E-Gold Vs Gold ETFs- Which is a Better Option?

Updated on February 26, 2026 , 30757 views

E-Gold Vs Gold ETFs? Which is a better Gold Investment option? Which avenue has a higher yield? These are some of the common questions often asked by an investor wanting to invest in these non-physical form of gold. Well, both the forms are unique in trading with each having its own benefits in essential parameters like returns, taxation, holding period, etc. Therefore, we will see how both- Gold ETFs and E-Gold differ from each other and which form makes a better gold investment option!

E- Gold

E-Gold is a unique gold investment product launched by the National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL). This product enables investors to Buy Gold in an electronic form on the NSE’s trading platform and the gold bought by you will reflect in your Demat account.

E-Gold is one such investment that allows investors to buy gold in a smaller denomination, such as 1gm, 2gm, 3gm, etc. The gold units that you would buy here will be credited to your Demat account in T+2 days. Similarly, for instance, if you have sold today, the same will debited from your Demat account in 2 days (from the date of sale).

E-gold is less expensive compared to gold ETFs as the latter is exposed to various charges like asset management fees, security service fees, etc. To know the current value of your investment in gold ETFs, you have to track the NAV of that fund but in the case of e-gold, the value is that of the prevailing gold price.

Gold ETFs

Gold ETFs has become one of the most popular modes of gold investments. Gold ETFs are also the underlying of open-ended Gold Mutual Funds that help you to invest your money in gold. The underlying gold purity is 99.5%. Gold ETFs are also known as paper gold. These are listed and traded on major stock exchanges and investors are assigned units where each unit usually represents one gram of gold.

In gold ETFs, investors can trade in their existing Demat account. Gold ETFs offers investors a secure way to access the gold market. They also provide the benefit of liquidity as it can be traded at any time during the trading period.

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E-Gold Vs Gold ETFs: Know the Key Differences

Trading Time

Gold ETFs can be traded only between 9:00 am to 3:30 pm on weekdays. Whereas, e-gold can be traded from 10:00 am to 11:30 pm on weekdays.

Conversion to Physical Form

Both the forms can be converted into physical gold, but the minimum quantity for each varies. The minimum quantity for e-gold is 8 grams, while, in gold-ETF, one can convert only when it exceeds a certain size of 500gm to 1Kg.

E-Gold is the Most Cost

Efficient form and is able to trace gold prices more closely than gold ETFs. However, e-gold loses out to gold ETFs when it comes to taxation.

But, now, when you know the key difference between these two forms, invest in an avenue that offers secure investment with better returns!

Parameters	Gold ETFs	E-Gold
Separate Demat Account	No	Yes
Holdings	Owned by AMCs	Yes
Conversion to Physical Gold	Minimum 0.5-1 kg	Investors directly hold gold units in demat account
Short Term Capital Gains	Less than 1 year- 20% tax on returns	Less than 3 years- 20% tax on returns
Long Term Capital Gains	After 1 year- 10% tax returns	After 3 years- 10% tax on returns
Recurring Expenses	0.40%	1%
Returns	Highest at it's the most cost-effective	Slightly lower than gold ETF
Pricing	Linked to International Gold Price	Linked to Indian Gold Price
Convert to Jewelry	Not available	Available with selected Jewellers

Fund Selection Methodology used to find 5 funds

Sub-category: Gold
Sorted On : 1-year return (high to low)
Tags: fcpro
No Of Funds: 5

Best Gold ETFs to Invest 2026

Some of the best underlying Gold ETFs to Invest are as follows:

1. ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund

ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund (the Scheme) is a fund of funds scheme with the primary objective to generate returns by investing in units of ICICI Prudential Gold Exchange Traded Fund (IPru Gold ETF). However, there can be no assurance that the investment objectives of the Scheme will be realized.

Research Highlights for ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund

Lower mid AUM (₹6,338 Cr).
Oldest track record among peers (14 yrs).
Rating: 1★ (lower mid).
Risk profile: Moderately High.
5Y return: 26.39% (bottom quartile).
3Y return: 40.12% (upper mid).
1Y return: 83.39% (top quartile).
1M return: 0.06% (bottom quartile).
Alpha: 0.00 (top quartile).
Sharpe: 3.10 (bottom quartile).
Information ratio: 0.00 (top quartile).
Top bond sector: Cash Equivalent.
Largest holding ICICI Pru Gold ETF (~98.8%).
Top-3 holdings concentration ~103.2%.

Below is the key information for ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund

ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund Growth
Launch Date	11 Oct 11
NAV (27 Feb 26)	₹49.0474 ↑ 0.46 (0.94 %)
Net Assets (Cr)	₹6,338 on 31 Jan 26
Category	Gold - Gold
AMC	ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company Limited
Rating	☆
Risk	Moderately High
Expense Ratio	0.38
Sharpe Ratio	3.1
Information Ratio	0
Alpha Ratio	0
Min Investment	5,000
Min SIP Investment	100
Exit Load	0-15 Months (2%),15 Months and above(NIL)

Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.

Date	Value
28 Feb 21	₹10,000
28 Feb 22	₹10,780
28 Feb 23	₹11,684
29 Feb 24	₹12,959
28 Feb 25	₹17,514
28 Feb 26	₹32,246

ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund SIP Returns

Total investment amount is ₹300,000
expected amount after 5 Years is ₹584,107.
Net Profit of ₹284,107 Invest Now

Returns for ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund

Returns up to 1 year are on absolute basis & more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) basis. as on 27 Feb 26

Duration	Returns
1 Month	0.1%
3 Month	26.4%
6 Month	56.7%
1 Year	83.4%
3 Year	40.1%
5 Year	26.4%
10 Year
15 Year
Since launch	11.7%

Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis

Year	Returns
2024	72%
2023	19.5%
2022	13.5%
2021	12.7%
2020	-5.4%
2019	26.6%
2018	22.7%
2017	7.4%
2016	0.8%
2015	8.9%

Fund Manager information for ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund

Name	Since	Tenure
Manish Banthia	27 Sep 12	13.36 Yr.
Nishit Patel	29 Dec 20	5.1 Yr.
Ashwini Bharucha	1 Nov 25	0.25 Yr.
Venus Ahuja	1 Nov 25	0.25 Yr.

Data below for ICICI Prudential Regular Gold Savings Fund as on 31 Jan 26

Asset Allocation

Asset Class	Value
Cash	2.73%
Other	97.27%

Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio

Name	Holding	Value	Quantity
ICICI Pru Gold ETF - \| -	99%	₹6,265 Cr	448,751,665 ↑ 56,893,421
Treps CBLO/Reverse Repo \| -	3%	₹174 Cr
Net Current Assets Net Current Assets \| -	2%	-₹101 Cr

2. SBI Gold Fund

The scheme seeks to provide returns that closely correspond to returns provided by SBI - ETF Gold (Previously known as SBI GETS).

Research Highlights for SBI Gold Fund

Highest AUM (₹15,024 Cr).
Established history (14+ yrs).
Rating: 2★ (upper mid).
Risk profile: Moderately High.
5Y return: 26.55% (top quartile).
3Y return: 40.39% (top quartile).
1Y return: 83.09% (upper mid).
1M return: 0.35% (top quartile).
Alpha: 0.00 (upper mid).
Sharpe: 3.25 (lower mid).
Information ratio: 0.00 (upper mid).
Top bond sector: Cash Equivalent.
Largest holding SBI Gold ETF (~99.6%).
Top-3 holdings concentration ~103.3%.

Below is the key information for SBI Gold Fund

SBI Gold Fund Growth
Launch Date	12 Sep 11
NAV (27 Feb 26)	₹46.4429 ↑ 0.39 (0.84 %)
Net Assets (Cr)	₹15,024 on 31 Jan 26
Category	Gold - Gold
AMC	SBI Funds Management Private Limited
Rating	☆☆
Risk	Moderately High
Expense Ratio	0.3
Sharpe Ratio	3.25
Information Ratio	0
Alpha Ratio	0
Min Investment	5,000
Min SIP Investment	500
Exit Load	0-1 Years (1%),1 Years and above(NIL)

Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.

Date	Value
28 Feb 21	₹10,000
28 Feb 22	₹10,758
28 Feb 23	₹11,753
29 Feb 24	₹13,021
28 Feb 25	₹17,592
28 Feb 26	₹32,463

SBI Gold Fund SIP Returns

Total investment amount is ₹300,000
expected amount after 5 Years is ₹584,107.
Net Profit of ₹284,107 Invest Now

Returns for SBI Gold Fund

Returns up to 1 year are on absolute basis & more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) basis. as on 27 Feb 26

Duration	Returns
1 Month	0.4%
3 Month	26.6%
6 Month	57.2%
1 Year	83.1%
3 Year	40.4%
5 Year	26.6%
10 Year
15 Year
Since launch	11.2%

Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis

Year	Returns
2024	71.5%
2023	19.6%
2022	14.1%
2021	12.6%
2020	-5.7%
2019	27.4%
2018	22.8%
2017	6.4%
2016	3.5%
2015	10%

Fund Manager information for SBI Gold Fund

Name	Since	Tenure
Raviprakash Sharma	12 Sep 11	14.4 Yr.

Data below for SBI Gold Fund as on 31 Jan 26

Asset Allocation

Asset Class	Value
Cash	1.93%
Other	98.07%

Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio

Name	Holding	Value	Quantity
SBI Gold ETF - \| -	100%	₹14,966 Cr	1,097,211,666 ↑ 145,868,881
Treps CBLO/Reverse Repo \| -	2%	₹306 Cr
Net Receivable / Payable CBLO \| -	2%	-₹248 Cr

3. Axis Gold Fund

To generate returns that closely correspond to returns generated by Axis Gold ETF.

Research Highlights for Axis Gold Fund

Bottom quartile AUM (₹2,835 Cr).
Established history (14+ yrs).
Rating: 1★ (bottom quartile).
Risk profile: Moderately High.
5Y return: 26.39% (lower mid).
3Y return: 40.11% (lower mid).
1Y return: 82.93% (lower mid).
1M return: 0.27% (upper mid).
Alpha: 0.00 (lower mid).
Sharpe: 3.44 (top quartile).
Information ratio: 0.00 (lower mid).
Top bond sector: Cash Equivalent.
Largest holding Axis Gold ETF (~99.1%).
Top-3 holdings concentration ~100.7%.

Below is the key information for Axis Gold Fund

Axis Gold Fund Growth
Launch Date	20 Oct 11
NAV (27 Feb 26)	₹46.1544 ↑ 0.43 (0.94 %)
Net Assets (Cr)	₹2,835 on 31 Jan 26
Category	Gold - Gold
AMC	Axis Asset Management Company Limited
Rating	☆
Risk	Moderately High
Expense Ratio	0.5
Sharpe Ratio	3.44
Information Ratio	0
Alpha Ratio	0
Min Investment	5,000
Min SIP Investment	1,000
Exit Load	0-1 Years (1%),1 Years and above(NIL)

Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.

Date	Value
28 Feb 21	₹10,000
28 Feb 22	₹10,774
28 Feb 23	₹11,753
29 Feb 24	₹13,072
28 Feb 25	₹17,493
28 Feb 26	₹32,250

Axis Gold Fund SIP Returns

Total investment amount is ₹300,000
expected amount after 5 Years is ₹584,107.
Net Profit of ₹284,107 Invest Now

Returns for Axis Gold Fund

Returns up to 1 year are on absolute basis & more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) basis. as on 27 Feb 26

Duration	Returns
1 Month	0.3%
3 Month	26.7%
6 Month	57%
1 Year	82.9%
3 Year	40.1%
5 Year	26.4%
10 Year
15 Year
Since launch	11.2%

Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis

Year	Returns
2024	69.8%
2023	19.2%
2022	14.7%
2021	12.5%
2020	-4.7%
2019	26.9%
2018	23.1%
2017	8.3%
2016	0.7%
2015	10.7%

Fund Manager information for Axis Gold Fund

Name	Since	Tenure
Aditya Pagaria	9 Nov 21	4.23 Yr.
Pratik Tibrewal	1 Feb 25	1 Yr.

Data below for Axis Gold Fund as on 31 Jan 26

Asset Allocation

Asset Class	Value
Cash	2.53%
Other	97.47%

Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio

Name	Holding	Value	Quantity
Axis Gold ETF - \| -	99%	₹2,810 Cr	215,661,784 ↑ 19,832,646
Clearing Corporation Of India Ltd CBLO/Reverse Repo \| -	1%	₹35 Cr
Net Receivables / (Payables) CBLO \| -	0%	-₹9 Cr

4. Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund

An Open ended Fund of Funds Scheme with the investment objective to provide returns that tracks returns provided by Birla Sun Life Gold ETF (BSL Gold ETF).

Research Highlights for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund

Bottom quartile AUM (₹1,781 Cr).
Established history (13+ yrs).
Top rated.
Risk profile: Moderately High.
5Y return: 26.39% (upper mid).
3Y return: 39.97% (bottom quartile).
1Y return: 82.81% (bottom quartile).
1M return: 0.26% (lower mid).
Alpha: 0.00 (bottom quartile).
Sharpe: 3.08 (bottom quartile).
Information ratio: 0.00 (bottom quartile).
Top bond sector: Cash Equivalent.
Largest holding Aditya BSL Gold ETF (~99.4%).
Top-3 holdings concentration ~103.8%.

Below is the key information for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund

Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund Growth
Launch Date	20 Mar 12
NAV (27 Feb 26)	₹46.022 ↑ 0.38 (0.84 %)
Net Assets (Cr)	₹1,781 on 31 Jan 26
Category	Gold - Gold
AMC	Birla Sun Life Asset Management Co Ltd
Rating	☆☆☆
Risk	Moderately High
Expense Ratio	0.51
Sharpe Ratio	3.08
Information Ratio	0
Alpha Ratio	0
Min Investment	100
Min SIP Investment	100
Exit Load	0-365 Days (1%),365 Days and above(NIL)

Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.

Date	Value
28 Feb 21	₹10,000
28 Feb 22	₹10,843
28 Feb 23	₹11,807
29 Feb 24	₹12,989
28 Feb 25	₹17,497
28 Feb 26	₹32,252

Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund SIP Returns

Total investment amount is ₹300,000
expected amount after 5 Years is ₹584,107.
Net Profit of ₹284,107 Invest Now

Returns for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund

Returns up to 1 year are on absolute basis & more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) basis. as on 27 Feb 26

Duration	Returns
1 Month	0.3%
3 Month	26.1%
6 Month	56.6%
1 Year	82.8%
3 Year	40%
5 Year	26.4%
10 Year
15 Year
Since launch	11.6%

Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis

Year	Returns
2024	72%
2023	18.7%
2022	14.5%
2021	12.3%
2020	-5%
2019	26%
2018	21.3%
2017	6.8%
2016	1.6%
2015	11.5%

Fund Manager information for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund

Name	Since	Tenure
Priya Sridhar	31 Dec 24	1.09 Yr.

Data below for Aditya Birla Sun Life Gold Fund as on 31 Jan 26

Asset Allocation

Asset Class	Value
Cash	2.07%
Other	97.93%

Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio

Name	Holding	Value	Quantity
Aditya BSL Gold ETF - \| -	99%	₹1,770 Cr	122,558,766 ↑ 14,664,583
Clearing Corporation Of India Limited CBLO/Reverse Repo \| -	3%	₹45 Cr
Net Receivables / (Payables) Net Current Assets \| -	2%	-₹34 Cr

5. HDFC Gold Fund

To seek capital appreciation by investing in units of HDFC Gold Exchange Traded Fund (HGETF).

Research Highlights for HDFC Gold Fund

Upper mid AUM (₹11,458 Cr).
Established history (14+ yrs).
Rating: 1★ (bottom quartile).
Risk profile: Moderately High.
5Y return: 26.32% (bottom quartile).
3Y return: 39.94% (bottom quartile).
1Y return: 82.80% (bottom quartile).
1M return: 0.20% (bottom quartile).
Alpha: 0.00 (bottom quartile).
Sharpe: 3.29 (upper mid).
Information ratio: 0.00 (bottom quartile).
Top bond sector: Cash Equivalent.
Largest holding HDFC Gold ETF (~100.0%).
Top-3 holdings concentration ~102.6%.

Below is the key information for HDFC Gold Fund

HDFC Gold Fund Growth
Launch Date	24 Oct 11
NAV (27 Feb 26)	₹47.3741 ↑ 0.41 (0.87 %)
Net Assets (Cr)	₹11,458 on 31 Jan 26
Category	Gold - Gold
AMC	HDFC Asset Management Company Limited
Rating	☆
Risk	Moderately High
Expense Ratio	0.49
Sharpe Ratio	3.29
Information Ratio	0
Alpha Ratio	0
Min Investment	5,000
Min SIP Investment	300
Exit Load	0-6 Months (2%),6-12 Months (1%),12 Months and above(NIL)

Growth of 10,000 investment over the years.

Date	Value
28 Feb 21	₹10,000
28 Feb 22	₹10,771
28 Feb 23	₹11,688
29 Feb 24	₹12,934
28 Feb 25	₹17,380
28 Feb 26	₹32,158

HDFC Gold Fund SIP Returns

Total investment amount is ₹300,000
expected amount after 5 Years is ₹584,107.
Net Profit of ₹284,107 Invest Now

Returns for HDFC Gold Fund

Returns up to 1 year are on absolute basis & more than 1 year are on CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) basis. as on 27 Feb 26

Duration	Returns
1 Month	0.2%
3 Month	26.3%
6 Month	56.9%
1 Year	82.8%
3 Year	39.9%
5 Year	26.3%
10 Year
15 Year
Since launch	11.5%

Historical performance (Yearly) on absolute basis

Year	Returns
2024	71.3%
2023	18.9%
2022	14.1%
2021	12.7%
2020	-5.5%
2019	27.5%
2018	21.7%
2017	6.6%
2016	2.8%
2015	10.1%

Fund Manager information for HDFC Gold Fund

Name	Since	Tenure
Arun Agarwal	15 Feb 23	2.96 Yr.
Nandita Menezes	29 Mar 25	0.85 Yr.

Data below for HDFC Gold Fund as on 31 Jan 26

Asset Allocation

Asset Class	Value
Cash	1.44%
Other	98.56%

Top Securities Holdings / Portfolio

Name	Holding	Value	Quantity
HDFC Gold ETF - \| -	100%	₹11,455 Cr	840,685,437 ↑ 92,026,020
Treps - Tri-Party Repo CBLO/Reverse Repo \| -	1%	₹154 Cr
Net Current Assets Net Current Assets \| -	1%	-₹152 Cr

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Disclaimer:
All efforts have been made to ensure the information provided here is accurate. However, no guarantees are made regarding correctness of data. Please verify with scheme information document before making any investment.