Which has more room to gain, BFEB or XJAN?

From their prices on Oct 9, 2026, BFEB can gain about 5.3% before its cap and XJAN about 1.9%, so BFEB has more room left this period.

Which resets first, BFEB or XJAN?

BFEB ends its outcome period on Jan 31, 2027 and XJAN on Jan 15, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, BFEB or XJAN?

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

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BFEB vs XJAN: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 9, 2026 BFEB can fall 9.8% before its buffer engages and XJAN 7.4%, and XJAN resets 16 days sooner. Net assets on Oct 9, 2026: $208m for Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Feb and $71m for FT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - January.

BFEB costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 6.0 points; BFEB is 2.9 times larger.

	BFEB	XJAN
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.85%
Net assets	$208m	$71m
Total return, 1 year	+15.4%	+9.4%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published
Index fall to the buffer	11.1%	11.2%

9.8%

BFEB can fall this far before its buffer

7.4%

XJAN can fall this far before its buffer

5.3%

BFEB can still gain

1.9%

XJAN can still gain

BFEBBetween buffer and cap

BFEB: reference +12.5% since period start, fund +10.2%; buffer 0 to −9; cap +16.6%; Between buffer and cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

XJANAt its cap

XJAN: reference +12.6% since period start, fund +7.0%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +9.9%; At its cap. Figures to Oct 9, 2026.

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

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

Where each one stands today

XJAN resets first, on Jan 15, 2027, 98 days from now; BFEB runs to Jan 31, 2027, 114 days. BFEB can still gain 5.3% before its cap, XJAN 1.9%. A fall from here reaches BFEB’s buffer after 9.8% and XJAN’s after 7.4%. 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	BFEB	XJAN	BFEB	XJAN
3 months	+3.2%	+2.4%	0.0 pts	−0.8 pts
6 months	+11.0%	+6.9%	−3.5 pts	−7.7 pts
1 year	+15.4%	+9.4%	−0.6 pts	−6.6 pts
3 years	+61.8%	not published	−17.4 pts	not published

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

BFEB

Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Feb · Absorbs the first 9% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 16.6%, over a period ending Jan 31, 2027

XJAN

FT Vest U.S. Equity Enhance & Moderate Buffer ETF - January · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 9.9%, over a period ending Jan 15, 2027

Issuer Innovator First Trust

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 9% 15%

Outcome period Jan 31, 2026 to Jan 31, 2027 Jan 20, 2026 to Jan 15, 2027

Days left 114 98

Starting cap +16.6% +9.9%

Can still gain 5.3% 1.9%

Fall before buffer 9.8% 7.4%

Protection left, index points 9.0% of 9.0% 15.0% of 15.0%

Index return this period +12.5% +12.6%

Fund return this period +10.2% +7.0%

State today Open At cap

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.85%

Net assets $208m $71m

As of Oct 9, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

BFEB in plain words

From its price on Oct 9, 2026, the fund can gain about 5.3% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 9.8% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 11.1% 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. 114 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Jan 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

XJAN in plain words

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +9.9% 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 1.9% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 7.4% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 11.2% 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. 98 days remained on Oct 9, 2026. On Jan 15, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, BFEB or XJAN?: From their prices on Oct 9, 2026, BFEB can gain about 5.3% before its cap and XJAN about 1.9%, so BFEB has more room left this period.
Which resets first, BFEB or XJAN?: BFEB ends its outcome period on Jan 31, 2027 and XJAN on Jan 15, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, BFEB or XJAN?: BFEB charges 0.79% a year and XJAN charges 0.85%, so BFEB is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BFEB vs UFEB BFEB vs PMFB BFEB vs DDFF BFEB vs FEBU XJAN vs ZFEB XJAN vs FEBW XJAN vs FEBT XJAN vs GJAN

SPY →All buffer ETFs ranked by the Downside Cover Score →How the scores are computed →BFEB on its own →XJAN on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

BFEB filings on SEC EDGAR ↗Innovator page for BFEB ↗XJAN filings on SEC EDGAR ↗First Trust page for XJAN ↗

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, BFEB against XJAN, data as of Oct 9, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/bfeb-vs-xjan

Open data

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