What is the expense ratio of ICLN vs LIT?

ICLN has an expense ratio of 0.39%, while LIT has an expense ratio of 0.75%.

ICLN vs LIT

iShares Global Clean Energy ETF vs Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF

Last updated: 2026-04-10

ICLN iShares

iShares Global Clean Energy ETF (ICLN) is an exchange-traded fund issued by iShares that provides exposure to thematic - clean energy securities. It charges an above-average expense ratio of 0.39%. The fund offers a moderate dividend yield of 1.41%. Launched in 2008, the fund has a 18-year track record.

AUM: $2.2B ER: 0.39% Yield: 1.41% Since: Jun 24, 2008

LIT Global X

Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF (LIT) is an exchange-traded fund issued by Global X that provides exposure to thematic - lithium & battery securities. It charges a high expense ratio of 0.75%. The fund offers a modest dividend yield of 0.40%. Launched in 2010, the fund has a 16-year track record.

AUM: $1.8B ER: 0.75% Yield: 0.40% Since: Jul 22, 2010

Quick Verdict

ICLN is significantly cheaper at 0.39% vs 0.75% expense ratio, saving you approximately $686 per $10,000 invested over 10 years. Over the past year, LIT has significantly outperformed with a 127.7% return vs 74.3%. Income investors may prefer ICLN for its higher yield (1.4% vs 0.4%).

Key Metrics

Metric	ICLN	LIT
Expense Ratio	0.39%	0.75%
Dividend Yield	1.4%	0.4%
Fund Family	iShares	Global X
Category	Thematic - Clean Energy	Thematic - Lithium & Battery

Performance Chart

Indexed to 100 at start (5-year comparison)

ICLN -17.3%

LIT +34.5%

Performance Comparison

Period	ICLN	LIT	Difference
1 Month	+2.73%	+6.93%	-4.20%
3 Months	+8.29%	+11.50%	-3.21%
6 Months	+16.16%	+34.06%	-17.90%
YTD	+11.20%	+17.78%	-6.58%
1 Year	+74.29%	+127.68%	-53.39%
3 Years	-2.34%	+24.84%	-27.18%
5 Years	-17.33%	+34.48%	-51.81%

Fee Impact Over Time

Estimated fee cost difference assuming 8% annual returns

Investment	Period	ICLN Fees	LIT Fees	You Save
$10,000	10 years	$767	$1,453	$686
$10,000	20 years	$3,253	$6,064	$2,811
$10,000	30 years	$10,349	$18,984	$8,634
$50,000	10 years	$3,835	$7,266	$3,431
$50,000	30 years	$51,746	$94,918	$43,172
$100,000	30 years	$103,492	$189,836	$86,344

Risk Metrics

Based on 5 years of daily returns

Metric	ICLN	LIT
Annualized Volatility	27.2%	31.7%
Max Drawdown	-59.0%	-67.0%
Sharpe Ratio	-0.17	0.20

Dividend Comparison

Metric	ICLN	LIT
Annual Dividend (per share)	$0.27	$0.32
Dividend Yield	1.41%	0.40%
Distribution Frequency	Semi-Annual or Annual	Semi-Annual or Annual

Top Holdings

0 of top 10 holdings overlap (0% overlap in top holdings)

ICLN Top Holdings

Name	Weight
Bloom Energy CorporationBE	9.95%
Nextpower Inc.NXT	9.59%
First Solar, Inc.FSLR	6.09%
Iberdrola, S.A.!bme/IBE	5.86%
China Yangtze Power Co., Ltd.!sha/600900	4.57%
Ormat Technologies, Inc.ORA	3.16%
Equatorial S.A.!bvmf/EQTL3	3.07%
Vestas Wind Systems A/S!cph/VWS	2.66%
Enphase Energy, Inc.ENPH	2.56%
EDP, S.A.!eli/EDP	2.29%

LIT Top Holdings

Name	Weight
Rio Tinto GroupRIO	21.73%
Albemarle CorporationALB	7.24%
Samsung SDI Co., Ltd.!krx/006400	5.30%
Panasonic Holdings Corporation!tyo/6752	4.57%
Ganfeng Lithium Group Co., Ltd.!she/002460	4.29%
Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile S.A.SQM	4.10%
PLS Group Limited!asx/PLS	3.90%
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited!she/300750	3.50%
NAURA Technology Group Co., Ltd.!she/002371	3.48%
BYD Company Limited!otc/BYDDF	3.13%

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose ICLN if...

you want the lowest fees and plan to buy and hold long-term. Over decades, the expense ratio difference compounds significantly.

Choose LIT if...

recent performance momentum matters to your strategy. Note that past performance doesn't guarantee future results.

Choose ICLN if...

you prioritize dividend income and want higher regular distributions from your portfolio.

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