Which is cheaper, BALQ or XYLG?

BALQ and XYLG both charge 0.35% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Income ETFs

BALQ vs XYLG: Dividend Yield & Total Return

BALQ and XYLG both write options for income.

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Net assets: $43m on Nov 3, 2026 for iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF, and $72m on Oct 12, 2026 for Global X S&P 500 Covered Call & Growth ETF.

BALQ on its own →XYLG on its own →

At a glance

10.0%

BALQ cash paid, since launch, Dec 3, 2025

12.7%

XYLG cash paid, 1 year

+15.6%

BALQ total return, since launch, Dec 3, 2025

+15.6%

XYLG total return, 1 year

BALQ · since launch to Nov 4, 2026 4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

BALQ

+15.6%

QQQ

+11.5%

4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

BALQ since launch: paid 10.0%, price +5.1%, total +15.6%, QQQ +11.5%, +4.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

QQQ

+11.5%

BALQ

+15.6%

10.0% of it arrived as cash

4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

Total return, distributions reinvested

4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

BALQ since launch: paid 10.0%, price +5.1%, total +15.6%, QQQ +11.5%, +4.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

QQQ

+11.5%

BALQ

+15.6%

10.0% cash

4.1 pts ahead of QQQ

10.0% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. BALQ since launch: paid 10.0%, price +5.1%, total +15.6%, QQQ +11.5%, +4.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

XYLG · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 0.8 pts ahead of SPY

XYLG

+15.6%

SPY

+14.8%

0.8 pts ahead of SPY

XYLG over 1 year: paid 12.7%, price +1.5%, total +15.6%, SPY +14.8%, +0.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

XYLG

+15.6%

12.7% of it arrived as cash

0.8 pts ahead of SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

0.8 pts ahead of SPY

XYLG over 1 year: paid 12.7%, price +1.5%, total +15.6%, SPY +14.8%, +0.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

XYLG

+15.6%

12.7% as cash

0.8 pts ahead of SPY

12.7% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, 0 to +15.6%. XYLG over 1 year: paid 12.7%, price +1.5%, total +15.6%, SPY +14.8%, +0.8 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Both charts share one scale, 0 to +15.6%. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

Both cost 0.35% a year; XYLG is 1.9 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

BALQ vs XYLG: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	BALQ	XYLG
Paid and earned
Measure	BALQ	XYLG
Total return, 1 year	not published	+15.6%
Price change	rose 5.1% (since Dec 3, 2025)	rose 1.5% (1 year)
Return of capital, issuer estimate	97% of the Nov 5, 2026 payment	80% of the Sep 24, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
Measure	BALQ	XYLG
Benchmark	Nasdaq-100, measured through QQQ	S&P 500, measured through SPY
Cost and size
Measure	BALQ	XYLG
Expense ratio	0.35%	0.35%
Net assets, as of Oct 12, 2026	$38m	$72m
Holdings
Measure	BALQ	XYLG
Holdings in common	50%

Method

What they share

50%

By the books each fund has filed, BALQ and XYLG hold 50% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Nov 3, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

50% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first BALQ XYLG

NVIDIA 8.33% 7.60%

APPLE 7.82% 7.09%

MICROSOFT 7.46% 5.39%

AMAZON.COM INC 5.04% 4.15%

BROADCOM INC 2.99% 2.88%

ALPHABET CLASS A 2.75% 3.26%

ALPHABET CLASS C 2.44% 2.63%

META PLATFORMS CLASS A 3.09% 1.91%

MICRON TECHNOLOGY 4.74% 1.45%

TESLA INC 2.88% 1.36%

ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES 4.10% 1.21%

WALMART 2.97% 0.76%

Only in one fund ↓

Only in BALQ

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES COR 2.10%

APPLIED MATERIAL INC 1.71%

TJX 0.55%

NEUROCRINE BIOSCIENCES 0.48%

MKS 0.44%

SS AND C TECHNOLOGIES HOLDINGS 0.40%

EXELIXIS INC 0.39%

EASTMAN CHEMICAL 0.38%

Only in XYLG

JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. 1.47%

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC. 1.46%

ELI LILLY AND COMPANY 1.41%

EXXONMOBIL HOLDINGS CORPORATION 1.00%

JOHNSON & JOHNSON 0.96%

VISA INC. 0.94%

MASTERCARD INCORPORATED 0.72%

BANK OF AMERICA CORPORATION 0.63%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

BALQ iShares Nasdaq Premium Income Active ETF · Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly XYLG Global X S&P 500 Covered Call & Growth ETF · Covered call on SPY, paying monthly

Issuer iShares Global X

Strategy covered call covered call

Benchmark Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) S&P 500 (SPY)

Pays monthly monthly

Payout rate, annualized 8.5% 4.4%

Expense ratio 0.35% 0.35%

Cash paid, 1 year 10.0% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) 12.7%

Price change, 1 year +5.1% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +1.5%

Total return, 1 year +15.6% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +15.6%

Benchmark return, 1 year +11.5% (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +14.8%

Ahead or behind +4.1 pts (since launch, Dec 3, 2025) +0.8 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate 97% 80%

Age 336 days 6.1 years

Net assets, BALQ as of Nov 3, 2026 and XYLG as of Oct 12, 2026 $43m $72m

As of Nov 4, 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: BALQ vs XYLG: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	BALQ	XYLG	BALQ	XYLG	BALQ	XYLG
3 months	−3.8%	+1.4%	2.1%	1.1%	−0.3 pts	+1.5 pts
6 months	+1.3%	+6.7%	5.2%	2.5%	+1.7 pts	+1.7 pts
1 year	–	+15.6%	–	12.7%	–	+0.8 pts
3 years	–	+65.6%	–	44.3%	–	−17.4 pts
Since launchNot the same days: BALQ Dec 2025 · XYLG Sep 2020	+15.6%	+116.0%	10.0%	69.8%	+4.1 pts	−38.4 pts

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Alert

About each fund

BALQ

Over the period from its first trade on Dec 3, 2025 to Nov 4, 2026, BALQ paid 10.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 5.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.6%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +11.5% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 4.1 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 8.5%, paid monthly. iShares estimates that 97% of the distribution paid Nov 5, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

XYLG

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, XYLG paid 12.7% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 1.5%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 0.8 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 4.4%, paid monthly. Global X estimates that 80% of the distribution paid Sep 24, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which is cheaper, BALQ or XYLG?: BALQ and XYLG both charge 0.35% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

BALQ vs JULH BALQ vs SPUT BALQ vs OCTH BALQ vs OCTJ XYLG vs IQQQ XYLG vs XQQI XYLG vs ROCQ XYLG vs KIQQ

Where to next

Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) →S&P 500 (SPY) →All income ETFs ranked by the Distribution Coverage Score →How the scores are computed →BALQ on its own →XYLG on its own →BALQ dividend history →BALQ holdings →XYLG dividend history →XYLG holdings →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

BALQ filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

BALQ prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

BALQ 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

iShares page for BALQ ↗

XYLG filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

XYLG prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

XYLG 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

Global X page for XYLG ↗

Links are sources, not endorsements. A comparison is not a recommendation.

How this is computed

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, BALQ against XYLG, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/balq-vs-xylg

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