{"url":"https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibuf-vs-iefa","section":"compare","title":"IBUF vs IEFA: ETF Differences, Returns & Fees | ETFIQ","description":"IBUF vs IEFA to Oct 28, 2026: one-year total return +10.1% against +12.3%, expense ratio 0.85% against 0.07%. One buffer ETF and one stock ETF.","as_of":"Oct 28, 2026","structured_data":[{"@type":"FAQPage","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Are IBUF and IEFA in the same category?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"IBUF is a buffer ETF and IEFA is a stock ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Which returned more over the last year, IBUF or IEFA?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, IBUF returned +10.1% and IEFA +12.3%."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Which is cheaper, IBUF or IEFA?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"IEFA is cheaper, by 0.78 percentage points a year. That is about $78 on $10,000 held for a year. Fees come from each fund's prospectus."}}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"ETFIQ","item":"https://etfiq.com/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Compare ETFs","item":"https://etfiq.com/compare/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"IBUF vs IEFA","item":"https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibuf-vs-iefa"}]},{"@type":"WebPage","name":"IBUF vs IEFA: ETF Differences, Returns & Fees","description":"IBUF vs IEFA to Oct 28, 2026: one-year total return +10.1% against +12.3%, expense ratio 0.85% against 0.07%. One buffer ETF and one stock ETF.","url":"https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibuf-vs-iefa","dateModified":"2026-10-28","speakable":{"@type":"SpeakableSpecification","cssSelector":[".verdict",".lede",".faq"]},"isPartOf":{"@type":"WebSite","name":"ETFIQ","url":"https://etfiq.com"}},{"@type":"Dataset","name":"ETFIQ comparison of IBUF and IEFA","description":"IBUF vs IEFA to Oct 28, 2026: one-year total return +10.1% against +12.3%, expense ratio 0.85% against 0.07%. One buffer ETF and one stock ETF.","dateModified":"2026-10-28","creator":{"@id":"https://etfiq.com/#org"},"license":"https://etfiq.com/license/","isAccessibleForFree":true,"url":"https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibuf-vs-iefa","publisher":{"@id":"https://etfiq.com/#org"},"inLanguage":"en","creativeWorkStatus":"Published","distribution":[{"@type":"DataDownload","encodingFormat":"application/json","contentUrl":"https://etfiq.com/data/alternatives.json"},{"@type":"DataDownload","encodingFormat":"application/json","contentUrl":"https://etfiq.com/data/core.json"},{"@type":"DataDownload","encodingFormat":"application/json","contentUrl":"https://etfiq.com/data/crypto.json"},{"@type":"DataDownload","encodingFormat":"application/json","contentUrl":"https://etfiq.com/data/funds.json"},{"@type":"DataDownload","encodingFormat":"application/json","contentUrl":"https://etfiq.com/data/income.json"},{"@type":"DataDownload","encodingFormat":"application/json","contentUrl":"https://etfiq.com/data/leverage.json"},{"@type":"DataDownload","encodingFormat":"application/json","contentUrl":"https://etfiq.com/data/thematic.json"}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"ETFIQ","item":"https://etfiq.com/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Compare ETFs","item":"https://etfiq.com/compare/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"IBUF vs IEFA","item":"https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibuf-vs-iefa"}]},{"@type":"WebPage","name":"IBUF vs IEFA: ETF Differences, Returns & Fees","description":"IBUF vs IEFA to Oct 28, 2026: one-year total return +10.1% against +12.3%, expense ratio 0.85% against 0.07%. One buffer ETF and one stock ETF.","url":"https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibuf-vs-iefa","dateModified":"2026-10-28","isPartOf":{"@type":"WebSite","name":"ETFIQ","url":"https://etfiq.com"},"speakable":{"@type":"SpeakableSpecification","cssSelector":[".verdict",".lede",".faq"]},"publisher":{"@id":"https://etfiq.com/#org"}}],"characters":4120,"truncated":true,"content":"ETFIQ / Compare ETFs / IBUF vs IEFA \n \n Data as of Oct 28, 2026.\n ETFIQ etfiq.com \u00b7 independent ETF data \n IBUF vs IEFA: Differences, Returns & Fees\n Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, IBUF returned +10.1% to IEFA's +12.3%, and IEFA charges 0.07% to IBUF's 0.85%.\n Copy this for sharing \n IEFA costs 0.78 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 2.2 points; IEFA is far larger, $190.4bn against $121m.\n IBUF and IEFA at a glance. As of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ. IBUF IEFA \n Expense ratio 0.85% 0.07% \n Net assets $121m $190.4bn \n Total return, 1 year +10.1% +12.3% \n What it tracks EFA MSC","source":"ETFIQ, independent ETF data. Recomputed nightly from public filings and prices.","publisher":{"@id":"https://etfiq.com/#org","name":"ETFIQ","url":"https://etfiq.com"},"license":"https://etfiq.com/license/","license_text":"Data ETFIQ computes is free to use with attribution: ETFIQ (etfiq.com). Issuer data stays under its owner's terms.","citation":"ETFIQ, IBUF against IEFA, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibuf-vs-iefa","a":{"ticker":"IBUF","name":"Innovator International Developed 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly","issuer":"Innovator","desk":"buffer","as_of":"2026-10-28","verdict":"Since Sep 30, 2026, IBUF returned 0.3%, against EFA's \u22120.3% price return. 9.8% of its 10.0% buffer is left.","url":"https://etfiq.com/funds/ibuf","key_facts":[{"label":"Can still gain from today\u2019s fund price","value":"3.7%","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":null},{"label":"Fall before the buffer from today\u2019s fund price","value":"0.4%","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":null},{"label":"Protection left, index points","value":"9.8%","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":null},{"label":"Days to reset","value":"64","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":null},{"label":"Net assets","value":"$121m","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":"issuer page, as of Oct 28, 2026"},{"label":"Expense ratio","value":"0.85%","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":"issuer page, Oct 28, 2026"}]},"b":{"ticker":"IEFA","name":"iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF","issuer":"iShares","desk":"core","as_of":"2026-10-28","verdict":"IEFA tracks the MSCI EAFE and returned +12.3% over the past year.","url":"https://etfiq.com/funds/iefa","key_facts":[{"label":"Total return, 1 year","value":"+12.3%","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":"computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices"},{"label":"Expense ratio","value":"0.07%","as_of":"2025-11-21","source":"485BPOS XBRL, Nov 21, 2025"},{"label":"Holdings","value":"2629","as_of":"2026-10-27","source":"the issuer\u2019s daily holdings file"},{"label":"Below its high","value":"\u22124.7%","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":"ETFIQ"},{"label":"12-month yield, capital gains included, on its starting price","value":"3.7%","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":"computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and distributions"},{"label":"Last payment (paid annually), ex-date Jun 15, 2026","value":"$1.5781","as_of":"2026-06-15","source":"Tiingo end-of-day distributions"},{"label":"Net assets","value":"$190.4bn","as_of":"2026-10-28","source":"the issuer\u2019s own daily fund list, as of Oct 28, 2026"}]},"overlap_pct":null,"overlap_note":"ETFIQ does not publish a holdings overlap for this pair. Either the funds are not compared on holdings, or one book is incomplete.","full_text_at":"https://etfiq.com/compare/any/ibuf-vs-iefa"}