Which has more room to gain, AJAN or DECM?

From their prices on Oct 9, 2026, AJAN can gain about 9.0% before its cap and DECM about 1.1%, so AJAN has more room left this period.

Which resets first, AJAN or DECM?

AJAN ends its outcome period on Dec 31, 2027 and DECM on Dec 18, 2026. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, AJAN or DECM?

AJAN charges 0.79% a year and DECM charges 0.85%, so AJAN is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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AJAN vs DECM: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 9, 2026 DECM can fall 5.6% before its buffer engages and AJAN 3.9%, and DECM resets 378 days sooner. Net assets on Oct 9, 2026: $42m for Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Jan 2028 and $35m for FT Vest U.S. Equity Max Buffer ETF - December.

AJAN costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 2.1 points; AJAN is 1.2 times larger.

	AJAN	DECM
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.85%
Net assets	$42m	$35m
Total return, 1 year	+4.4%	+6.5%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
Index fall to the buffer	12.4%	12.6%

3.9%

AJAN can fall this far before its buffer

5.6%

DECM can fall this far before its buffer

9.0%

AJAN can still gain

1.1%

DECM can still gain

AJANAt its cap

AJAN: reference +14.2% since period start, fund +3.4%; buffer Floor; cap +13.3%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

DECMAt its cap

DECM: reference +14.4% since period start, fund +5.0%; buffer 0 to −51; cap +7.0%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

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

Both are already at their cap, so neither gains from more rise in the index before the period ends.

They do not reset together. DECM has 70 days of its period left and AJAN has 448, so the two are not the same bet on the same months.

Where each one stands today

DECM resets first, on Dec 18, 2026, 70 days from now; AJAN runs to Dec 31, 2027, 448 days. AJAN can still gain 9.0% before its cap, DECM 1.1%. A fall from here reaches AJAN’s buffer after 3.9% and DECM’s after 5.6%. 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	AJAN	DECM	AJAN	DECM
3 months	+1.1%	+1.8%	−2.1 pts	−1.4 pts
6 months	+3.0%	+4.2%	−11.6 pts	−10.4 pts
1 year	+4.4%	+6.5%	−11.6 pts	−9.5 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

AJAN

Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Jan 2028 · Absorbs the whole loss on SPY and caps the gain at 13.3%, over a period ending Dec 31, 2027

DECM

FT Vest U.S. Equity Max Buffer ETF - December · Absorbs the first 51% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 7.0%, over a period ending Dec 18, 2026

Issuer Innovator First Trust

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 100% 51%

Outcome period Dec 31, 2025 to Dec 31, 2027 Dec 22, 2025 to Dec 18, 2026

Days left 448 70

Starting cap +13.3% +7.0%

Can still gain 9.0% 1.1%

Fall before buffer 3.9% 5.6%

Protection left, index points 100.0% of 100.0% 50.6% of 50.6%

Index return this period +14.2% +14.4%

Fund return this period +3.4% +5.0%

State today At cap At cap

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.85%

Net assets $42m $35m

As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

AJAN in plain words

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +13.3% 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 9.0% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 3.9% 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: 100.0% of the 100.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 448 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Dec 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

DECM in plain words

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +7.0% 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 1.1% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 5.6% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 12.6% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 50.6% of the 50.6% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 70 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Dec 18, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, AJAN or DECM?: From their prices on Oct 9, 2026, AJAN can gain about 9.0% before its cap and DECM about 1.1%, so AJAN has more room left this period.
Which resets first, AJAN or DECM?: AJAN ends its outcome period on Dec 31, 2027 and DECM on Dec 18, 2026. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, AJAN or DECM?: AJAN charges 0.79% a year and DECM charges 0.85%, so AJAN is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AJAN vs TJAN AJAN vs CPSY AJAN vs QBSV AJAN vs CPSD DECM vs TJAN DECM vs QBSV DECM vs SIXJ DECM vs EALT

SPY →All buffer ETFs ranked by the Downside Cover Score →How the scores are computed →AJAN on its own →DECM on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

Innovator page for AJAN ↗DECM filings on SEC EDGAR ↗First Trust page for DECM ↗

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, AJAN against DECM, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/ajan-vs-decm

Open data

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