Which resets first, GSEP or OCTU?

GSEP ends its outcome period on Sep 17, 2027 and OCTU on Sep 30, 2027. New terms are set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, GSEP or OCTU?

GSEP charges 0.85% a year and OCTU charges 0.74%, so OCTU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Buffer ETFs

GSEP vs OCTU: Cap, Buffer & Days Left

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As of Nov 4, 2026 GSEP can fall 1.7% before its buffer engages and OCTU 1.0%, and GSEP resets 13 days sooner.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $366m for FT Vest U.S. Equity Moderate Buffer ETF - September and $60m for AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Oct.

GSEP on its own →OCTU on its own →

At a glance

1.7%

GSEP can fall this far before its buffer

1.0%

OCTU can fall this far before its buffer

12.3%

GSEP can still gain

uncapped

OCTU can still gain

GSEP Between buffer and cap

GSEP: reference +0.7% since period start, fund +0.8%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +14.1%; Between buffer and cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

OCTU No cap

OCTU: reference +0.5% since period start, fund +0.3%; buffer 0 to −15; no cap; No cap. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

OCTU costs 0.11 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.8 points; GSEP is 6.1 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

GSEP vs OCTU: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
Measure	GSEP	OCTU
Return
Measure	GSEP	OCTU
Total return, 1 year	+10.9%	+9.1%
Drawdown
Measure	GSEP	OCTU
Index fall to the buffer	0.6%	0.5%
Benchmark
Measure	GSEP	OCTU
What it tracks	SPY	SPY
Cost and size
Measure	GSEP	OCTU
Expense ratio	0.85%	0.74%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026	$366m	$60m
Holdings
Measure	GSEP	OCTU
Holdings in common	not published

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

IQ Buffer Score91.3GSEP83.2OCTU

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

GSEP 91.3

OCTU 83.2

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

Window by window

Window by window: GSEP vs OCTU: Cap, Buffer & Days Left
	Total return		Gap to the reference's price return
Window	GSEP	OCTU	GSEP	OCTU
3 months	+1.9%	−1.1%	+2.3 pts	−0.7 pts
6 months	+4.9%	+2.8%	+0.4 pts	−1.7 pts
1 year	+10.9%	+9.1%	−2.7 pts	−4.5 pts
3 years	+41.6%	–	−34.8 pts	–
Since launchNot the same days: GSEP Sep 2023 · OCTU Oct 2024	+40.3%	+24.2%	−32.6 pts	−10.7 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

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 OCTU AllianzIM U.S. Equity Buffer15 Uncapped ETF - Oct · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on SPY and does not cap the gain, over a period ending Sep 30, 2027

Issuer First Trust AllianzIM

Reference index SPY SPY

Buffer 0% to 15% 15%

Outcome period Sep 21, 2026 to Sep 17, 2027 Oct 1, 2026 to Sep 30, 2027

Days left 317 330

Starting cap +14.1% uncapped

Can still gain 12.3% uncapped

Fall before buffer 1.7% 1.0%

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

Index return this period +0.7% +0.5%

Fund return this period +0.8% +0.3%

State today Open Uncapped

Expense ratio 0.85% 0.74%

Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $366m $60m

As of Nov 4, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

Where each one stands today

GSEP resets first, on Sep 17, 2027, 317 days from now; OCTU runs to Sep 30, 2027, 330 days. A fall from here reaches GSEP’s buffer after 1.7% and OCTU’s after 1.0%. Both track SPY, so what separates them is where each is in its own period.

Alert

About each fund

GSEP

From its price on Nov 4, 2026, the fund can gain about 12.3% more before it reaches its cap. The fund's price can fall 1.7% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. In index terms, SPY can fall 0.6% 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. 317 days remained on Nov 4, 2026. On Sep 17, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

OCTU

This fund has no cap. It takes a share of any further rise in SPY. The fund's price can fall 1.0% from here before the buffer starts absorbing losses, by the issuer's number. In index terms, SPY can fall 0.5% from today's level to the point where the buffer begins. 330 days remained on Nov 4, 2026. On Sep 30, 2027 the period ends and new terms are set.

Questions people ask

Which resets first, GSEP or OCTU?: GSEP ends its outcome period on Sep 17, 2027 and OCTU on Sep 30, 2027. New terms are set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, GSEP or OCTU?: GSEP charges 0.85% a year and OCTU charges 0.74%, so OCTU is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

GSEP vs PBOC GSEP vs OCTP GSEP vs CPST GSEP vs SEPM OCTU vs OCTW OCTU vs ZOCT OCTU vs XSEP OCTU vs APOC

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

GSEP filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

First Trust page for GSEP ↗

OCTU filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

AllianzIM page for OCTU ↗

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, GSEP against OCTU, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/gsep-vs-octu

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