Which has more room to gain, AJUL or PMJL?

From their prices on Oct 9, 2026, AJUL can gain about 16.5% before its cap and PMJL about 5.7%, so AJUL has more room left this period.

Which resets first, AJUL or PMJL?

AJUL ends its outcome period on Jun 30, 2028 and PMJL on Jun 30, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, AJUL or PMJL?

AJUL charges 0.79% a year and PMJL charges 0.50%, so PMJL is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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AJUL vs PMJL: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 9, 2026 PMJL can fall 2.1% before its buffer engages and AJUL 1.6%, and PMJL resets 366 days sooner. Net assets on Oct 9, 2026: $98m for Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Jul 2028 and $7m for PGIM S&P 500 Max Buffer ETF - July.

PMJL costs 0.29 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 0.2 points; AJUL is 13.9 times larger.

	AJUL	PMJL
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.50%
Net assets	$98m	$7m
Total return, 1 year	+6.2%	+6.0%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
Index fall to the buffer	4.1%

1.6%

AJUL can fall this far before its buffer

2.1%

PMJL can fall this far before its buffer

16.5%

AJUL can still gain

5.7%

PMJL can still gain

AJULFull floor

AJUL: reference +4.3% since period start, fund +1.4%; buffer Floor; cap +18.3%; Full floor. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

PMJLFull floor

PMJL: reference +4.3% since period start, fund +1.7%; buffer Floor; cap +8.0%; Full floor. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

They do not reset together. PMJL has 264 days of its period left and AJUL has 630, so the two are not the same bet on the same months.

Where each one stands today

PMJL resets first, on Jun 30, 2027, 264 days from now; AJUL runs to Jun 30, 2028, 630 days. AJUL can still gain 16.5% before its cap, PMJL 5.7%. A fall from here reaches AJUL’s buffer after 1.6% and PMJL’s after 2.1%. 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	AJUL	PMJL	AJUL	PMJL
3 months	+1.1%	+1.3%	−2.0 pts	−1.9 pts
6 months	+3.4%	+3.6%	−11.2 pts	−11.0 pts
1 year	+6.2%	+6.0%	−9.8 pts	−10.1 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

AJUL

Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Jul 2028 · Absorbs the whole loss on SPY and caps the gain at 18.3%, over a period ending Jun 30, 2028

PMJL

PGIM S&P 500 Max Buffer ETF - July · Absorbs the whole loss on SPY and caps the gain at 8.0%, over a period ending Jun 30, 2027

Issuer Innovator PGIM

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 100% 100%

Outcome period Jun 30, 2026 to Jun 30, 2028 Jul 1, 2026 to Jun 30, 2027

Days left 630 264

Starting cap +18.3% +8.0%

Can still gain 16.5% 5.7%

Fall before buffer 1.6% 2.1%

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

Index return this period +4.3% +4.3%

Fund return this period +1.4% +1.7%

State today Open Open

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.50%

Net assets $98m $7m

As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

AJUL in plain words

From its price on Oct 9, 2026, the fund can gain about 16.5% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 1.6% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 4.1% 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. 630 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Jun 30, 2028 the period ends and a new cap is set.

PMJL in plain words

From its price on Oct 9, 2026, the fund can gain about 5.7% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 2.1% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. 264 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Jun 30, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, AJUL or PMJL?: From their prices on Oct 9, 2026, AJUL can gain about 16.5% before its cap and PMJL about 5.7%, so AJUL has more room left this period.
Which resets first, AJUL or PMJL?: AJUL ends its outcome period on Jun 30, 2028 and PMJL on Jun 30, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, AJUL or PMJL?: AJUL charges 0.79% a year and PMJL charges 0.50%, so PMJL is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AJUL vs PJUL AJUL vs JULC AJUL vs HJLY AJUL vs CJUL PMJL vs DDTL PMJL vs TJUL PMJL vs JULU PMJL vs XBJL

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

Where these figures came from

Innovator page for AJUL ↗PMJL filings on SEC EDGAR ↗PGIM website ↗

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, AJUL against PMJL, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/ajul-vs-pmjl

Open data

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