Which has more room to gain, BALT or ZALT?

From their prices on Nov 4, 2026, BALT can gain about 1.8% before its cap and ZALT about 2.8%, so ZALT has more room left this period.

Which resets first, BALT or ZALT?

BALT ends its outcome period on Dec 31, 2026 and ZALT on Dec 31, 2026. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, BALT or ZALT?

BALT and ZALT both charge 0.69% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Buffer ETFs

BALT vs ZALT: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

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As of Nov 4, 2026 ZALT can fall 0.8% before its buffer engages and BALT 0.6%.

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Net assets on Nov 4, 2026: $3.3bn for Innovator Defined Wealth Shield ETF - Quarterly and $845m for Innovator U.S. Equity 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly.

BALT on its own →ZALT on its own →

At a glance

0.6%

BALT can fall this far before its buffer

0.8%

ZALT can fall this far before its buffer

1.8%

BALT can still gain

2.8%

ZALT can still gain

BALT Between buffer and cap

BALT: reference +0.5% since period start, fund +0.6%; buffer 0 to −20; cap +2.4%; Between buffer and cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

ZALT Between buffer and cap

ZALT: reference +0.5% since period start, fund +0.7%; buffer 0 to −10; cap +3.6%; Between buffer and cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

Both cost 0.69% a year; their one-year returns differ by 1.7 points; BALT is 3.9 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

BALT vs ZALT: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
Measure	BALT	ZALT
Return
Measure	BALT	ZALT
Total return, 1 year	+6.4%	+8.1%
Drawdown
Measure	BALT	ZALT
Index fall to the buffer	0.5%
Benchmark
Measure	BALT	ZALT
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Cost and size
Measure	BALT	ZALT
Expense ratio	0.69%	0.69%
Net assets	$3.3bn	$845m
Holdings
Measure	BALT	ZALT
Holdings in common	not published

ETFIQ Downside Cover Score · BALT scores higher If the market falls into a bear market from here, how much does the buffer absorb?

IQ Buffer Score99.1BALT38.7ZALT

How much of a bear-market fall the buffer would absorb from today's level, ranked against 292 buffer ETFs on stocks with a live outcome period. 100 is best. How it is computed

BALT 99.1

ZALT 38.7

0.3, the lowest in this set 99.7, the highest

Today's position against one 20% fall; it ignores smaller falls, and stock buffers are never ranked against bond or commodity ones. All buffer ETFs ranked by it →

Method

Risk and return

Oct 13, 2023 to Oct 30, 2026 · 159 weekly returns · each against SPY

BALT ZALT

Return

Total return edge ZALT +25.3% +34.4%

Annualized edge ZALT +7.6% +10.2%

Price return edge ZALT +25.3% +34.4%

Risk

Volatility edge BALT 3.1% 5.5%

Max drawdown edge BALT −4.1% −7.0%

Downside capture 17.6% 34.4%

Beta 0.20 0.35

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge ZALT (slight) 0.95 0.98

Sortino edge ZALT (slight) 1.35 1.40

Treynor 0.151 0.154

Calmar edge BALT 1.86 1.44

Against the benchmark

Alpha −0.2% a year −0.3% a year

Alpha t-stat −0.26 −0.20

Information ratio −1.14 −1.12

Tracking error 11.5% 9.6%

Reading

From Oct 2023 to Oct 2026, ZALT returned more: +34.4% to +25.3%. BALT swung less: 3.1% to 5.5%. BALT fell less at its worst: −4.1% to −7.0%.

Full scorecard

19 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: BALT vs ZALT: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
Measure	BALT	ZALT	SPY	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+25.3%	+34.4%		ZALT	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+7.6%	+10.2%		ZALT	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	+25.3%	+34.4%		ZALT	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	3.1%	5.5%		BALT	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	2.2%	3.8%		BALT	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−4.1%	−7.0%		BALT	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture	16.2%	26.9%	100.0%	ZALT	Share of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture	17.6%	34.4%	100.0%	BALT	Share of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta	0.20	0.35	1.00	BALT lower	How far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared	0.81	0.83	1.00	Not an edge	Share of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	0.95	0.98		ZALT (slight)	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	1.35	1.40		ZALT (slight)	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor	0.151	0.154	0.161	Tie	Return above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar	1.86	1.44		BALT	Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
Benchmark	SPY	SPY	SPY		The ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha	−0.2% a year	−0.3% a year	0.0%	Not significant	Yearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat	−0.26	−0.20		Not an edge	How sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range	−1.7% to +1.3%	−2.9% to +2.3%		Both include zero	The 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio	−1.14	−1.12		Tie	Return against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error	11.5%	9.6%	0.0%	Not an edge	How far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 159 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

Window by window

Window by window: BALT vs ZALT: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	Total return		Gap to the reference's price return
Window	BALT	ZALT	BALT	ZALT
3 months	+1.3%	+1.2%	+1.7 pts	+1.6 pts
6 months	+3.2%	+3.6%	−1.3 pts	−0.9 pts
1 year	+6.4%	+8.1%	−7.1 pts	−5.4 pts
3 years	+25.4%	+34.2%	−51.0 pts	−42.2 pts
Since launchNot the same days: BALT Jul 2021 · ZALT Oct 2023	+36.5%	+35.9%	−41.7 pts	−43.6 pts

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

Side by side

BALT Innovator Defined Wealth Shield ETF - Quarterly · Absorbs the first 20% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 2.4%, over a period ending Dec 31, 2026 ZALT Innovator U.S. Equity 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly · Absorbs the first 10% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 3.6%, over a period ending Dec 31, 2026

Issuer Innovator Innovator

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 20% 10%

Outcome period Sep 30, 2026 to Dec 31, 2026 Sep 30, 2026 to Dec 31, 2026

Days left 57 57

Starting cap +2.4% +3.6%

Can still gain 1.8% 2.8%

Fall before buffer 0.6% 0.8%

Protection left, index points 20.0% of 20.0% 10.0% of 10.0%

Index return this period +0.5% +0.5%

Fund return this period +0.6% +0.7%

State today Open Open

Expense ratio 0.69% 0.69%

Net assets $3.3bn $845m

As of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

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

Where each one stands today

BALT resets first, on Dec 31, 2026, 57 days from now; ZALT runs to Dec 31, 2026, 57 days. BALT can still gain 1.8% before its cap, ZALT 2.8%. A fall from here reaches BALT’s buffer after 0.6% and ZALT’s after 0.8%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Client brief:

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About each fund

BALT

From its price on Nov 4, 2026, the fund can gain about 1.8% 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 number. In index terms, SPY can fall 0.5% 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. 57 days remained on Nov 4, 2026. On Dec 31, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.

ZALT

From its price on Nov 4, 2026, the fund can gain about 2.8% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 0.8% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. Protection left, in index points: 10.0% of the 10.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, BALT or ZALT?: From their prices on Nov 4, 2026, BALT can gain about 1.8% before its cap and ZALT about 2.8%, so ZALT has more room left this period.
Which resets first, BALT or ZALT?: BALT ends its outcome period on Dec 31, 2026 and ZALT on Dec 31, 2026. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, BALT or ZALT?: BALT and ZALT both charge 0.69% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BALT vs PJAN BALT vs FSEP BALT vs TJAN BALT vs TOCT ZALT vs FSEP ZALT vs PJAN ZALT vs POCT ZALT vs OCTW

Where to next

SPY →BALT on its own →ZALT on its own →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

Innovator page for BALT ↗

ZALT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

Innovator page for ZALT ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

How this is computed

It is a place in a set, not a rating or a recommendation.

ETFIQ calculates every number 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 number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BALT against ZALT, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/balt-vs-zalt

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