How to invest in crude oil using ETFs/ETCs

How can I invest in oil?

With ETFs you not only have the opportunity to invest in equity or bonds. You can also participate in the price development of commodities like crude oil. However, there are a few things you should know: commodity ETFs always track a whole basket of different commodities, covering at least some of the following segments:
 

• Energy: oil and gas
• Precious metals: gold, silver and platinum
• Industrial metals: e.g. zinc and copper
• Agriculture: including wheat and coffee
• Livestock: live cattle and lean hogs

Why there are no oil ETFs in most European countries

There are no oil ETFs that are domiciled within the European Union. This is due to the regulatory framework which is defined by the UCITS directive. According to these guidelines, an index (and thus also corresponding ETFs) must always provide a minimum degree of diversification and may not consist of only one component. Consequently, regulations in the EU do not allow the launch of an oil ETF.

If you want to invest in a single commodity like crude oil, you can do so via Exchange Traded Commodities (ETC). Please have a look at our article "What is an ETC?" for a detailed explanation of the similarities and differences between ETFs and ETCs.
 

Swap-based oil ETCs

ETCs track the value of crude oil based on futures contracts. Oil ETCs are backed with collateral, which is usually checked on a daily basis. The collateral is in the form of cash investments or securities with top credit standing.

Oil ETCs are a suitable instrument for participating in the price development of oil. Keep in mind, however, that you are investing in futures contracts and not directly in oil. Oil ETCs track the price of either Brent crude oil, which is sourced from the North Sea, or West Texas Intermediate (WTI) from the United States. In this investment guide you will find all ETCs that allow you to invest in oil.
 

When choosing an oil ETF or ETC one should consider several other factors in addition to the methodology of the underlying index and performance of an ETF. For better comparison, you will find a list of all oil ETFs/ETCs with details on size, cost, age, income, domicile and replication method ranked by fund size.

Compare all oil ETFs/ETCs in detail
Compare all oil ETFs/ETCs in a chart

Source: justETF.com; As of 26.04.24

Return comparison of all oil ETFs/ETCs

The table shows the returns of all oil ETFs/ETCs in comparison. All return figures are including dividends as of month end. Besides the return the reference date on which you conduct the comparison is important. In order to find the best ETFs, you can also perform a chart comparison.

• Cumulative
• Calendar year

Source: justETF.com; As of 31.03.24; Calculations in EUR including dividends