Which has more room to gain, BAPR or FMAR?

From their prices on Oct 9, 2026, BAPR can gain about 5.0% before its cap and FMAR about 4.0%, so BAPR has more room left this period.

Which resets first, BAPR or FMAR?

BAPR ends its outcome period on Mar 31, 2027 and FMAR on Mar 19, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, BAPR or FMAR?

BAPR charges 0.79% a year and FMAR charges 0.85%, so BAPR is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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BAPR vs FMAR: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 9, 2026 BAPR can fall 11.5% before its buffer engages and FMAR 11.3%, and FMAR resets 12 days sooner. Net assets on Oct 9, 2026: $417m for Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Apr and $1.2bn for FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - March.

BAPR costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.2 points; FMAR is 2.9 times larger.

	BAPR	FMAR
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.85%
Net assets	$417m	$1.2bn
Total return, 1 year	+17.3%	+16.1%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
Index fall to the buffer	16.5%	16.7%

11.5%

BAPR can fall this far before its buffer

11.3%

FMAR can fall this far before its buffer

5.0%

BAPR can still gain

4.0%

FMAR can still gain

BAPRAt its cap

BAPR: reference +19.7% since period start, fund +12.4%; buffer 0 to −9; cap +18.5%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

FMARAt its cap

FMAR: reference +20.0% since period start, fund +11.8%; buffer 0 to −10; cap +17.2%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

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

BAPR 14.9

FMAR 15.2

0.2, the lowest in this set99.8, the highest

A percentile among the 292 buffer ETFs on stocks with a live outcome period. 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 → How it is computed →

Both are already at their cap, so neither gains from more rise in the index before the period ends.

Where each one stands today

FMAR resets first, on Mar 19, 2027, 161 days from now; BAPR runs to Mar 31, 2027, 173 days. BAPR can still gain 5.0% before its cap, FMAR 4.0%. A fall from here reaches BAPR’s buffer after 11.5% and FMAR’s after 11.3%. 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	BAPR	FMAR	BAPR	FMAR
3 months	+2.9%	+2.7%	−0.3 pts	−0.4 pts
6 months	+9.0%	+8.2%	−5.6 pts	−6.4 pts
1 year	+17.3%	+16.1%	+1.3 pts	+0.1 pts
3 years	+55.5%	+51.8%	−23.7 pts	−27.4 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

BAPR

Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Apr · Absorbs the first 9% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 18.5%, over a period ending Mar 31, 2027

FMAR

FT Vest U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - March · Absorbs the first 10% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 17.2%, over a period ending Mar 19, 2027

Issuer Innovator First Trust

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 9% 10%

Outcome period Mar 31, 2026 to Mar 31, 2027 Mar 23, 2026 to Mar 19, 2027

Days left 173 161

Starting cap +18.5% +17.2%

Can still gain 5.0% 4.0%

Fall before buffer 11.5% 11.3%

Protection left, index points 9.0% of 9.0% 10.0% of 10.0%

Index return this period +19.7% +20.0%

Fund return this period +12.4% +11.8%

State today At cap At cap

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.85%

Net assets $417m $1.2bn

As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

BAPR in plain words

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +18.5% 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 5.0% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 11.5% 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: 9.0% of the 9.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 173 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Mar 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

FMAR in plain words

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +17.2% 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 4.0% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 11.3% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 16.7% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. Protection left, in index points: 10.0% of the 10.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. 161 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Mar 19, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, BAPR or FMAR?: From their prices on Oct 9, 2026, BAPR can gain about 5.0% before its cap and FMAR about 4.0%, so BAPR has more room left this period.
Which resets first, BAPR or FMAR?: BAPR ends its outcome period on Mar 31, 2027 and FMAR on Mar 19, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, BAPR or FMAR?: BAPR charges 0.79% a year and FMAR charges 0.85%, so BAPR is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BAPR vs BJAN BAPR vs DAPR BAPR vs BOCT BAPR vs UJUL FMAR vs GMAR FMAR vs PAPR FMAR vs UAPR FMAR vs SIXO

SPY →BAPR on its own →FMAR on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

BAPR filings on SEC EDGAR ↗Innovator page for BAPR ↗FMAR filings on SEC EDGAR ↗First Trust page for FMAR ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure; a link is not an endorsement. 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 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, BAPR against FMAR, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/bapr-vs-fmar

Open data

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