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Investing 101 · Foundations

What are commodities, really?

8 min readUpdated May 2026

A practical definition of commodities. Why they behave differently from stocks and bonds, hard vs soft, and which ones actually matter for investors.

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What this guide covers

A practical definition of commodities. Why they behave differently from stocks and bonds, hard vs soft, and which ones actually matter for investors.

This guide is part of the Investing 101 series. Use the navigation below to read related guides, or go to the commodities directory to explore live price data.

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