Which resets first, AIOO or BALT?

AIOO ends its outcome period on Dec 31, 2026 and BALT on Dec 31, 2026. New terms are set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, AIOO or BALT?

AIOO charges 0.64% a year and BALT charges 0.69%, so AIOO is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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AIOO vs BALT: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 9, 2026 AIOO can fall 0.5% before its buffer engages and BALT 0.5%. Net assets: $63m on Oct 8, 2026 for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer100 Protection ETF - Jan, and $3.1bn on Oct 9, 2026 for Innovator Defined Wealth Shield ETF - Quarterly.

AIOO costs 0.05 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.0 points; BALT is far larger, $3.1bn against $63m.

	AIOO	BALT
Expense ratio	0.64%	0.69%
Net assets, as of Oct 8, 2026	$63m	$3.1bn
Total return, 1 year	+3.9%	+6.9%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
Index fall to the buffer	2.0%

0.5%

AIOO can fall this far before its buffer

0.5%

BALT can fall this far before its buffer

uncapped

AIOO can still gain

1.9%

BALT can still gain

AIOONo cap

AIOO: reference +2.1% since period start, fund +0.5%; buffer Floor; no cap; No cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

BALTBetween buffer and cap

BALT: reference +2.1% since period start, fund +0.5%; buffer 0 to −20; cap +2.4%; Between buffer and cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

These are two different products. AIOO is a floor fund, which caps how far a holder can fall. BALT is a buffer fund, which absorbs the first part of a fall and leaves everything below it with the holder.

AIOO has no cap. It takes 30% of whatever the index does, where BALT takes all of the rise up to 2.4% and nothing above it.

Where each one stands today

AIOO resets first, on Dec 31, 2026, 83 days from now; BALT runs to Dec 31, 2026, 83 days. A fall from here reaches AIOO’s buffer after 0.5% and BALT’s after 0.5%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Performance, window by window

	Total return		Gap to the reference's price return
Window	AIOO	BALT	AIOO	BALT
3 months	+0.8%	+2.0%	−2.3 pts	−1.1 pts
6 months	+3.0%	+4.1%	−11.6 pts	−10.5 pts
1 year	+3.9%	+6.9%	−12.2 pts	−9.1 pts
3 years	not published	+25.7%	not published	−53.5 pts

Each fund's gap is to its reference's price return, dividends left out: the basis the outcome period uses. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →

On the same fields

AIOO

AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer100 Protection ETF - Jan · Absorbs the whole loss on SPY and does not cap the gain, over a period ending Dec 31, 2026

BALT

Innovator Defined Wealth Shield ETF - Quarterly · Absorbs the first 20% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 2.4%, over a period ending Dec 31, 2026

Issuer AllianzIM Innovator

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 100% 20%

Outcome period Oct 1, 2026 to Dec 31, 2026 Sep 30, 2026 to Dec 31, 2026

Days left 83 83

Starting cap uncapped +2.4%

Can still gain uncapped 1.9%

Fall before buffer 0.5% 0.5%

Protection left, index points 100.0% of 100.0% 20.0% of 20.0%

Index return this period +2.1% +2.1%

Fund return this period +0.5% +0.5%

State today Uncapped Open

Expense ratio 0.64% 0.69%

Net assets, AIOO as of Oct 8, 2026 and BALT as of Oct 9, 2026 $63m $3.1bn

As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

AIOO in plain words

This fund has no cap. It takes a share of any further rise in SPY. The fund's price can fall 0.5% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 2.0% 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. 83 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Dec 31, 2026 the period ends and new terms are set.

BALT in plain words

From its price on Oct 9, 2026, the fund can gain about 1.9% more before it reaches its cap. Protection left, in index points: 20.0% of the 20.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. On Dec 31, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which resets first, AIOO or BALT?: AIOO ends its outcome period on Dec 31, 2026 and BALT on Dec 31, 2026. New terms are set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, AIOO or BALT?: AIOO charges 0.64% a year and BALT charges 0.69%, so AIOO is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AIOO vs FSEP AIOO vs PJAN AIOO vs FDEC AIOO vs POCT BALT vs QBSF BALT vs JANT BALT vs PBOC BALT vs XBOC

SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust →All buffer ETFs ranked by the Downside Cover Score →How the scores are computed →AIOO on its own →BALT on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

AIOO filings on SEC EDGAR ↗AllianzIM page for AIOO ↗Innovator page for BALT ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure; a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.

How this is computed

ETFIQ calculates every figure from each issuer’s published outcome-period terms. Buffer ETFs hold options on an index, not shares, so there is no holdings overlap to report.

Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.

Cite this page

ETFIQ, AIOO against BALT, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aioo-vs-balt

Open data

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