Which has more room to gain, GMAR or MARM?

From their prices on Nov 4, 2026, GMAR can gain about 3.3% before its cap and MARM about 1.9%, so GMAR has more room left this period.

Which resets first, GMAR or MARM?

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

Which is cheaper, GMAR or MARM?

GMAR and MARM both charge 0.85% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Buffer ETFs

GMAR vs MARM: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

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As of Nov 4, 2026 GMAR can fall 9.6% before its buffer engages and MARM 4.9%.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $425m for FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - March and $105m for FT Vest U.S. Equity Max Buffer ETF - March.

GMAR on its own →MARM on its own →

At a glance

9.6%

GMAR can fall this far before its buffer

4.9%

MARM can fall this far before its buffer

3.3%

GMAR can still gain

1.9%

MARM can still gain

GMAR At its cap

GMAR: reference +18.2% since period start, fund +9.7%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +14.1%; At its cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

MARM At its cap

MARM: reference +18.2% since period start, fund +4.2%; buffer 0 to −78; cap +7.0%; At its cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

Both cost 0.85% a year; their one-year returns differ by 6.7 points; GMAR is 4.0 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

GMAR vs MARM: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
Measure	GMAR	MARM
Return
Measure	GMAR	MARM
Total return, 1 year	+13.0%	+6.3%
Drawdown
Measure	GMAR	MARM
Index fall to the buffer	15.4%
Benchmark
Measure	GMAR	MARM
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Cost and size
Measure	GMAR	MARM
Expense ratio	0.85%	0.85%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026	$425m	$105m
Holdings
Measure	GMAR	MARM
Holdings in common	not published

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

IQ Buffer Score46.7GMAR92MARM

How much of a bear-market fall the buffer would absorb from today's level, ranked against 292 buffer ETFs on stocks with a live outcome period. 100 is best. How it is computed

GMAR 46.7

MARM 92

0.3, the lowest in this set 99.7, the highest

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 →

Method

Risk and return

Apr 5, 2024 to Oct 30, 2026 · 134 weekly returns · each against SPY

GMAR MARM

Return

Total return edge GMAR +32.1% +19.1%

Annualized edge GMAR +11.4% +7.0%

Price return edge GMAR +32.1% +19.1%

Risk

Volatility edge MARM 6.4% 2.6%

Max drawdown edge MARM −8.2% −1.5%

Downside capture 37.6% 11.4%

Beta 0.41 0.16

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge GMAR (slight) 1.05 0.98

Sortino edge Tie 1.53 1.50

Treynor 0.163 0.160

Calmar edge MARM 1.40 4.56

Against the benchmark

Alpha +1.5% a year +0.5% a year

Alpha t-stat 1.10 0.75

Information ratio −0.66 −0.81

Tracking error 8.8% 12.4%

Reading

From Apr 2024 to Oct 2026, GMAR returned more: +32.1% to +19.1%. MARM swung less: 2.6% to 6.4%. MARM fell less at its worst: −1.5% to −8.2%.

Full scorecard

19 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: GMAR vs MARM: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
Measure	GMAR	MARM	SPY	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+32.1%	+19.1%		GMAR	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+11.4%	+7.0%		GMAR	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	+32.1%	+19.1%		GMAR	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	6.4%	2.6%		MARM	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	4.4%	1.7%		MARM	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−8.2%	−1.5%		MARM	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture	32.6%	13.7%	100.0%	GMAR	Share of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture	37.6%	11.4%	100.0%	MARM	Share of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta	0.41	0.16	1.00	MARM lower	How far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared	0.88	0.80	1.00	Not an edge	Share of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	1.05	0.98		GMAR (slight)	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	1.53	1.50		Tie	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor	0.163	0.160	0.125	Tie	Return above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar	1.40	4.56		MARM	Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
Benchmark	SPY	SPY	SPY		The ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha	+1.5% a year	+0.5% a year	0.0%	Not significant	Yearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat	1.10	0.75		Not an edge	How sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range	−1.2% to +4.3%	−0.9% to +2.0%		Both include zero	The 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio	−0.66	−0.81		GMAR	Return against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error	8.8%	12.4%	0.0%	Not an edge	How far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 134 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

Window by window

Window by window: GMAR vs MARM: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	Total return		Gap to the reference's price return
Window	GMAR	MARM	GMAR	MARM
3 months	+1.5%	+1.0%	+1.9 pts	+1.4 pts
6 months	+4.0%	+2.2%	−0.5 pts	−2.3 pts
1 year	+13.0%	+6.3%	−0.5 pts	−7.3 pts
3 years	+41.6%	–	−34.8 pts	–
Since launchNot the same days: GMAR Mar 2023 · MARM Mar 2024	+52.6%	+19.2%	−42.1 pts	−27.4 pts

Each fund's gap is to its reference's price return, dividends left out: the basis the outcome period uses. – means no data for this window. Open this comparison in the app →

Side by side

GMAR FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - March · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 14.1%, over a period ending Mar 19, 2027 MARM FT Vest U.S. Equity Max Buffer ETF - March · Absorbs the first 78% of loss on SPY and caps the gain at 7.0%, over a period ending Mar 19, 2027

Issuer First Trust First Trust

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 15% 78%

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

Days left 135 135

Starting cap +14.1% +7.0%

Can still gain 3.3% 1.9%

Fall before buffer 9.6% 4.9%

Protection left, index points 15.0% of 15.0% 77.8% of 77.8%

Index return this period +18.2% +18.2%

Fund return this period +9.7% +4.2%

State today At cap At cap

Expense ratio 0.85% 0.85%

Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $425m $105m

As of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

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

Both are First Trust funds, so the difference between them is the terms rather than the house.

Where each one stands today

GMAR resets first, on Mar 19, 2027, 135 days from now; MARM runs to Mar 19, 2027, 135 days. GMAR can still gain 3.3% before its cap, MARM 1.9%. A fall from here reaches GMAR’s buffer after 9.6% and MARM’s after 4.9%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Client brief:

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About each fund

GMAR

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +14.1% for the period on Nov 4, 2026, so in index terms there is no more upside to collect. The fund's own price can still drift up to about 3.3% as the period runs out. The fund's price can fall 9.6% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. In index terms, SPY can fall 15.4% 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. 135 days remained on Nov 4, 2026. On Mar 19, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

MARM

SPY had already risen past this fund's cap of +7.0% for the period on Nov 4, 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 4.9% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. Protection left, in index points: 77.8% of the 77.8% buffer still sits below today's SPY level.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, GMAR or MARM?: From their prices on Nov 4, 2026, GMAR can gain about 3.3% before its cap and MARM about 1.9%, so GMAR has more room left this period.
Which resets first, GMAR or MARM?: GMAR ends its outcome period on Mar 19, 2027 and MARM on Mar 19, 2027. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, GMAR or MARM?: GMAR and MARM both charge 0.85% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

GMAR vs SIXO GMAR vs APOC GMAR vs AAPR GMAR vs APRP MARM vs UAPR MARM vs XBAP MARM vs SIXO MARM vs APOC

Where to next

State Street® SPDR® S&P 500® ETF Trust →GMAR on its own →MARM on its own →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

GMAR and MARM filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

First Trust page for GMAR ↗

First Trust page for MARM ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. 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 number 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 number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.

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ETFIQ, GMAR against MARM, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/gmar-vs-marm

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