Which has more room to gain, AOCT or POCT?

From their prices on Oct 2, 2026, AOCT can gain about 20.8% before its cap and POCT about 15.0%, so AOCT has more room left this period.

Which resets first, AOCT or POCT?

AOCT ends its outcome period on Sep 30, 2028 and POCT on Sep 30, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, AOCT or POCT?

AOCT charges 0.79% a year and POCT charges 0.79%, so AOCT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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AOCT vs POCT: which one stands where?

As of Oct 2, 2026 POCT can fall 0.6% before its buffer engages and AOCT 0.5%, and POCT resets 366 days sooner. Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Oct 2028 and Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - Oct.

their one-year returns differ by 5.5 points; POCT is 20.7 times larger.

	AOCT	POCT
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.79%
Net assets	$47m	$982m
Total return, 1 year	+5.9%	+11.4%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published

0.5%

AOCT can fall this far before its buffer

0.6%

POCT can fall this far before its buffer

20.8%

AOCT can still gain

15.0%

POCT can still gain

AOCTFull floor

AOCT: reference +0.9% since period start, fund +0.5%; buffer Floor; cap +21.3%; Full floor.

POCTBetween buffer and cap

POCT: reference +0.9% since period start, fund +0.5%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +15.6%; Between buffer and cap.

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

They do not reset together. POCT has 363 days of its period left and AOCT has 729, so the two are not the same bet on the same months.

Both are Innovator funds, so the difference between them is the terms rather than the house.

Where each one stands today

POCT resets first, on Sep 30, 2027, 363 days from now; AOCT runs to Sep 30, 2028, 729 days. AOCT can still gain 20.8% before its cap, POCT 15.0%. A fall from here reaches AOCT’s buffer after 0.5% and POCT’s after 0.6%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Every figure is ETFIQ’s own, from the issuer’s published outcome-period terms. A buffer ETF holds FLEX options on its reference index rather than shares, so there is no holdings overlap between two of them to report.

Performance, window by window

	Total return		Gap to the reference
Window	AOCT	POCT	AOCT	POCT
3 months	+1.7%	+3.8%	−1.9 pts	+0.2 pts
6 months	+4.9%	+11.2%	−13.0 pts	−6.8 pts
1 year	+5.9%	+11.4%	−10.3 pts	−4.8 pts
3 years	not published	+43.0%	not published	−46.3 pts

AOCT and POCT over each window. Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →

On the same fields

AOCT

Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Oct 2028 · Absorbs the whole loss on SPY and caps the gain at 21.3%, over a period ending Sep 30, 2028

POCT

Innovator U.S. Equity Power Buffer ETF - Oct · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 15.6%, over a period ending Sep 30, 2027

Issuer Innovator Innovator

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 100% 15%

Outcome period Sep 30, 2026 to Sep 30, 2028 Sep 30, 2026 to Sep 30, 2027

Days left 729 363

Starting cap +21.3% +15.6%

Can still gain 20.8% 15.0%

Fall before buffer 0.5% 0.6%

Protection left, index points 100.0% of 100.0% 15.0% of 15.0%

Index return this period +0.9% +0.9%

Fund return this period +0.5% +0.5%

State today Open Open

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.79%

Net assets $47m $982m

AOCT and POCT on the same fields, as of Oct 2, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

AOCT in plain words

From its price on Oct 2, 2026, the fund can gain about 20.8% more before it reaches its cap. 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 0.9% 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. 729 days remained on Oct 2, 2026. On Sep 30, 2028 the period ends and a new cap is set.

POCT in plain words

From its price on Oct 2, 2026, the fund can gain about 15.0% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 0.6% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. Protection left, in index points: 15.0% of the 15.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 363 days remained on Oct 2, 2026. On Sep 30, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, AOCT or POCT?: From their prices on Oct 2, 2026, AOCT can gain about 20.8% before its cap and POCT about 15.0%, so AOCT has more room left this period.
Which resets first, AOCT or POCT?: AOCT ends its outcome period on Sep 30, 2028 and POCT on Sep 30, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, AOCT or POCT?: AOCT charges 0.79% a year and POCT charges 0.79%, so AOCT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AOCT vs OCTU AOCT vs OCTW AOCT vs PBOC AOCT vs PMOC POCT vs APOC POCT vs BALT POCT vs BAPR POCT vs BJAN

SPY →AOCT on its own →POCT on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

Innovator page for AOCT ↗POCT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗Innovator page for POCT ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page

ETFIQ, AOCT against POCT, data as of Oct 2, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aoct-vs-poct

Open data

Free to use with attribution for figures ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.