AIOO vs DDFJ: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
As of Oct 9, 2026 DDFJ can fall 6.9% before its buffer engages and AIOO 0.5%. Net assets: $63m on Oct 8, 2026 for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer100 Protection ETF - Jan, and $75m on Oct 9, 2026 for Innovator Equity Dual Directional 15 Buffer ETF - Jan.
AIOO costs 0.15 points a year less; DDFJ is 1.2 times larger.
| AIOO | DDFJ | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.64% | 0.79% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 8, 2026 | $63m | $75m |
| Total return, 1 year | +3.9% | not published |
| What it tracks | SPY | SPY |
| Holdings in common | not published | |
| Index fall to the buffer | 2.0% | 12.4% |
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.
DDFJ: reference +14.2% since period start, fund +6.7%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +9.0%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
DDFJ: reference +14.2% since period start, fund +6.7%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +9.0%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.
These are two different products. AIOO is a floor fund, which caps how far a holder can fall. DDFJ 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 DDFJ takes all of the rise up to 9.0% and nothing above it.
DDFJ is already at its cap, so more rise in the index adds nothing to it before the period ends.
Where each one stands today
AIOO resets first, on Dec 31, 2026, 83 days from now; DDFJ runs to Dec 31, 2026, 83 days. A fall from here reaches AIOO’s buffer after 0.5% and DDFJ’s after 6.9%. 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 | DDFJ | AIOO | DDFJ |
| 3 months | +0.8% | +1.8% | −2.3 pts | −1.3 pts |
| 6 months | +3.0% | +5.6% | −11.6 pts | −9.0 pts |
| 1 year | +3.9% | not published | −12.2 pts | not published |
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
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.
DDFJ in plain words
SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +9.0% for the period on Oct 9, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 1.5% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 6.9% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 12.4% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 15.0% of the 15.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. On Dec 31, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.
Questions people ask
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.
ETFIQ, AIOO against DDFJ, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aioo-vs-ddfj
ETFIQ. (Oct 9, 2026). AIOO against DDFJ. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aioo-vs-ddfj
[AIOO against DDFJ (ETFIQ, Oct 9, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aioo-vs-ddfj)
Free to use with attribution for figures ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms.