Which paid more, APLY or QDTE?

Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, APLY paid 28.6% of its starting price in cash and QDTE paid 34.2%, so QDTE paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.

Which returned more once distributions are counted, APLY or QDTE?

With every distribution reinvested, APLY returned +18.2% and QDTE +16.5% over the year to Oct 28, 2026.

Which is cheaper, APLY or QDTE?

APLY charges 1.04% a year and QDTE charges 0.96%, so QDTE is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

Income ETFs

APLY vs QDTE: Dividend Yield & Total Return

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Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, QDTE paid 34.2% of its price in cash against APLY’s 28.6%, though APLY returned more with it reinvested.

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Net assets: $112m on Oct 27, 2026 for YieldMax AAPL Option Income Strategy ETF, and $919m on Oct 28, 2026 for Roundhill Nasdaq-100 0DTE Covered Call Strategy ETF.

APLY on its own →QDTE on its own →

At a glance

28.6%

APLY cash paid, 1 year

34.2%

QDTE cash paid, 1 year

+18.2%

APLY total return, 1 year

+16.5%

QDTE total return, 1 year

APLY · 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 10.1 pts behind AAPL

APLY

+18.2%

AAPL

+28.3%

10.1 pts behind AAPL

APLY over 1 year: paid 28.6%, price −14.2%, total +18.2%, AAPL +28.3%, −10.1 pts. Data to Oct 28, 2026.

AAPL

+28.3%

APLY

+18.2%

28.6% of it arrived as cash

10.1 pts behind AAPL

Total return, distributions reinvested

10.1 pts behind AAPL

APLY over 1 year: paid 28.6%, price −14.2%, total +18.2%, AAPL +28.3%, −10.1 pts. Data to Oct 28, 2026.

AAPL

+28.3%

APLY

+18.2%

28.6% cash

10.1 pts behind AAPL

28.6% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. APLY over 1 year: paid 28.6%, price −14.2%, total +18.2%, AAPL +28.3%, −10.1 pts. Data to Oct 28, 2026.

Data to Oct 28, 2026.

QDTE · 1 year to Oct 28, 2026 1.3 pts ahead of QQQ

QDTE

+16.5%

QQQ

+15.2%

1.3 pts ahead of QQQ

QDTE over 1 year: paid 34.2%, price −21.6%, total +16.5%, QQQ +15.2%, +1.3 pts. Data to Oct 28, 2026.

QQQ

+15.2%

QDTE

+16.5%

34.2% of it arrived as cash

1.3 pts ahead of QQQ

Total return, distributions reinvested

1.3 pts ahead of QQQ

QDTE over 1 year: paid 34.2%, price −21.6%, total +16.5%, QQQ +15.2%, +1.3 pts. Data to Oct 28, 2026.

QQQ

+15.2%

QDTE

+16.5%

34.2% cash

1.3 pts ahead of QQQ

34.2% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. QDTE over 1 year: paid 34.2%, price −21.6%, total +16.5%, QQQ +15.2%, +1.3 pts. Data to Oct 28, 2026.

Data to Oct 28, 2026.

Pair scorecard

QDTE costs 0.08 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.7 points; QDTE is 8.2 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

APLY vs QDTE: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	APLY	QDTE
Paid and earned
Measure	APLY	QDTE
Total return, 1 year	+18.2%	+16.5%
Price change, 1 year	fell 14.2%	fell 21.6%
Return of capital, issuer estimate		100% of the Oct 23, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
Measure	APLY	QDTE
Benchmark	Apple (AAPL)	Nasdaq-100, measured through QQQ
Cost and size
Measure	APLY	QDTE
Expense ratio	1.04%	0.96%
Net assets, as of Oct 27, 2026	$112m	$916m
Holdings
Measure	APLY	QDTE
Holdings in common	0%

ETFIQ Distribution Coverage Score · APLY scores higher How much of what it paid out did its total return cover?

APLY among the 74 income ETFs writing on a single company

IQ Income Score84.5APLY35.1QDTE

How much of its payouts the fund's total return covered, ranked against 74 income ETFs writing on a single company and 164 income ETFs not writing on a single company. 100 is best. How it is computed

APLY 84.5

0.7, the lowest in this set 99.3, the highest

QDTE among the 164 income ETFs not writing on a single company

QDTE 35.1

0.3, the lowest in this set 99.7, the highest

A percentile among the 74 income ETFs writing on a single company. QDTE is a percentile among the 164 income ETFs not writing on a single company, a different set, so the two marks are not on one scale. One year only, and a ratio of two published numbers: it says nothing about where a distribution came from. All income ETFs ranked by it →

Holdings in common uses holdings dated Oct 28, 2026. Method

Risk and return

Mar 15, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026 · 136 weekly returns

APLY QDTE

Return

Total return edge QDTE (slight) +58.3% +60.8%

Annualized edge QDTE (slight) +19.2% +19.9%

Price return edge APLY −29.3% −38.8%

Risk

Volatility edge QDTE 22.0% 17.8%

Max drawdown edge QDTE −24.1% −20.5%

Downside capture 91.8% 91.4%

Beta 0.78 0.85

Risk-adjusted

Sharpe edge QDTE 0.71 0.87

Sortino edge QDTE 0.98 1.27

Treynor 0.145 0.182

Calmar edge QDTE 0.80 0.97

Against the benchmark

Alpha −4.1% a year +1.2% a year

Alpha t-stat −1.45 0.39

Information ratio −1.09 −0.23

Tracking error 7.8% 5.7%

Each against its own benchmark: APLY against AAPL, Apr 28, 2023 to Oct 23, 2026; QDTE against QQQ, Mar 15, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026.

Reading

QDTE returned slightly more: +60.8% to +58.3%. QDTE swung less: 17.8% to 22.0%. QDTE fell less at its worst: −20.5% to −24.1%.

Full scorecard

19 measures, with how each is measured Open ↓

Risk and return: APLY vs QDTE: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	APLY	QDTE	Edge	How it is measured
Return
Total return	+58.3%	+60.8%	QDTE (slight)	Price change plus distributions, reinvested.
Annualized	+19.2%	+19.9%	QDTE (slight)	Total return as a yearly rate.
Price return	−29.3%	−38.8%	APLY	Price change alone, distributions left out.
Risk
Volatility	22.0%	17.8%	QDTE	Spread of weekly returns, annualized. Lower is steadier.
Downside deviation	16.0%	12.2%	QDTE	Like volatility, counting only weeks below the Treasury bill rate.
Max drawdown	−24.1%	−20.5%	QDTE	Deepest fall from a high to the low after it.
Upside capture	66.1%	81.9%		Share of its benchmark's rise caught in the weeks it rose.
Downside capture	91.8%	91.4%		Share of its benchmark's fall taken in the weeks it fell. Lower is better.
Beta	0.78	0.85	Not an edge	How far it moves for each 1% its benchmark moves.
R squared	0.94	0.93	Not an edge	Share of its weekly moves its benchmark explains.
Risk-adjusted
Sharpe	0.71	0.87	QDTE	Return above Treasury bills per unit of volatility.
Sortino	0.98	1.27	QDTE	Return above Treasury bills per unit of downside deviation.
Treynor	0.145	0.182		Return above Treasury bills per unit of beta.
Calmar	0.80	0.97	QDTE	Annualized return divided by the max drawdown.
Against the benchmark
Benchmark	AAPL	QQQ		The ETF each fund is measured against.
Alpha	−4.1% a year	+1.2% a year	Not significant	Yearly return beyond what its beta to the benchmark predicts.
Alpha t-stat	−1.45	0.39	Not an edge	How sure the alpha is. Below 2, it could be chance.
Alpha range	−9.7% to +1.5%	−4.8% to +7.2%	Includes zero	The 95% range for the yearly alpha.
Information ratio	−1.09	−0.23		Return against its benchmark per unit of tracking error.
Tracking error	7.8%	5.7%	Not an edge	How far weekly returns stray from the benchmark, annualized.

Computed by ETFIQ from Tiingo daily prices and ETFIQ's distribution records, 136 weekly returns. Cash rate: the 13-week Treasury bill.

What they share

By the books each fund has filed, APLY and QDTE hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Oct 28, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first APLY QDTE

Only in one fund ↓

Only in APLY

United States Treasury Note/Bond 3.375% 09/15/2027 26.10%

United States Treasury Note/Bond 2.375% 05/15/2027 13.93%

AAPL 12/18/2026 310.01 C 11.68%

AAPL US 10/30/26 C352.5 0.03%

AAPL US 10/30/26 C355 0.02%

AAPL US 10/30/26 C350 -0.12%

AAPL US 10/30/26 C347.5 -0.13%

AAPL 12/18/2026 310.01 P -0.86%

Only in QDTE

QQQ 11/19/2027 70.11 C 73.81%

QQQ 09/17/2027 70.69 C 17.75%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

APLY YieldMax AAPL Option Income Strategy ETF · Synthetic covered call on AAPL, paying weekly QDTE Roundhill Nasdaq-100 0DTE Covered Call Strategy ETF · 0DTE covered call on QQQ, paying weekly

Issuer YieldMax Roundhill

Strategy synthetic covered call 0DTE covered call

Benchmark Apple (AAPL) Nasdaq-100 (QQQ)

Pays weekly weekly

Payout rate, annualized 20.9% 20.7%

Expense ratio 1.04% 0.96%

Cash paid, 1 year 28.6% 34.2%

Price change, 1 year −14.2% −21.6%

Total return, 1 year +18.2% +16.5%

Benchmark return, 1 year +28.3% +15.2%

Ahead or behind −10.1 pts +1.3 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate not published 100%

Age 3.5 years 2.6 years

Net assets, APLY as of Oct 27, 2026 and QDTE as of Oct 28, 2026 $112m $919m

As of Oct 28, 2026. Source: ETFIQ. Cash paid: distributions over the window, as a share of the starting price. Payout rate: the latest payment, annualized, over today’s price.

Window by window

Window by window: APLY vs QDTE: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	APLY	QDTE	APLY	QDTE	APLY	QDTE
3 months	0.0%	+9.5%	6.7%	6.6%	−1.8 pts	−0.3 pts
6 months	+18.3%	+10.2%	17.5%	14.9%	−9.2 pts	+0.3 pts
1 year	+18.2%	+16.5%	28.6%	34.2%	−10.1 pts	+1.3 pts
3 years	+63.0%	–	73.1%	–	−44.1 pts	–
Since launchNot the same days: APLY Apr 2023 · QDTE Mar 2024	+62.0%	+61.4%	76.2%	75.3%	−47.9 pts	−3.8 pts

– means no data for this window. Open this comparison in the app →

Client brief · page 1 of 2 Report BR-9AA901343B

APLY and QDTE are built for the same job. How do they differ in cost, holdings and results?

Income paid. APLY paid 28.6% and QDTE 34.2% (cash paid over 1 year, as a share of its price at the start), a gap of 5.6 points.
What each is measured against. APLY is measured against Apple (AAPL) and QDTE against Nasdaq-100 through QQQ.
Holdings in common. 0% of the weight is in the same securities (holdings dated Oct 28, 2026).

Data as of Oct 28, 2026.

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About each fund

APLY

Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, APLY paid 28.6% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 14.2%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +18.2%. Apple (AAPL) returned +28.3% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 10.1 pts. At its price on Oct 28, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 20.9%, paid weekly.

QDTE

Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, QDTE paid 34.2% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 21.6%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +16.5%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +15.2% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 1.3 pts. At its price on Oct 28, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 20.7%, paid weekly. Roundhill estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Oct 23, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

Questions people ask

Which paid more, APLY or QDTE?: Over the year to Oct 28, 2026, APLY paid 28.6% of its starting price in cash and QDTE paid 34.2%, so QDTE paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
Which returned more once distributions are counted, APLY or QDTE?: With every distribution reinvested, APLY returned +18.2% and QDTE +16.5% over the year to Oct 28, 2026.
Which is cheaper, APLY or QDTE?: APLY charges 1.04% a year and QDTE charges 0.96%, so QDTE is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

APLY vs GPIQ APLY vs JEPQ APLY vs QYLD APLY vs QQQI QDTE vs OVLH QDTE vs MAGY QDTE vs DOGG QDTE vs VAIE

Where to next

Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) →APLY on its own →QDTE on its own →APLY dividend history →APLY holdings →QDTE dividend history →QDTE holdings →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

APLY filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

APLY prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

APLY 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

YieldMax page for APLY ↗

QDTE filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

QDTE prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

QDTE 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

Roundhill page for QDTE ↗

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.

Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for each security both funds hold.

Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, APLY against QDTE, data as of Oct 28, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/aply-vs-qdte

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