Which resets first, ARLU or PMAP?

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

Which is cheaper, ARLU or PMAP?

ARLU charges 0.74% a year and PMAP charges 0.50%, so PMAP is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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ARLU vs PMAP: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 9, 2026 ARLU can fall 13.6% before its buffer engages and PMAP 4.2%. Net assets: $56m on Oct 8, 2026 for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Apr, and $5m on Oct 9, 2026 for PGIM S&P 500 Max Buffer ETF - April.

PMAP costs 0.24 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.7 points; ARLU is 11.2 times larger.

	ARLU	PMAP
Expense ratio	0.74%	0.50%
Net assets, as of Oct 8, 2026	$56m	$5m
Total return, 1 year	+10.0%	+6.3%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
Index fall to the buffer	16.5%

13.6%

ARLU can fall this far before its buffer

4.2%

PMAP can fall this far before its buffer

uncapped

ARLU can still gain

2.7%

PMAP can still gain

ARLUNo cap

ARLU: reference +19.7% since period start, fund +14.7%; buffer 0 to −15; no cap; No cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

PMAPAt its cap

PMAP: reference +19.7% since period start, fund +3.8%; buffer Floor; cap +7.1%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

These are two different products. PMAP 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.

PMAP 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, 173 days from now; PMAP runs to Mar 31, 2027, 173 days. A fall from here reaches ARLU’s buffer after 13.6% and PMAP’s after 4.2%. 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	ARLU	PMAP	ARLU	PMAP
3 months	+2.3%	+1.4%	−0.9 pts	−1.7 pts
6 months	+11.4%	+3.0%	−3.1 pts	−11.6 pts
1 year	+10.0%	+6.3%	−6.0 pts	−9.7 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

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

PMAP

PGIM S&P 500 Max Buffer ETF - April · Absorbs the whole loss on SPY and caps the gain at 7.1%, over a period ending Mar 31, 2027

Issuer AllianzIM PGIM

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 15% 100%

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

Days left 173 173

Starting cap uncapped +7.1%

Can still gain uncapped 2.7%

Fall before buffer 13.6% 4.2%

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

Index return this period +19.7% +19.7%

Fund return this period +14.7% +3.8%

State today Uncapped At cap

Expense ratio 0.74% 0.50%

Net assets, ARLU as of Oct 8, 2026 and PMAP as of Oct 9, 2026 $56m $5m

As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

ARLU in plain words

This fund has no cap. It takes a share of any further rise in SPY. The fund's price can fall 13.6% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 16.5% 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. 173 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Mar 31, 2027 the period ends and new terms are set.

PMAP in plain words

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +7.1% 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 2.7% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 4.2% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. Protection left, in index points: 100.0% of the 100.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. On Mar 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which resets first, ARLU or PMAP?: ARLU ends its outcome period on Mar 31, 2027 and PMAP on Mar 31, 2027. New terms are set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, ARLU or PMAP?: ARLU charges 0.74% a year and PMAP charges 0.50%, so PMAP is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

ARLU vs PBAP ARLU vs PAPR ARLU vs FLAO ARLU vs TAPR PMAP vs FLAO PMAP vs DDFA PMAP vs ZAPR PMAP vs SIXO

SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust →All buffer ETFs ranked by the Downside Cover Score →How the scores are computed →ARLU on its own →PMAP 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 ↗PMAP 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, ARLU against PMAP, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/arlu-vs-pmap

Open data

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