What Is UNG? United States Natural Gas Fund, LP
Last updated July 2026
Short answer
UNG is the United States Natural Gas Fund, which seeks to track natural gas prices by holding near-month futures contracts at a 1.17% expense ratio. It does not hold physical gas or stocks; it holds futures that must be rolled forward, and when the futures curve is in contango that roll creates a persistent drag, so UNG often underperforms the spot price of gas over longer periods. It is designed for short-term tactical exposure to natural gas, not for buy-and-hold, and it pays no dividend.
UNG is issued by USCF Investments and tracks Henry Hub natural gas near-month futures. It charges a 1.17% expense ratio, holds approximately $418.88M in assets under management, yields about 0.00%, and launched in April 2007.
What is UNG?
UNG is the United States Natural Gas Fund, which seeks to track natural gas prices by holding near-month futures contracts at a 1.17% expense ratio. It does not hold physical gas or stocks; it holds futures that must be rolled forward, and when the futures curve is in contango that roll creates a persistent drag, so UNG often underperforms the spot price of gas over longer periods. It is designed for short-term tactical exposure to natural gas, not for buy-and-hold, and it pays no dividend.
UNG is issued by USCF Investments and tracks Henry Hub natural gas near-month futures, so a single ticker gives you the whole basket of underlying holdings weighted by the index's methodology rather than by any active stock-picking.
UNG holdings: what's actually inside
UNG does not hold a basket of individual stocks. It gets its exposure synthetically, through derivatives such as swaps and futures rather than by owning the underlying shares, so there is no conventional top-10 equity holdings list. See the description above for what UNG actually tracks and how that exposure is built.
The bottom line on UNG
UNG is a short-term trading tool for expressing a view on natural gas, not a long-term investment. The futures roll (contango) can erode returns over time even when spot gas is flat or rising, and the 1.17% fee is high; the fund is best understood as tactical exposure that requires active monitoring rather than a set-and-forget commodity holding.
More on UNG
Whether UNG is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, concentration, and what would have to be true for it to outperform from here in is UNG a buy?
UNG yields 0.00% as of July 2026, paid by passing through the dividends of its underlying holdings. For the payout schedule, history, and how the distributions are taxed, see UNG dividend: yield and schedule.
Build a portfolio around UNG with Walnut
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FAQ
What is UNG?
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UNG is the United States Natural Gas Fund, an exchange-traded product that seeks to track the daily price movements of natural gas by holding near-month natural gas futures contracts. It gives traders a way to gain natural gas exposure through a normal brokerage account, but it holds futures rather than physical gas or company shares.
What is UNG's ticker symbol?
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UNG, listed on NYSE Arca. The official name is United States Natural Gas Fund, LP, issued by USCF Investments. It is structured as a commodity pool that holds natural gas futures.
Does UNG track the price of natural gas?
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It tracks the daily movements of natural gas futures, not the spot price directly, and only closely over short periods. Over longer horizons its return can diverge substantially from spot natural gas because it must continually roll expiring futures into later-dated ones. When later contracts cost more than expiring ones (contango), that roll steadily eats into returns.
What is contango and why does it hurt UNG?
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Contango is when longer-dated futures trade at higher prices than near-term ones. Because UNG sells expiring contracts and buys more expensive later-dated ones each month, contango creates a recurring cost that drags on the fund's value over time. Natural gas markets are frequently in contango, which is the main reason UNG tends to lag the spot price over long holding periods.
What is UNG's expense ratio?
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1.17% per year, which is high relative to plain index ETFs. On a $10,000 position that is about $117 per year in fees, and that figure does not include the separate drag from rolling futures in a contango market. The combination makes UNG expensive to hold for long.
Does UNG pay a dividend?
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No. Its reported yield is 0.00%. UNG holds natural gas futures rather than dividend-paying stocks or interest-bearing bonds, so there is no distribution to shareholders; the return comes entirely from changes in the value of its futures positions.
Is UNG a good long-term hold?
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Generally no. Because of the futures roll and frequent contango, UNG can lose value over long periods even when natural gas prices are flat or rising. It is designed for short-term, tactical exposure to natural gas price moves, and most users treat it as a trading instrument rather than a buy-and-hold investment.
How do I buy UNG?
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UNG trades like any stock during US market hours. Buy it through any broker: Robinhood, Fidelity, Schwab, Public, M1, or others. Because it is a commodity-futures product with its own tax reporting, review how your broker and account handle it. Walnut is not an investment adviser and does not recommend commodity-futures products.
Is UNG risky?
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Yes. Natural gas prices are highly volatile, and UNG adds the futures-roll dynamics on top of that. The combination of a volatile commodity, contango drag, and a high expense ratio means UNG can move sharply and can erode over time, so it is best suited to experienced traders who understand futures mechanics.
What is UNG's market cap (AUM)?
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Approximately $418.88M as of July 2026, modest compared with mainstream equity ETFs. Commodity-futures funds like UNG tend to stay smaller because they are used tactically rather than held long term.
How is UNG taxed?
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As a commodity pool holding futures, UNG has historically issued a Schedule K-1 rather than a standard 1099, and futures gains can be subject to special tax rules. Tax treatment depends on your situation, so consult a tax professional. Walnut does not provide tax advice.
UNG vs BOIL: what is the difference?
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UNG seeks roughly 1x the daily move of natural gas futures. BOIL is a ProShares fund that targets 2x the daily move, adding leverage on top of the same futures exposure. BOIL magnifies both gains and losses and carries the additional daily-reset risks of a leveraged product; UNG is the unleveraged version, though both share the contango drag.
When was UNG created?
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April 2007. USCF launched it as one of the first exchange-traded ways for ordinary investors to gain exposure to natural gas prices without trading futures contracts directly.
Can I hold UNG for a few weeks?
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You can, but the longer you hold, the more the monthly futures roll and any contango can weigh on returns. UNG is built to track short-term natural gas moves, so even multi-week holds carry the roll costs described above. It requires monitoring rather than a set-and-forget approach.
How do I compare UNG to similar ETFs?
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Put a few fields side by side: the expense ratio (fees compound over decades), the index or strategy it tracks, the top holdings and how much they overlap with what you already own, the dividend yield, and the AUM, liquidity, and bid-ask spread that affect trading costs. For index funds, tracking error (how closely it follows its index) and tax efficiency matter too. UNG's figures are above; the full method is in Walnut's guide on how to compare ETFs.
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Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Holdings weights and fund statistics on this page are approximations stamped to July 2026; verify current figures against USCF Investments's fund page or your broker before investing.