BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) shares have had quite the run of late. The mining giant has just capped off a spectacular 2025, and, as of today's pricing, is up a robust 19.35% over the past 12 months.
BHP has shown it can afford to pay massive dividends to its investors when commodity prices are riding high. But I prefer a smoother dividend output from my ASX dividend shares. With BHP, it's always feast and famine. To illustrate, the 'Big Australian' paid out $1.91 in dividends per share over 2025, but $4.63 per share back in 2022.
If I were building an income-focused portfolio today, I would opt for a monthly dividend-paying ASX exchange-traded fund (ETF) instead.
There are a few monthly dividend payers on the ASX to choose from. But one of my favourites is the BetaShares S&P Australian Shares High Yield ETF (ASX: HYLD).
Like most ASX ETFs, this ASX ETF holds an underlying portfolio of about 50 dividend ASX shares. These shares are selected based on their track records of delivering high levels of income to investors, as well as their perceived ability to continue to fund sustainable shareholder payouts.
At present, HYLD's portfolio includes stocks ranging from ANZ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: ANZ) and Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) to Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX: RIO) and Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS). BHP is also in there.
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What's to like about this monthly income ETF?
The Betashares Australian Shares High Yield ETF has only been around for a few months – since August of 2025, to be specific.
But since its ASX launch, it has funded a dividend payment every single month. HYLD has doled out four dividend distributions since August, with a fifth due on 19 January next week. Each of these dividend distributions has been worth 11.92 cents per share.
At the current HYLD unit price of $31.35 (at the time of writing), that translates to an annualised dividend yield of 4.56%. What I really like about this fund, though, is its fee, or lack thereof.
Most monthly dividend-paying investments on the ASX don't come cheap. But the Betashares Australian Shares High Yield ETF charges a competitive 0.25% per annum.
That's not as cheap as a simpler index fund like the Vanguard Australian Shares Index ETF (ASX: VAS), at 0.07%. But it's a lot better than the BetaShares Australian Dividend Harvester Active ETF (ASX: HVST) at 0.72% per annum, and particularly WAM Income Maximiser Ltd (ASX: WMX) at 0.88% per annum (that's in addition to a low-bar 20% performance fee).
So if I were choosing between BHP shares and the Betashares Australian Shares High Yield ETF today, it would be an easy choice.
