Which has more room to gain, KOCT or RBUF?

From their prices on Oct 1, 2026, KOCT can gain about 18.8% before its cap and RBUF about 4.5%, so KOCT has more room left this period.

Which resets first, KOCT or RBUF?

KOCT ends its outcome period on Sep 30, 2027 and RBUF on Dec 31, 2026. A new cap is set the day after each.

Which is cheaper, KOCT or RBUF?

KOCT charges 0.79% a year and RBUF charges 0.79%, so KOCT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

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KOCT vs RBUF: which one stands where?

As of Oct 1, 2026 KOCT can fall 0.0% before its buffer engages and RBUF 0.0%, and RBUF resets 273 days sooner. Innovator U.S. Small Cap Power Buffer ETF - Oct and Innovator U.S. Small Cap 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly.

0.0%

KOCT can fall this far before its buffer

0.0%

RBUF can fall this far before its buffer

18.8%

KOCT can still gain

4.5%

RBUF can still gain

KOCTBetween buffer and cap

KOCT: reference 0.0% since period start, fund 0.0%; buffer 0 to −15; cap +18.8%; Between buffer and cap.

RBUFBetween buffer and cap

RBUF: reference 0.0% since period start, fund 0.0%; buffer 0 to −10; cap +4.5%; Between buffer and cap.

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

KOCT 83.8

RBUF 34.3

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

A percentile among the 293 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 →

They do not reset together. RBUF has 92 days of its period left and KOCT has 365, so the two are not the same bet on the same months.

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

Where each one stands today

RBUF resets first, on Dec 31, 2026, 92 days from now; KOCT runs to Sep 30, 2027, 365 days. KOCT can still gain 18.8% before its cap, RBUF 4.5%. A fall from here reaches KOCT’s buffer after 0.0% and RBUF’s after 0.0%. Both track IWM, 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	KOCT	RBUF	KOCT	RBUF
3 months	+0.9%	−0.2%	+7.8 pts	+6.7 pts
6 months	+10.7%	+5.7%	−1.2 pts	−6.2 pts
1 year	+14.2%	+8.1%	−1.8 pts	−8.0 pts
3 years	+46.9%	not published	−15.7 pts	not published

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

On the same fields

KOCT

Innovator U.S. Small Cap Power Buffer ETF - Oct · Absorbs the first 15% of loss on IWM and caps the gain at 18.8%, over a period ending Sep 30, 2027

RBUF

Innovator U.S. Small Cap 10 Buffer ETF - Quarterly · Absorbs the first 10% of loss on IWM and caps the gain at 4.5%, over a period ending Dec 31, 2026

Issuer Innovator Innovator

Reference index IWM IWM

Buffer 15% 10%

Outcome period Sep 30, 2026 to Sep 30, 2027 Sep 30, 2026 to Dec 31, 2026

Days left 365 92

Starting cap +18.8% +4.5%

Can still gain 18.8% 4.5%

Fall before buffer 0.0% 0.0%

Protection left, index points 15.0% of 15.0% 10.0% of 10.0%

Index return this period 0.0% 0.0%

Fund return this period 0.0% 0.0%

State today Open Open

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.79%

Net assets $128m $102m

KOCT and RBUF on the same fields, as of Oct 1, 2026. Source: ETFIQ.

KOCT in plain words

From its price on Oct 1, 2026, the fund can gain about 18.8% more before it reaches its cap. Protection left, in index points: 15.0% of the 15.0% buffer still sits below today's IWM level. 365 days remained on Oct 1, 2026. On Sep 30, 2027 the period ends and a new cap is set.

RBUF in plain words

From its price on Oct 1, 2026, the fund can gain about 4.5% more before it reaches its cap. Protection left, in index points: 10.0% of the 10.0% buffer still sits below today's IWM level. 92 days remained on Oct 1, 2026. On Dec 31, 2026 the period ends and a new cap is set.

Questions people ask

Which has more room to gain, KOCT or RBUF?: From their prices on Oct 1, 2026, KOCT can gain about 18.8% before its cap and RBUF about 4.5%, so KOCT has more room left this period.
Which resets first, KOCT or RBUF?: KOCT ends its outcome period on Sep 30, 2027 and RBUF on Dec 31, 2026. A new cap is set the day after each.
Which is cheaper, KOCT or RBUF?: KOCT charges 0.79% a year and RBUF charges 0.79%, so KOCT is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

KOCT vs QBKF KOCT vs QBKV RBUF vs KJAN RBUF vs QBKF RBUF vs QBKV

IWM →KOCT on its own →RBUF on its own →How every figure is computed →Standards and sources →

Where these figures came from

KOCT and RBUF filings on SEC EDGAR ↗Innovator page for KOCT ↗Innovator page for RBUF ↗

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, KOCT against RBUF, data as of Oct 1, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/buffer/koct-vs-rbuf

Open data

Free to use with attribution. Every figure is calculated from a named public source; the method is at etfiq.com/methodology.