Which resets first, BSEP or SEPU?

BSEP ends its outcome period on Aug 31, 2027 and SEPU on Aug 31, 2027. New terms are set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, BSEP or SEPU?

BSEP charges 0.79% a year and SEPU charges 0.74%, so SEPU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Open in the app Compare their flows Ask IQ about these two funds

BSEP vs SEPU: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

As of Oct 13, 2026 SEPU can fall 1.8% before its buffer engages and BSEP 1.4%. Net assets on Oct 13, 2026: $470m for Innovator U.S. Equity Buffer ETF - Sep and $167m for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Sep.

SEPU costs 0.05 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.1 points; BSEP is 2.8 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

BSEP vs SEPU: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	BSEP	SEPU
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.74%
Net assets	$470m	$167m
Total return, 1 year	+14.0%	+12.9%
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Holdings in common	not published

1.4%

BSEP can fall this far before its buffer

1.8%

SEPU can fall this far before its buffer

18.1%

BSEP can still gain

uncapped

SEPU can still gain

BSEPBetween buffer and cap

BSEP: reference +1.4% since period start, fund +1.3%; buffer 0 to −9; cap +19.8%; Between buffer and cap. Figures to Oct 13, 2026.

SEPUNo cap

SEPU: reference +1.4% since period start, fund +1.0%; buffer 0 to −15; no cap; No cap. Figures to Oct 13, 2026.

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

BSEP 20

SEPU 86.5

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 →

Where each one stands today

BSEP resets first, on Aug 31, 2027, 322 days from now; SEPU runs to Aug 31, 2027, 322 days. A fall from here reaches BSEP’s buffer after 1.4% and SEPU’s after 1.8%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Performance, window by window

Performance, window by window: BSEP vs SEPU: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	Total return		Gap to the reference's price return
Window	BSEP	SEPU	BSEP	SEPU
3 months	+3.3%	+2.9%	−0.2 pts	−0.6 pts
6 months	+8.9%	+9.8%	−3.1 pts	−2.3 pts
1 year	+14.0%	+12.9%	−3.3 pts	−4.4 pts
3 years	+61.8%	not published	−18.5 pts	not published
Since launch Not the same days: BSEP Sep 2019 · SEPU Sep 2024	+126.8%	+30.2%	−40.8 pts	−10.7 pts

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

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

SEPU

AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Sep · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on SPY and does not cap the gain, over a period ending Aug 31, 2027

Issuer Innovator AllianzIM

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 9% 15%

Outcome period Aug 31, 2026 to Aug 31, 2027 Sep 1, 2026 to Aug 31, 2027

Days left 322 322

Starting cap +19.8% uncapped

Can still gain 18.1% uncapped

Fall before buffer 1.4% 1.8%

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

Index return this period +1.4% +1.4%

Fund return this period +1.3% +1.0%

State today Open Uncapped

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.74%

Net assets $470m $167m

As of Oct 13, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

About BSEP

From its price on Oct 13, 2026, the fund can gain about 18.1% 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 1.4% 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. 322 days remained on Oct 13, 2026. On Aug 31, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

About SEPU

This fund has no cap. It takes a share of any further rise in SPY. The fund's price can fall 1.8% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's figure. Protection left, in index points: 15.0% of the 15.0% buffer still sits below today's SPY level. On Aug 31, 2027 the period ends and new terms are set.

Questions people ask

Which resets first, BSEP or SEPU?: BSEP ends its outcome period on Aug 31, 2027 and SEPU on Aug 31, 2027. New terms are set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, BSEP or SEPU?: BSEP charges 0.79% a year and SEPU charges 0.74%, so SEPU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BSEP vs UAPR BSEP vs UOCT BSEP vs SEPW BSEP vs DDFS SEPU vs DAUG SEPU vs USEP SEPU vs ZSEP SEPU vs FAUG

SPY →BSEP on its own →SEPU 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 ↗SEPU filings on SEC EDGAR ↗AllianzIM page for SEPU ↗

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 pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, BSEP against SEPU, data as of Oct 13, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/bsep-vs-sepu

Open data

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