$BIL Dividend 2026: How Much $BIL Pays Per Month, Dates & History

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My $SGOV dividend guide is one of the most visited pages on this site. People want to know exactly what a T-bill ETF pays them every month. So here's the same breakdown for the one that started it all: $BIL.

$BIL is boring on purpose. It's not going to make you rich. But if you're sitting on cash, an emergency fund, or money you'll need in a year, it's one of the simplest ways to get paid every single month without taking real market risk. Let's go through what it pays, when, and whether it's the right one to own.

What Is $BIL?

$BIL is the State Street SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF. It launched on May 25, 2007, which makes it the original T-bill ETF. As of November 3, 2026 it had about $48.38 billion in assets, according to State Street.

The idea is simple. It holds U.S. Treasury bills that mature in one to three months, 33 of them as of November 3, with an average maturity of about 0.15 years. When a bill matures, the fund rolls into a new one. The interest those bills earn gets passed to you as a monthly dividend.

Because the bills are so short, the share price barely moves. $BIL closed at $91.42 on November 3, 2026, and its whole 52-week range was $91.26 to $91.73. That's the point. You're here for the check, not the chart.

How Much Does $BIL Pay Per Month?

Over the last 12 payments, $BIL paid between $0.24311 and $0.36543 per share. The most recent one, paid November 5, 2026, was $0.30849.

Here's what that means in real dollars. $10,000 buys about 109 shares at $91.42. At the November rate, that's about $33.74 for the month. Over the last full 12 payments, the same $10,000 would have collected about $367.

Now, the yield. There are three numbers people quote, and they all mean something a little different:

• Trailing 12-month yield: about 3.67%. The last 12 payments ($3.36) divided by the share price. This is what actually happened.
• 30-day SEC yield: 3.83% as of November 2, 2026. This is the standardized number based on what the fund earned over the last 30 days, after fees. It's the best clue for what the next few payments look like.
• Yield to maturity: 4.02% as of November 3, before fees. What the bills in the fund would earn if held to maturity.

Here's what I actually look at: the SEC yield. It's the most up to date, and it already takes out the fee.

$BIL Ex-Dividend Dates and Pay Schedule

$BIL runs on a steady rhythm. The ex-dividend date lands on the first business day of the month, and the payment arrives about three to five business days later. For example:

• November 2026: ex-date November 2, paid November 5.
• October 2026: ex-date October 1, paid October 6.
• September 2026: ex-date September 1, paid September 4.

If it sticks to that pattern, the next ex-date would be the first business day of December, which is December 1, 2026. Check State Street's distribution schedule to confirm the exact date before you count on it.

This is the part most people miss: December can be different. In 2025, $BIL paid twice in December (ex-dates December 1 and December 18) and then skipped January. So if you look at a chart and see "no January payment," that's why. The money came early, it didn't disappear.

$BIL pays early in the month, just like $SGOV. If you want income spread across the whole month, my monthly dividend ETF calendar shows which funds pay in the middle and the end of the month.

$BIL Dividend History (2025 to 2026)

Here's every $BIL payment from April 2025 through November 2026. In 2026 so far, it has paid 10 times for $2.71 per share.

Why the $BIL Dividend Changes Every Month

Unlike a dividend stock, $BIL doesn't pick a payout and stick with it. Two things move the number:

• Short-term interest rates. The fund is always rolling into new bills, so its income follows T-bill rates with only a short lag. Look at the history: payments in mid-2025 were mostly $0.30 to $0.32. In 2026 they've mostly been $0.26 to $0.28. That's lower rates working through the portfolio. The Fed held rates steady at its October 28, 2026 meeting, so the next few checks should look a lot like the recent ones.
• The number of days in the period. The October 2026 payment ($0.26318) covered a shorter stretch than November's ($0.30849), which covered October 1 through November 2. More days of interest, bigger check. That's why one month can jump even when rates didn't change.

So don't panic over a smaller payment, and don't get excited over a bigger one. With T-bill funds, the yield matters more than any one month's dollar amount.

How Much $BIL for $500, $1,000 or $2,000 a Month?

Using the last 12 payments ($3.36 per share) and the $91.42 price:

That's a lot of money for $1,000 a month. And that's the honest truth about T-bill income: it's safe, but it's not efficient. I'd never try to retire on 3.7%. If you want to play with your own numbers, including reinvesting, run them through DividendProjection.com.

$BIL vs $SGOV: Which One Should You Own?

This is the question I get the most. They do almost the same thing. Here's the difference:

Their trailing yields are basically the same. The real difference is the fee. $SGOV charges about 0.045 percentage points less per year. On $100,000, that's roughly $45 a year. Not life changing, but it's free money for doing nothing.

So I'd lean $SGOV for a new position. But if you already own $BIL in a taxable account, I wouldn't sell it just to switch. A $45 fee difference isn't worth a tax headache. For the full four-way breakdown, see $SGOV vs $BIL vs $USFR vs $TBIL, and if you want a check at the end of the month instead, see my $USFR dividend breakdown.

Are $BIL Dividends Taxable?

Yes, at the federal level. $BIL's dividends are interest income, so they're taxed as ordinary income, not at the lower qualified dividend rate.

The good news is on the state side. Interest from U.S. Treasuries is generally exempt from state income tax, and that usually carries through to funds that hold only Treasuries. The exact rules depend on your state, so check $BIL's year-end tax info and your state's rules. I walked through how this works in is $SGOV state tax exempt, and the same logic applies to $BIL. This is not tax advice, so talk to a tax pro if it matters for you.

The Real Risks

• Falling rates. The big one. If the Fed cuts, your monthly check shrinks within weeks. You can already see it in the drop from about $0.32 in 2025 to about $0.27 in 2026.
• Inflation. A 3.7% yield taxed as ordinary income doesn't leave much after inflation. This is a place to park money, not grow it.
• Opportunity cost. Money that sits in $BIL for years misses out on the growth of stocks and higher-yielding income funds.
• A slightly higher fee than $SGOV. Small, but it's there every year.

What's not really a risk: price decay. A fund that holds 1 to 3 month bills just doesn't have much room to fall.

My Take

I've been a dividend investor for over 10 years, and I reached financial freedom at 31 by building income. Here's where something like $BIL fits for me: it's the cash drawer, not the engine.

It's great for an emergency fund, for money you'll need in the next year, or for dry powder while you wait for a better entry on something else. You get paid every month, the price basically doesn't move, and you can sell any trading day.

What I wouldn't do is treat it as a long-term income plan. When rates fall, so does your income, and there's no growth to make up for it. I'd rather keep a slice in T-bills and build the core of my income on funds that can grow. Between the two big ones, I'd pick $SGOV for the lower fee, but $BIL is perfectly fine if that's what you already have.

If you want something with more income, start with my list of the best ETFs for monthly income in 2026 or browse every monthly dividend ETF we track. And if you'd rather get paid every week, WeeklyETFs.com tracks every weekly payer.

$BIL Dividend FAQ

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Sponsored By Read carefully before investing. Prospectus: https://lsfunds.com/hubfs/Regulatory/Prospectus.pdf?hsLang=en