or your cattle if you invested directly in the underlying asset?

Risks of commodity ETFs

Of course, with any type of share trading, commodity ETFs come with their perils, too. These include:

• Volatility: While some commodities are considered safer havens, others are more prone to volatility. Think of maize, for example. A bad season or plant disease can lead to major crop failures, which can cause prices to surge due to a lack of supply
• Regulatory risks: Environmental regulations, changes in government policies and other political risks can affect commodity prices. This, then, affects the ETFs that track them
• Concentration: Share traders narrow their diversification if they invest in an ETF that only tracks one commodity, like lithium. If the market crashes, the ETF could follow suit

Top 5 ASX-listed commodity ETFs to watch

ASX commodity ETFs enable share traders to gain exposure to this useful asset class without the drawbacks of physical ownership.

Most commonly, ETFs track a benchmark index that either measures the price of a single commodity or a basket of multiple commodities. Most are synthetic ETFs, which track commodity futures, and therefore may perform better or worse than the spot price of the commodity itself.

Of course, some ASX commodity ETFs will directly invest. A common example of this is the currency-hedged BetaShares Gold Bullion ETF (ASX: QAU), which is backed by physical gold held within a JPMorgan Chase vault in London.

Overview of the commodity ETFs in this article

The ETFs in this article were chosen based on two distinct features – they have among the highest market caps for commodity ETFs on the ASX, and they have performed superbly over the past year, with price growth from 33.61% to 65.26%.

The following ETFs can be traded via CFDs and share traded with us:

• BetaShares Gold Bullion ETF – Currency Hedged
• Global X Physical Silver ETF
• VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF

1. Perth Mint Gold Structured Product (ASX: PMGOLD)

Market cap: A$16.57 billion¹

As a product fully underpinned by the government-backed gold of the Perth Mint, this ETF provides one of the most secure forms of exposure to bullion on the ASX. And, with a management fee of just 0.15%, the Perth Mint Gold Structured Product is one of the most cost-effective gold ETFs on the ASX.

Run by the Gold Corporation, it’s also one of the lowest-risk precious metals enterprises in the world, thanks to its government and legal backing. However, gold is still subject to varying degrees of volatility like all metals.

Highlights:

• The ETF’s price has grown 39.40% over the past year, as of 12 August 2025²
• Low management fee of 0.15%³

2. BetaShares Gold Bullion ETF – Currency Hedged (ASX: QAU)

Market cap: A$1.09 billion⁴

Backed by physical gold bullion, the BetaShares Gold Bullion ETF – Currency Hedged tracks the price of gold and is hedged for currency movements in the AUD/USD exchange rate.

With this ETF, you don’t need to buy and hold physical gold – an activity that can work out expensive to store and insure, and be incredibly inconvenient. You get exposure to the commodity without ever owning the underlying asset.

JPMorgan Chase in London holds the physical gold bullion bars, and share traders can see their gold bar list whenever they like on the BetaShares website.

Highlights:

• The price of the ETF has increased by 33.61% over the past year, as of 12 August 2025⁵
• Hedging for currency movements means Australian share traders don’t need to worry about the currency risk that can significantly impact their returns

3. VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF (ASX: GDX)

Market cap: A$905.02 million⁶

Unlike the first two ETFs on this list, the VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF provides exposure to global companies involved in the gold mining industry.

These companies are small-, mid- and large-cap, and include:

• Newmont Corporation
• Agnico Eagle Mines Limited
• AngloGold Ashanti PLC
• Northern Star Resources
• Zhaojin Mining Industry Corporation Limited

The ETF aims to replicate the price and yield of the NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index (GDMNTR). However, it’s set to track a new index from 19 September 2025 – the MarketVector Global Gold Miners index. This is something share traders should keep a close eye on.

Highlights:

• Its price has grown by 65.26% over the past year as of 12 August 2025⁷
• It has US$17.06 billion in total net assets⁸
•  It distributes an annual dividend, which is good for investors looking to make passive income

4. iShares Physical Gold ETF (ASX: GLDN)

Market cap: A$270.22 million⁹

The iShares Physical Gold ETF seeks to track the performance of the spot price of gold. Its underlying assets are backed by physical gold bars held by JPMorgan in London.

It’s a relatively new ETF, having been established in 2023, and is a low-cost way to gain exposure to gold, with a management fee of 0.18% per annum. This makes it highly competitive against other gold ETFs on the ASX.

From the beginning, the ETF has benefited from the relative strength of the gold market, showing strong performance since its inception.

Highlights:

• The price of the ETF has increased by 39.05% over the past year, as of 12 August 2025¹⁰
• The net assets of the fund amount to A$269 million¹¹

5. Global X Physical Silver ETF (ASX: ETPMAG)

Market cap: A$216.2 million¹²

Another ETF that corresponds to the price and performance of a precious metal, the Global X Physical Silver ETF tracks the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) Silver Price in Australian dollars.

It was formerly known as the ETFS Physical Silver.

The ETF is backed by physical silver bullion, giving share traders direct exposure to the metal without the hassle of physical ownership. These bullion are held by JPMorgan Chase Bank.

The fund tracks the spot price of silver and aims to replicate its performance – before fees and expenses.

Silver, like gold, has performed well in 2025, and this ETF offers Australian share traders currency-efficient exposure to the metal.

Highlights:

• Its price has grown by 39.47% over the past year, as of 12 August 2025¹³
• The ETF has A$692.47 million assets under management¹⁴

How to trade commodity ETFs with IG AU

CFDs

1. Open a CFD trading account with IG AU
2. Search for ASX commodity ETFs on the IG platform
3. Decide whether to go long (buy) or short (sell)
4. Choose your position size
5. Set stop-loss and limit orders
6. Place your trade and monitor it

Share trading

1. Open a share trading account with IG AU
2. Search for ASX commodity ETFs available
3. Choose the ETFs you want to buy
4. Determine how many shares you want to purchase
5. Place your order
6. Monitor your investment and collect any dividends

FAQs about commodity ETFs 

Footnotes
 

1. Listcorp, August 2025
2. TradingView, August 2025
3. Listcorp, August 2025
4. Listcorp, August 2025
5. TradingView, August 2025
6. Listcorp, August 2025
7. TradingView, August 2025
8. VanEck, August 2025
9. Listcorp, August 2025
10. TradingView, August 2025
11. BlackRock, August 2025
12. Listcorp, August 2025
13. TradingView, August 2025
14. TradingView, August 2025