Which has more room to gain, AUGW or ZAUG?

From their prices on Oct 13, 2026, AUGW can gain about 8.8% before its cap and ZAUG about 6.8%, so AUGW has more room left this period.

Which resets first, AUGW or ZAUG?

AUGW ends its outcome period on Jul 31, 2027 and ZAUG on Jul 31, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, AUGW or ZAUG?

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

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AUGW vs ZAUG: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 13, 2026 AUGW can fall 3.0% before its buffer engages and ZAUG 1.4%. Net assets on Oct 12, 2026: $128m for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer20 ETF - Aug and $163m for Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - 1 Yr August.

AUGW costs 0.05 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 4.2 points; ZAUG is 1.3 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

AUGW vs ZAUG: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	AUGW	ZAUG
Expense ratio	0.74%	0.79%
Net assets, as of Oct 12, 2026	$128m	$163m
Total return, 1 year	+10.5%	+6.3%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
Index fall to the buffer	3.9%

3.0%

AUGW can fall this far before its buffer

1.4%

ZAUG can fall this far before its buffer

8.8%

AUGW can still gain

6.8%

ZAUG can still gain

AUGWBetween buffer and cap

AUGW: reference +4.0% since period start, fund +2.3%; buffer 0 to −20; cap +12.1%; Between buffer and cap. Figures to Oct 13, 2026.

ZAUGFull floor

ZAUG: reference +4.1% since period start, fund +1.3%; buffer Floor; cap +8.4%; Full floor. Figures to Oct 13, 2026.

Figures to Oct 13, 2026.

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

Where each one stands today

AUGW resets first, on Jul 31, 2027, 291 days from now; ZAUG runs to Jul 31, 2027, 291 days. AUGW can still gain 8.8% before its cap, ZAUG 6.8%. A fall from here reaches AUGW’s buffer after 3.0% and ZAUG’s after 1.4%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Performance, window by window

Performance, window by window: AUGW vs ZAUG: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	Total return		Gap to the reference's price return
Window	AUGW	ZAUG	AUGW	ZAUG
3 months	+2.6%	+1.5%	−1.2 pts	−2.3 pts
6 months	+6.3%	+3.7%	−7.1 pts	−9.7 pts
1 year	+10.5%	+6.3%	−8.6 pts	−12.8 pts
3 years	+43.8%	not published	−36.5 pts	not published
Since launch Not the same days: AUGW Aug 2023 · ZAUG Aug 2024	+40.1%	+16.7%	−30.4 pts	−26.6 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

AUGW

AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer20 ETF - Aug · Absorbs the first 20% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 12.1%, over a period ending Jul 31, 2027

ZAUG

Innovator Equity Defined Protection ETF - 1 Yr August · Absorbs the whole loss on SPY and caps the gain at 8.4%, over a period ending Jul 31, 2027

Issuer AllianzIM Innovator

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 20% 100%

Outcome period Aug 1, 2026 to Jul 31, 2027 Jul 31, 2026 to Jul 31, 2027

Days left 291 291

Starting cap +12.1% +8.4%

Can still gain 8.8% 6.8%

Fall before buffer 3.0% 1.4%

Protection left, index points 20.0% of 20.0% 100.0% of 100.0%

Index return this period +4.0% +4.1%

Fund return this period +2.3% +1.3%

State today Open Open

Expense ratio 0.74% 0.79%

Net assets, as of Oct 12, 2026 $128m $163m

As of Oct 13, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

About AUGW

From its price on Oct 13, 2026, the fund can gain about 8.8% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 3.0% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 3.9% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 20.0% of the 20.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 291 days remained on Oct 13, 2026. On Jul 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

About ZAUG

From its price on Oct 13, 2026, the fund can gain about 6.8% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 1.4% 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.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, AUGW or ZAUG?: From their prices on Oct 13, 2026, AUGW can gain about 8.8% before its cap and ZAUG about 6.8%, so AUGW has more room left this period.
Which resets first, AUGW or ZAUG?: AUGW ends its outcome period on Jul 31, 2027 and ZAUG on Jul 31, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, AUGW or ZAUG?: AUGW charges 0.74% a year and ZAUG charges 0.79%, so AUGW is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

AUGW vs XJUL AUGW vs PAUG AUGW vs FJUL AUGW vs HAUG ZAUG vs CPSJ ZAUG vs CPSA ZAUG vs DJUL ZAUG vs PAUG

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

Where these figures came from

AUGW filings on SEC EDGAR ↗AllianzIM page for AUGW ↗ZAUG filings on SEC EDGAR ↗Innovator page for ZAUG ↗

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, AUGW against ZAUG, data as of Oct 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/augw-vs-zaug

Open data

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