Which resets first, ARLU or DDFA?

ARLU ends its outcome period on Mar 31, 2027 and DDFA on Mar 31, 2027. New terms are set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, ARLU or DDFA?

ARLU charges 0.74% a year and DDFA charges 0.79%, so ARLU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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ARLU vs DDFA: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 13, 2026 ARLU can fall 13.4% before its buffer engages and DDFA 8.8%. Net assets on Oct 12, 2026: $56m for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Apr and $57m for Innovator Equity Dual Directional 15 Buffer ETF - Apr.

ARLU costs 0.05 points a year less.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

ARLU vs DDFA: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	ARLU	DDFA
Expense ratio	0.74%	0.79%
Net assets, as of Oct 12, 2026	$56m	$57m
Total return, 1 year	+12.4%	not published
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
Index fall to the buffer	16.3%

13.4%

ARLU can fall this far before its buffer

8.8%

DDFA can fall this far before its buffer

uncapped

ARLU can still gain

3.4%

DDFA can still gain

ARLUNo cap

ARLU: reference +19.5% since period start, fund +14.5%; buffer 0 to −15; no cap; No cap. Figures to Oct 13, 2026.

DDFAAt its cap

DDFA: reference +19.5% since period start, fund +9.2%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +13.4%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 13, 2026.

Figures to Oct 13, 2026.

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

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

Where each one stands today

ARLU resets first, on Mar 31, 2027, 169 days from now; DDFA runs to Mar 31, 2027, 169 days. A fall from here reaches ARLU’s buffer after 13.4% and DDFA’s after 8.8%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Performance, window by window

Performance, window by window: ARLU vs DDFA: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	Total return		Gap to the reference's price return
Window	ARLU	DDFA	ARLU	DDFA
3 months	+2.8%	+2.4%	−1.0 pts	−1.5 pts
6 months	+10.6%	+5.5%	−2.9 pts	−8.0 pts
1 year	+12.4%	not published	−6.7 pts	not published
Since launch Not the same days: ARLU Apr 2024 · DDFA Apr 2026	+31.6%	+7.8%	−17.4 pts	−11.0 pts

Each fund's gap is to its reference's price return, dividends left out: the basis the outcome period uses. Source: ETFIQ. Open this comparison in the app →

On the same fields

ARLU

AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Apr · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on SPY and does not cap the gain, over a period ending Mar 31, 2027

DDFA

Innovator Equity Dual Directional 15 Buffer ETF - Apr · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 13.4%, over a period ending Mar 31, 2027

Issuer AllianzIM Innovator

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 15% 15%

Outcome period Apr 1, 2026 to Mar 31, 2027 Mar 31, 2026 to Mar 31, 2027

Days left 169 169

Starting cap uncapped +13.4%

Can still gain uncapped 3.4%

Fall before buffer 13.4% 8.8%

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

Index return this period +19.5% +19.5%

Fund return this period +14.5% +9.2%

State today Uncapped At cap

Expense ratio 0.74% 0.79%

Net assets, as of Oct 12, 2026 $56m $57m

As of Oct 13, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

About ARLU

This fund has no cap. It takes a share of any further rise in SPY. The fund's price can fall 13.4% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 16.3% 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. 169 days remained on Oct 13, 2026. On Mar 31, 2027 the period ends and new terms are set.

About DDFA

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +13.4% for the period on Oct 13, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 3.4% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 8.8% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. On Mar 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which resets first, ARLU or DDFA?: ARLU ends its outcome period on Mar 31, 2027 and DDFA on Mar 31, 2027. New terms are set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, ARLU or DDFA?: ARLU charges 0.74% a year and DDFA charges 0.79%, so ARLU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

ARLU vs CPSP ARLU vs ZAPR ARLU vs MARM ARLU vs SIXO DDFA vs PBAP DDFA vs MARM DDFA vs SIXO DDFA vs XBAP

SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust →All buffer ETFs ranked by the Downside Cover Score →How the scores are computed →ARLU on its own →DDFA on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

ARLU filings on SEC EDGAR ↗AllianzIM page for ARLU ↗DDFA filings on SEC EDGAR ↗Innovator page for DDFA ↗

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 pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, ARLU against DDFA, data as of Oct 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/arlu-vs-ddfa

Open data

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