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You can get oil-related exposure through listed securities without opening a futures account. The main choices are a commodity pool that trades oil futures on your behalf, or shares in energy companies and funds that own them. Neither gives you ownership of crude oil, and neither is guaranteed to track its spot price.
Three ways to invest in oil-related assets
Buy shares in an oil-futures commodity pool
A commodity pool can offer exchange-traded shares to brokerage-account investors while the pool itself holds futures contracts. The United States Oil Fund (USO), for example, is a Delaware limited partnership and commodity pool whose shares trade on NYSE Arca. It invests primarily in oil futures and may use other oil-related investments. Buying USO shares means buying an interest in the pool—not barrels of oil or a futures contract in your own account. See the USCF USO product page and its 2025 annual report, filed in 2026.
USO’s stated benchmark is based on the near-month NYMEX light-sweet crude contract, rolling into the next-month contract over approximately five days. Its objective is expressed in daily percentage changes and accounts for collateral interest and expenses; it is not an objective to equal crude’s spot price. The fund’s 2025 annual report describes an objective, over 30 successive valuation days, for its average daily percentage change in net asset value to be within plus or minus 10% of the benchmark’s average daily percentage change. That is an objective, not a guarantee, and significant deviations on individual days can still occur.
USCF states: “AN INVESTMENT IN USO SHOULD NOT BE VIEWED AS AN INVESTMENT IN THE BENCHMARK OIL FUTURES CONTRACT OR LIGHT SWEET CRUDE OIL.”
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Buy oil-company shares or an energy-equity fund
Shares in energy companies, or a fund holding those companies, provide indirect exposure to businesses connected with energy. Their returns depend on the companies and securities held, not just the price of crude. This can make them a poor substitute for a crude-price position: business performance and other factors matter too. The SEC explains that ETFs can hold portfolios of stocks and other securities, but no current named energy-equity fund or its holdings are established here. Do not assume a fund’s name means it tracks oil closely.
Consider other commodity pools only after checking their terms
Other listed products may follow a different crude benchmark, a basket of commodities, or contracts with different maturities. USO’s benchmark and disclosures do not describe every product. Check the particular product’s latest prospectus, holdings and shareholder report rather than treating all oil-linked funds as interchangeable.
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Why an oil fund may diverge from crude prices
Futures rolls can affect returns
A futures-based pool must manage expiring contracts, so its return can differ from a hypothetical investment directly exposed to crude. In contango, the near-month contract is priced below the next-month contract. USCF says that, absent an overall oil-price move, the benchmark contract’s value tends to decline as it approaches expiration. Backwardation and other market conditions can also affect returns relative to hypothetical direct crude exposure. The mechanics and associated risks are described in USCF’s risk disclosures and USO’s quarterly report for the period ended June 30, 2026.
Expenses, trading and market conditions matter
USO’s SEC filing says its benchmark and the fund are not proxies for spot crude. The benchmark and spot prices may not move in close correlation; fund expenses and transaction costs reduce returns, and position limits or market disruptions may affect correlation. A fund’s stated tracking objective should therefore not be read as a promise about your investment outcome or a guarantee of multiyear spot-oil returns.
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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchETF shares can trade away from net asset value
An ETF’s exchange price may be higher or lower than its net asset value (NAV), the per-share value of its underlying assets. That difference is separate from the gap between a fund’s returns and crude’s price. The SEC’s ETF guidance recommends reviewing the prospectus and shareholder report.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to compare oil investments before buying
If you are evaluating more than one product, use its latest documents and compare the features that determine what you actually own and how returns may behave:
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- Exposure target: WTI, Brent, energy-company equities or a broader basket.
- Holdings and instruments: futures, other oil-related investments, stocks or other securities.
- Contract maturities and roll schedule: for a futures-based product, identify which contracts it uses and how it rolls them.
- Objective and tracking history: distinguish a daily objective from any expectation about longer-term returns.
- Costs and trading: review current expenses, transaction costs, liquidity and the bid-ask spread.
- Price and distributions: check market price against NAV and read the documents for information on distributions.
- Risks: read the product’s current prospectus and shareholder report; do not transfer one fund’s risk terms to another.
Current fees and a tax treatment that applies to every investor are not established by these sources. For tax consequences specific to your situation, consult a qualified tax professional.
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