Are BFEB and SPY in the same category?

BFEB is a buffer ETF and SPY is a stock ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.

Which returned more over the last year, BFEB or SPY?

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BFEB returned +13.7% and SPY +13.6%.

Which is cheaper, BFEB or SPY?

SPY is cheaper, by 0.70 percentage points a year. That is about $70 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Across categories

BFEB vs SPY: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, BFEB returned +13.7% to SPY's +13.6%, and SPY charges 0.09% to BFEB's 0.79%.

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Net assets: $207m on Oct 28, 2026 for Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Feb, and $814.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust.

BFEB on its own →SPY on its own →

At a glance

+13.7%

BFEB total return, 1 year

+13.6%

SPY total return, 1 year

0.79%

BFEB expense ratio

0.09%

SPY expense ratio

Pair scorecard

SPY costs 0.70 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.1 points; SPY is far larger, $814.8bn against $207m.

BFEB vs SPY: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	BFEB	SPY
Return
Measure	BFEB	SPY
Total return, 1 year	+13.7%	+13.6%
Drawdown
Measure	BFEB	SPY
Index fall to the buffer	10.3%
Fund price fall to the buffer	9.5%
Benchmark
Measure	BFEB	SPY
What it tracks	SPY	S&P 500 Index
The outcome period
Measure	BFEB	SPY
Room to the cap	5.6%
Buffer left, in index points	9.0% of 9.0%
Days left in the period	95
Period ends	Jan 31, 2027
Cost and size
Measure	BFEB	SPY
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.09%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$207m	$814.8bn
Holdings
Measure	BFEB	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
In the S&P 500, by weight		100%
Top ten holdings, share of the fund		38.1%

Method

Risk and return

Feb 14, 2020 to Oct 23, 2026 · 349 weekly returns

BFEB SPY

Return

Total return edge SPY +113.3% +147.7%

Annualized edge SPY +11.9% +14.5%

Price return edge SPY (slight) +113.3% +125.1%

Risk

Volatility edge BFEB 13.0% 18.9%

Max drawdown edge BFEB −24.2% −31.8%

Downside capture 71.1% 100.0%

Beta 0.67 1.00

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge BFEB (slight) 0.70 0.65

Sortino edge BFEB (slight) 1.02 0.95

Treynor 0.137 0.133

Calmar edge BFEB (slight) 0.49 0.45

Against the benchmark

Alpha +0.9% a year −0.1% a year

Alpha t-stat 0.76 −0.51

Information ratio −0.46 −0.15

Tracking error 6.9% 0.4%

Each against its own benchmark: BFEB against SPY, Feb 14, 2020 to Oct 23, 2026; SPY against VOO, Sep 17, 2010 to Oct 23, 2026.

Reading

SPY returned more: +147.7% to +113.3%. BFEB swung less: 13.0% to 18.9%. BFEB fell less at its worst: −24.2% to −31.8%.

Full scorecard

19 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: BFEB vs SPY: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	BFEB	SPY	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+113.3%	+147.7%	SPY	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+11.9%	+14.5%	SPY	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	+113.3%	+125.1%	SPY (slight)	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	13.0%	18.9%	BFEB	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	9.0%	13.1%	BFEB	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−24.2%	−31.8%	BFEB	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture	54.5%	99.8%		Share of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture	71.1%	100.0%		Share of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta	0.67	1.00	Not an edge	How far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared	0.95	1.00	Not an edge	Share of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	0.70	0.65	BFEB (slight)	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	1.02	0.95	BFEB (slight)	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor	0.137	0.133		Return above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar	0.49	0.45	BFEB (slight)	Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
Benchmark	SPY	VOO		The ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha	+0.9% a year	−0.1% a year	Not significant	Yearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat	0.76	−0.51	Not an edge	How sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range	−1.4% to +3.2%	−0.3% to +0.1%	Includes zero	The 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio	−0.46	−0.15		Return against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error	6.9%	0.4%	Not an edge	How far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 349 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

Side by side

BFEB Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Feb SPY SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust

Where it sits Buffer ETF Stock ETF

Issuer Innovator State Street

What it is Defined outcome, 9% on SPY Tracks the S&P 500

Total return, 1 year +13.7% +13.6%

Its benchmark over the same days +12.4% (SPY) +13.7% (VOO)

Gap to its benchmark +1.3 pts vs SPY −0.1 pts vs VOO

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.09%

Holdings not read by ETFIQ 504

Net assets, BFEB as of Oct 28, 2026 and SPY as of Oct 27, 2026 $207m $814.8bn

BFEB and SPY on the fields both publish, as of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-BE542A9B35

BFEB and SPY do different jobs. What does each one do in a portfolio?

What each follows. BFEB follows SPY and SPY follows S&P 500 Index.
Cost. BFEB charges 0.79% of assets a year and SPY 0.09%, a gap of 0.70 points.
Size. BFEB has $207m in net assets and SPY $814.8bn (net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026); SPY is 3936.2 times larger.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund

BFEB

From its price on Oct 28, 2026, the fund can gain about 5.6% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 9.5% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. In index terms, SPY can fall 10.3% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 9.0% of the 9.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 95 days remained on Oct 28, 2026. On Jan 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

SPY

SPY tracks the S&P 500. Over the year to Oct 28, 2026 it returned +13.6% with distributions reinvested, against +13.7% for its benchmark, the S&P 500 Index. The prospectus expense ratio is 0.09% a year. By its holdings published by its issuer for Oct 27, 2026, 100% of the fund by weight is stocks the S&P 500 also holds, across 504 positions, with the top ten at 38.1%.

Questions people ask

Are BFEB and SPY in the same category?: BFEB is a buffer ETF and SPY is a stock ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, BFEB or SPY?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, BFEB returned +13.7% and SPY +13.6%.
Which is cheaper, BFEB or SPY?: SPY is cheaper, by 0.70 percentage points a year. That is about $70 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

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Where to next

BFEB on its own →SPY on its own →Hold both: look the portfolio through →Rankings →SPY dividend history →SPY holdings →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

BFEB filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

Innovator page for BFEB ↗

SPY filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

State Street website ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BFEB against SPY, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/bfeb-vs-spy

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