Data as of . Every figure is the income desk's own, on published data.
ULTY vs YMAX
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, ULTY and YMAX hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Only in ULTY | Only in YMAX |
|---|---|
| Alphabet Inc 5.66% | YieldMax AMD Option Income Strategy ETF 6.95% |
| Analog Devices Inc 5.47% | Yieldmax Amzn Option Income ETF 5.36% |
| Amazon.com Inc 5.16% | Yieldmax Tsm Option Income Strategy ETF 5.01% |
| Lam Research Corp 4.99% | YieldMax Crypto Industry & Tec 4.99% |
| Ciena Corp 4.95% | YieldMax GOOGL Option Income S 4.88% |
| Quanta Services Inc 4.95% | YieldMax MARA Option Income Strategy ETF 4.80% |
| Lumentum Holdings Inc 4.86% | YieldMax AI & Tech Portfolio Option Inco 4.72% |
| NVIDIA Corp 4.80% | YieldMax Semiconductor Portfolio Option 4.66% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings as filed for Apr 30, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ULTY | YMAX | ULTY | YMAX | ULTY | YMAX | |
| 3 months | +2.9% | +7.1% | 14.5% | 10.9% | −1.8 pts | +2.4 pts |
| 6 months | +12.9% | +18.0% | 29.9% | 24.4% | −2.3 pts | +2.8 pts |
| 1 year | −2.9% | +3.5% | 48.3% | 40.0% | −22.8 pts | −16.5 pts |
| Since launch | +10.0% | +44.0% | 86.5% | 91.0% | −46.2 pts | −24.0 pts |
| ULTY YieldMax(R) Ultra Option Income Strategy ETF | YMAX YieldMax(R) Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | YieldMax | YieldMax |
| Strategy | synthetic covered call | synthetic covered call |
| Benchmark | S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy | S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy |
| Pays | weekly | weekly |
| Payout rate, annualised | 60.4% | 40.6% |
| Expense ratio | 1.30% | 1.33% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 48.3% | 40.0% |
| Price change, 1 year | −52.1% | −38.7% |
| Total return, 1 year | −2.9% | +3.5% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +20.0% | +20.0% |
| Ahead or behind | −22.8 pts | −16.5 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | 100% | 43% |
| Age | 918 days | 961 days |
ULTY in plain words
Over the year to Sep 4, 2026, ULTY paid 48.3% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 52.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned −2.9%. S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy returned +20.0% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 22.8 pts. At its price on Sep 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualises to 60.4%, paid weekly. YieldMax estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Sep 3, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterisation rather than a measure of erosion).
YMAX in plain words
Over the year to Sep 4, 2026, YMAX paid 40.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 38.7%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +3.5%. S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy returned +20.0% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 16.5 pts. At its price on Sep 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualises to 40.6%, paid weekly. YieldMax estimates that 43% of the distribution paid Sep 3, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterisation rather than a measure of erosion).
Questions people ask
- Which paid more, ULTY or YMAX?
- Over the year to Sep 4, 2026, ULTY paid 48.3% of its starting price in cash and YMAX paid 40.0%, so ULTY paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
- Which returned more once distributions are counted, ULTY or YMAX?
- With every distribution reinvested, ULTY returned −2.9% and YMAX returned +3.5% over the year to Sep 4, 2026, so YMAX returned more.
- Which is cheaper, ULTY or YMAX?
- ULTY charges 1.30% a year and YMAX charges 1.33%, so ULTY is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, ULTY against YMAX, data as of Sep 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/ULTY-YMAX.html Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.