Which paid more, DFII or ETCO?

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, DFII paid 12.6% of its starting price in cash and ETCO paid 40.5%, so ETCO paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.

Which returned more once distributions are counted, DFII or ETCO?

With every distribution reinvested, DFII returned −21.5% and ETCO −29.6% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.

Which is cheaper, DFII or ETCO?

DFII charges 0.85% a year and ETCO charges 0.65%, so ETCO is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Income ETFs

DFII vs ETCO: Dividend Yield & Total Return

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, ETCO paid 40.5% of its price in cash against DFII’s 12.6%, though DFII returned more with it reinvested.

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Net assets: $20m on Nov 3, 2026 for FT Vest Bitcoin Strategy & Target Income ETF, and $3.5m on Jun 30, 2026 for Grayscale Ethereum High Income ETF.

DFII on its own →ETCO on its own →

At a glance

12.6%

DFII cash paid, 1 year

40.5%

ETCO cash paid, 1 year

−21.5%

DFII total return, 1 year

−29.6%

ETCO total return, 1 year

DFII · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 1 pt behind Bitcoin

DFII

−21.5%

Bitcoin

−20.5%

1 pt behind Bitcoin

DFII over 1 year: paid 12.6%, price −34.5%, total −21.5%, Bitcoin −20.5%, −1.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Bitcoin

−20.5%

DFII

−21.5%

1 pt behind Bitcoin

Total return, distributions reinvested

1 pt behind Bitcoin

DFII over 1 year: paid 12.6%, price −34.5%, total −21.5%, Bitcoin −20.5%, −1.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Bitcoin

−20.5%

DFII

−21.5%

1 pt behind Bitcoin

12.6% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. DFII over 1 year: paid 12.6%, price −34.5%, total −21.5%, Bitcoin −20.5%, −1.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

ETCO · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 4.9 pts behind Ether

ETCO

−29.6%

Ether

−24.7%

4.9 pts behind Ether

ETCO over 1 year: paid 40.5%, price −64.0%, total −29.6%, Ether −24.7%, −4.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Ether

−24.7%

ETCO

−29.6%

4.9 pts behind Ether

Total return, distributions reinvested

4.9 pts behind Ether

ETCO over 1 year: paid 40.5%, price −64.0%, total −29.6%, Ether −24.7%, −4.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Ether

−24.7%

ETCO

−29.6%

4.9 pts behind Ether

40.5% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. ETCO over 1 year: paid 40.5%, price −64.0%, total −29.6%, Ether −24.7%, −4.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

ETCO costs 0.20 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 8.1 points.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

DFII vs ETCO: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	DFII	ETCO
Paid and earned
Measure	DFII	ETCO
Total return, 1 year	−21.5%	−29.6%
Price change, 1 year	fell 34.5%	fell 64.0%
Against its benchmark
Measure	DFII	ETCO
Benchmark	Bitcoin (BTC-USD)	Ether (ETH-USD)
Against its benchmark, same days	behind by 1.0 pts	behind by 4.9 pts
Cost and size
Measure	DFII	ETCO
Expense ratio	0.85%	0.65%
Net assets, DFII as of Nov 3, 2026 and ETCO as of Jun 30, 2026	$20m	$3.5m
Holdings
Measure	DFII	ETCO
Holdings in common	0%

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

IQ Income Score0.9DFII6.3ETCO

How much of its payouts the fund's total return covered, ranked against 167 income ETFs not writing on a single company. 100 is best. How it is computed

DFII 0.9

ETCO 6.3

0.3, the lowest in this set 99.7, the highest

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 →

Method

What they share

By the books each fund has filed, DFII and ETCO hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jun 30, 2026 and Nov 3, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first DFII ETCO

Only in one fund ↓

Only in DFII

2026-12-31 S&P 500® Mini Index P 3,060.60 1,914.64%

2026-12-31 iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF C 71.01 0.11%

2026-12-31 S&P 500® Mini Index C 2,869.31 0.00%

2026-12-31 S&P 500® Mini Index C 3,060.60 0.00%

2026-11-06 iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF C 43.36 -0.39%

2026-12-31 iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF P 71.01 -60.11%

2026-12-31 S&P 500® Mini Index P 2,869.31 -1,755.41%

Only in ETCO

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

DFII FT Vest Bitcoin Strategy & Target Income ETF · Option income on Bitcoin, paying monthly ETCO Grayscale Ethereum High Income ETF · Covered call on Ether, paying monthly

Issuer First Trust Grayscale

Strategy option income covered call

Benchmark Bitcoin (BTC-USD) Ether (ETH-USD)

Pays monthly monthly

Payout rate, annualized 18.5% 19.6%

Expense ratio 0.85% 0.65%

Cash paid, 1 year 12.6% 40.5%

Price change, 1 year −34.5% −64.0%

Total return, 1 year −21.5% −29.6%

Benchmark return, 1 year −20.5% −24.7%

Ahead or behind −1.0 pts −4.9 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate 100% not published

Age 1.6 years 1.2 years

Net assets, DFII as of Nov 3, 2026 and ETCO as of Jun 30, 2026 $20m $3.5m

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: DFII vs ETCO: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	DFII	ETCO	DFII	ETCO	DFII	ETCO
3 months	+18.5%	+4.4%	5.3%	10.7%	−5.1 pts	−21.9 pts
6 months	−3.9%	−16.4%	7.7%	18.5%	−2.2 pts	−19.4 pts
1 year	−21.5%	−29.6%	12.6%	40.5%	−0.9 pts	−5.0 pts
Since launchNot the same days: DFII Apr 2025 · ETCO Sep 2025	−6.4%	−46.9%	26.5%	39.5%	−4.1 pts	−3.5 pts

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Alert

About each fund

DFII

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, DFII paid 12.6% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 34.5%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned −21.5%. Bitcoin (BTC-USD) returned −20.5% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 1.0 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 18.5%, paid monthly. First Trust estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Nov 3, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

ETCO

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, ETCO paid 40.5% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 64.0%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned −29.6%. Ether (ETH-USD) returned −24.7% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 4.9 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 19.6%, paid monthly.

Questions people ask

Which paid more, DFII or ETCO?: Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, DFII paid 12.6% of its starting price in cash and ETCO paid 40.5%, so ETCO paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
Which returned more once distributions are counted, DFII or ETCO?: With every distribution reinvested, DFII returned −21.5% and ETCO −29.6% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.
Which is cheaper, DFII or ETCO?: DFII charges 0.85% a year and ETCO charges 0.65%, so ETCO is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

DFII vs EHY DFII vs EHCC DFII vs YETH DFII vs NEHI ETCO vs XBTY ETCO vs YBIT ETCO vs YBTC ETCO vs BAGY

Where to next

DFII on its own →ETCO on its own →DFII dividend history →DFII holdings →ETCO dividend history →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

DFII filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

DFII prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

DFII 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

First Trust page for DFII ↗

ETCO filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

ETCO prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Grayscale website ↗

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, DFII against ETCO, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/dfii-vs-etco

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