Which has more room to gain, BOCT or GSEP?

From their prices on Oct 2, 2026, BOCT can gain about 19.4% before its cap and GSEP about 12.6%, so BOCT has more room left this period.

Which resets first, BOCT or GSEP?

BOCT ends its outcome period on Sep 30, 2027 and GSEP on Sep 17, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, BOCT or GSEP?

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

Share on X Download as PDF Open live

BOCT vs GSEP: which one stands where?

As of Oct 2, 2026 GSEP can fall 1.4% before its buffer engages and BOCT 0.7%, and GSEP resets 13 days sooner. Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Oct and FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - September.

BOCT costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.4 points; GSEP is 1.2 times larger.

	BOCT	GSEP
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.85%
Net assets	$292m	$356m
Total return, 1 year	+14.3%	+10.9%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published

0.7%

BOCT can fall this far before its buffer

1.4%

GSEP can fall this far before its buffer

19.4%

BOCT can still gain

12.6%

GSEP can still gain

BOCTBetween buffer and cap

BOCT: reference +0.9% since period start, fund +0.7%; buffer 0 to −9; cap +20.2%; Between buffer and cap.

GSEPBetween buffer and cap

GSEP: reference +1.0% since period start, fund +0.6%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +14.1%; Between buffer and cap.

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

BOCT 16.5

GSEP 92.3

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

A percentile among the 294 buffer ETFs with a live outcome period. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All buffer ETFs ranked by it → How it is computed →

Where each one stands today

GSEP resets first, on Sep 17, 2027, 350 days from now; BOCT runs to Sep 30, 2027, 363 days. BOCT can still gain 19.4% before its cap, GSEP 12.6%. A fall from here reaches BOCT’s buffer after 0.7% and GSEP’s after 1.4%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Every figure is ETFIQ’s own, from the issuer’s published outcome-period terms. A buffer ETF holds FLEX options on its reference index rather than shares, so there is no holdings overlap between two of them to report.

Performance, window by window

	Total return		Gap to the reference
Window	BOCT	GSEP	BOCT	GSEP
3 months	+4.6%	+3.3%	+1.0 pts	−0.3 pts
6 months	+14.8%	+10.6%	−3.2 pts	−7.3 pts
1 year	+14.3%	+10.9%	−1.9 pts	−5.3 pts
3 years	+58.1%	+44.1%	−31.2 pts	−45.1 pts

BOCT and GSEP over each window. Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested. Source: ETFIQ. Open the live comparison on ETFIQ →

On the same fields

BOCT

Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Oct · Absorbs the first 9% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 20.2%, over a period ending Sep 30, 2027

GSEP

FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - September · Absorbs the first 0% to 15% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 14.1%, over a period ending Sep 17, 2027

Issuer Innovator First Trust

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 9% 0% to 15%

Outcome period Sep 30, 2026 to Sep 30, 2027 Sep 21, 2026 to Sep 17, 2027

Days left 363 350

Starting cap +20.2% +14.1%

Can still gain 19.4% 12.6%

Fall before buffer 0.7% 1.4%

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

Index return this period +0.9% +1.0%

Fund return this period +0.7% +0.6%

State today Open Open

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.85%

Net assets $292m $356m

BOCT and GSEP on the same fields, as of Oct 2, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

BOCT in plain words

From its price on Oct 2, 2026, the fund can gain about 19.4% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 0.7% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 0.9% 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. 363 days remained on Oct 2, 2026. On Sep 30, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

GSEP in plain words

From its price on Oct 2, 2026, the fund can gain about 12.6% 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. In index terms, SPY can fall 1.0% 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. 350 days remained on Oct 2, 2026. On Sep 17, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, BOCT or GSEP?: From their prices on Oct 2, 2026, BOCT can gain about 19.4% before its cap and GSEP about 12.6%, so BOCT has more room left this period.
Which resets first, BOCT or GSEP?: BOCT ends its outcome period on Sep 30, 2027 and GSEP on Sep 17, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, BOCT or GSEP?: BOCT charges 0.79% a year and GSEP charges 0.85%, so BOCT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BOCT vs ZALT BOCT vs ZOCT BOCT vs BSEP BOCT vs CPSO GSEP vs OCTW GSEP vs PBOC GSEP vs PMOC GSEP vs SEPM

SPY →BOCT on its own →GSEP on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

BOCT filings on SEC EDGAR ↗Innovator page for BOCT ↗GSEP filings on SEC EDGAR ↗First Trust page for GSEP ↗

ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement. A comparison is not a recommendation.

Cite this page

ETFIQ, BOCT against GSEP, data as of Oct 2, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/boct-vs-gsep

Open data

Free to use with attribution for figures ETFIQ computes; issuer data stays under its owner's terms. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.