Which has more room to gain, AOCT or TOCT?

From their prices on Oct 2, 2026, AOCT can gain about 20.8% before its cap and TOCT about 7.2%, so AOCT has more room left this period.

Which resets first, AOCT or TOCT?

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

Which is cheaper, AOCT or TOCT?

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

Share on X Download as PDF Open live

AOCT vs TOCT: which one stands where?

As of Oct 2, 2026 TOCT can fall 5.1% before its buffer engages and AOCT 0.5%, and TOCT resets 366 days sooner. Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Oct 2028 and Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Oct 2027.

their one-year returns differ by 2.4 points; AOCT is 3.5 times larger.

	AOCT	TOCT
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.79%
Net assets	$47m	$14m
Total return, 1 year	+5.9%	+3.5%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published

0.5%

AOCT can fall this far before its buffer

5.1%

TOCT can fall this far before its buffer

20.8%

AOCT can still gain

7.2%

TOCT can still gain

AOCTFull floor

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

TOCTAt its cap

TOCT: reference +15.5% since period start, fund +4.5%; buffer Floor; cap +12.8%; At its cap.

TOCT is already at its cap, so more rise in the index adds nothing to it before the period ends.

They do not reset together. TOCT 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

TOCT 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, TOCT 7.2%. A fall from here reaches AOCT’s buffer after 0.5% and TOCT’s after 5.1%. 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	TOCT	AOCT	TOCT
3 months	+1.7%	+1.1%	−1.9 pts	−2.5 pts
6 months	+4.9%	+3.8%	−13.0 pts	−14.2 pts
1 year	+5.9%	+3.5%	−10.3 pts	−12.7 pts

AOCT and TOCT 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

TOCT

Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - Oct 2027 · Absorbs the whole loss on SPY and caps the gain at 12.8%, over a period ending Sep 30, 2027

Issuer Innovator Innovator

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 100% 100%

Outcome period Sep 30, 2026 to Sep 30, 2028 Sep 30, 2025 to Sep 30, 2027

Days left 729 363

Starting cap +21.3% +12.8%

Can still gain 20.8% 7.2%

Fall before buffer 0.5% 5.1%

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

Index return this period +0.9% +15.5%

Fund return this period +0.5% +4.5%

State today Open At cap

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.79%

Net assets $47m $14m

AOCT and TOCT 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.

TOCT in plain words

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +12.8% for the period on Oct 2, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 7.2% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 5.1% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 13.4% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. 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 TOCT?: From their prices on Oct 2, 2026, AOCT can gain about 20.8% before its cap and TOCT about 7.2%, so AOCT has more room left this period.
Which resets first, AOCT or TOCT?: AOCT ends its outcome period on Sep 30, 2028 and TOCT on Sep 30, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, AOCT or TOCT?: AOCT charges 0.79% a year and TOCT charges 0.79%, so AOCT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AOCT vs SEPM AOCT vs ZALT AOCT vs ZOCT AOCT vs APOC TOCT vs APOC TOCT vs BALT TOCT vs BOCT TOCT vs CPSO

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

Where these figures came from

Innovator page for AOCT ↗Innovator page for TOCT ↗

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 TOCT, data as of Oct 2, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/aoct-vs-toct

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.