Are SPY and ZFEB in the same category?

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

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

In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SPY returned +13.6% and ZFEB +5.7%.

Which is cheaper, SPY or ZFEB?

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

SPY vs ZFEB: Differences, Returns & Fees

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, SPY returned +13.6% to ZFEB's +5.7%, and SPY charges 0.09% to ZFEB's 0.79%.

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Net assets: $814.8bn on Oct 27, 2026 for SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, and $146m on Oct 28, 2026 for Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - 1 Yr February.

SPY on its own →ZFEB on its own →

At a glance

+13.6%

SPY total return, 1 year

+5.7%

ZFEB total return, 1 year

0.09%

SPY expense ratio

0.79%

ZFEB expense ratio

Pair scorecard

SPY costs 0.70 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 7.9 points; SPY is far larger, $814.8bn against $146m.

SPY vs ZFEB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	SPY	ZFEB
Return
Measure	SPY	ZFEB
Total return, 1 year	+13.6%	+5.7%
Drawdown
Measure	SPY	ZFEB
Index fall to the buffer		10.3%
Fund price fall to the buffer		4.3%
Benchmark
Measure	SPY	ZFEB
What it tracks	S&P 500 Index	SPY
The outcome period
Measure	SPY	ZFEB
Buffer left, in index points		100.0% of 100.0%
Days left in the period		95
Period ends		Jan 31, 2027
Cost and size
Measure	SPY	ZFEB
Expense ratio	0.09%	0.79%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$814.8bn	$146m
Holdings
Measure	SPY	ZFEB
Holdings in common	not published
Top ten holdings, share of the fund	38.1%

Method

Risk and return

Feb 14, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026 · 88 weekly returns

SPY ZFEB

Return

Total return edge SPY +27.1% +10.0%

Annualized edge SPY +15.2% +5.8%

Price return edge SPY +24.6% +10.0%

Risk

Volatility edge ZFEB 15.3% 2.5%

Max drawdown edge ZFEB −16.9% −2.9%

Downside capture 100.0% 16.2%

Beta 1.00 0.16

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge SPY 0.74 0.67

Sortino edge SPY (slight) 1.11 1.01

Treynor 0.133 0.107

Calmar edge ZFEB 0.90 2.03

Against the benchmark

Alpha −0.1% a year −0.1% a year

Alpha t-stat −0.51 −0.17

Information ratio −0.15 −0.75

Tracking error 0.4% 13.0%

Each against its own benchmark: SPY against VOO, Sep 17, 2010 to Oct 23, 2026; ZFEB against SPY, Feb 14, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026.

Reading

SPY returned more: +27.1% to +10.0%. ZFEB swung less: 2.5% to 15.3%. ZFEB fell less at its worst: −2.9% to −16.9%.

Full scorecard

19 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: SPY vs ZFEB: Differences, Returns & Fees
Measure	SPY	ZFEB	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+27.1%	+10.0%	SPY	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+15.2%	+5.8%	SPY	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	+24.6%	+10.0%	SPY	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	15.3%	2.5%	ZFEB	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	10.2%	1.7%	ZFEB	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−16.9%	−2.9%	ZFEB	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture	99.8%	13.9%		Share of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture	100.0%	16.2%		Share of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta	1.00	0.16	Not an edge	How far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared	1.00	0.90	Not an edge	Share of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	0.74	0.67	SPY	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	1.11	1.01	SPY (slight)	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor	0.133	0.107		Return above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar	0.90	2.03	ZFEB	Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
Benchmark	VOO	SPY		The ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha	−0.1% a year	−0.1% a year	Not significant	Yearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat	−0.51	−0.17	Not an edge	How sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range	−0.3% to +0.1%	−1.3% to +1.1%	Includes zero	The 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio	−0.15	−0.75		Return against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error	0.4%	13.0%	Not an edge	How far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 88 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

Side by side

SPY SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust ZFEB Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - 1 Yr February

Where it sits Stock ETF Buffer ETF

Issuer State Street Innovator

What it is Tracks the S&P 500 Defined outcome, 100% on SPY

Total return, 1 year +13.6% +5.7%

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

Gap to its benchmark −0.1 pts vs VOO −6.7 pts vs SPY

Expense ratio 0.09% 0.79%

Holdings 504 not read by ETFIQ

Net assets, SPY as of Oct 27, 2026 and ZFEB as of Oct 28, 2026 $814.8bn $146m

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

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-E03BE9B508

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

What each follows. SPY follows S&P 500 Index and ZFEB follows SPY.
One-year total return. Over 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 SPY returned +13.6% and ZFEB +5.7% with distributions reinvested, a gap of 7.9 points.
Cost. SPY charges 0.09% of assets a year and ZFEB 0.79%, a gap of 0.70 points.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund

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%.

ZFEB

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +6.4% for the period on Oct 28, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 1.9% as the period runs out.

The fund's price can fall 4.3% 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: 100.0% of the 100.0% 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.

Questions people ask

Are SPY and ZFEB in the same category?: SPY is a stock ETF and ZFEB is a buffer ETF, so they do different jobs. The table compares what both publish: return, cost and holdings.
Which returned more over the last year, SPY or ZFEB?: In the year to Oct 28, 2026, with distributions reinvested, SPY returned +13.6% and ZFEB +5.7%.
Which is cheaper, SPY or ZFEB?: 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

DDFS vs SPY SPY vs UJUN EALT vs SPY SPY vs ZJUL IVV vs ZFEB VOO vs ZFEB SPYM vs ZFEB SPY vs ZDEK

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

SPY filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

State Street website ↗

ZFEB filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

Innovator page for ZFEB ↗

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

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

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

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Free to use with attribution for data ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.