Which has more room to gain, BSEP or GAUG?

From their prices on Oct 2, 2026, BSEP can gain about 19.1% before its cap and GAUG about 12.2%, so BSEP has more room left this period.

Which resets first, BSEP or GAUG?

BSEP ends its outcome period on Aug 31, 2027 and GAUG on Aug 20, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, BSEP or GAUG?

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

Share on X Download as PDF Open live

BSEP vs GAUG: which one stands where?

As of Oct 2, 2026 GAUG can fall 1.5% before its buffer engages and BSEP 0.6%, and GAUG resets 11 days sooner. Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Sep and FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - August.

BSEP costs 0.06 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.0 points; BSEP is 1.1 times larger.

	BSEP	GAUG
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.85%
Net assets	$466m	$422m
Total return, 1 year	+12.4%	+9.4%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published

0.6%

BSEP can fall this far before its buffer

1.5%

GAUG can fall this far before its buffer

19.1%

BSEP can still gain

12.2%

GAUG can still gain

BSEPBetween buffer and cap

BSEP: reference +0.3% since period start, fund +0.5%; buffer 0 to −9; cap +19.8%; Between buffer and cap.

GAUGBetween buffer and cap

GAUG: reference +0.5% since period start, fund +0.7%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +13.8%; Between buffer and cap.

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

BSEP 16.5

GAUG 83.8

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

GAUG resets first, on Aug 20, 2027, 322 days from now; BSEP runs to Aug 31, 2027, 333 days. BSEP can still gain 19.1% before its cap, GAUG 12.2%. A fall from here reaches BSEP’s buffer after 0.6% and GAUG’s after 1.5%. 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	BSEP	GAUG	BSEP	GAUG
3 months	+3.1%	+2.1%	−0.5 pts	−1.4 pts
6 months	+12.4%	+8.7%	−5.5 pts	−9.2 pts
1 year	+12.4%	+9.4%	−3.9 pts	−6.8 pts
3 years	+63.4%	+44.3%	−25.9 pts	−45.0 pts

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

On the same fields

BSEP

Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Sep · Absorbs the first 9% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 19.8%, over a period ending Aug 31, 2027

GAUG

FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - August · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 13.8%, over a period ending Aug 20, 2027

Issuer Innovator First Trust

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 9% 15%

Outcome period Aug 31, 2026 to Aug 31, 2027 Aug 24, 2026 to Aug 20, 2027

Days left 333 322

Starting cap +19.8% +13.8%

Can still gain 19.1% 12.2%

Fall before buffer 0.6% 1.5%

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

Index return this period +0.3% +0.5%

Fund return this period +0.5% +0.7%

State today Open Open

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.85%

Net assets $466m $422m

BSEP and GAUG on the same fields, as of Oct 2, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

BSEP in plain words

From its price on Oct 2, 2026, the fund can gain about 19.1% 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 figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 0.3% 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. 333 days remained on Oct 2, 2026. On Aug 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

GAUG in plain words

From its price on Oct 2, 2026, the fund can gain about 12.2% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 1.5% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. In index terms, SPY can fall 0.5% 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. 322 days remained on Oct 2, 2026. On Aug 20, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, BSEP or GAUG?: From their prices on Oct 2, 2026, BSEP can gain about 19.1% before its cap and GAUG about 12.2%, so BSEP has more room left this period.
Which resets first, BSEP or GAUG?: BSEP ends its outcome period on Aug 31, 2027 and GAUG on Aug 20, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, BSEP or GAUG?: BSEP charges 0.79% a year and GAUG charges 0.85%, so BSEP is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BSEP vs SEPU BSEP vs SEPW BSEP vs UAPR BSEP vs UJAN GAUG vs SEPW GAUG vs USEP GAUG vs XAUG GAUG vs ZSEP

SPY →BSEP on its own →GAUG on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

BSEP filings on SEC EDGAR ↗Innovator page for BSEP ↗GAUG filings on SEC EDGAR ↗First Trust page for GAUG ↗

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, BSEP against GAUG, data as of Oct 2, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/bsep-vs-gaug

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.