Which paid more, FTHI or QLDY?

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, FTHI paid 8.9% of its starting price in cash and QLDY paid 35.3%, so QLDY paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.

Which returned more once distributions are counted, FTHI or QLDY?

With every distribution reinvested, FTHI returned +8.1% and QLDY +9.1% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.

Which is cheaper, FTHI or QLDY?

FTHI charges 0.75% a year and QLDY charges 1.04%, so FTHI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Income ETFs

FTHI vs QLDY: Dividend Yield & Total Return

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Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, QLDY paid 35.3% of its price in cash against FTHI’s 8.9%, and returned more with it reinvested.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $2.5bn for First Trust BuyWrite Income ETF and $53m for Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread Income ETF.

FTHI on its own →QLDY on its own →

At a glance

8.9%

FTHI cash paid, 1 year

35.3%

QLDY cash paid, 1 year

+8.1%

FTHI total return, 1 year

+9.1%

QLDY total return, 1 year

FTHI · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 6.7 pts behind SPY

FTHI

+8.1%

SPY

+14.8%

6.7 pts behind SPY

FTHI over 1 year: paid 8.9%, price −1.2%, total +8.1%, SPY +14.8%, −6.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

FTHI

+8.1%

8.9% of it arrived as cash

6.7 pts behind SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

6.7 pts behind SPY

FTHI over 1 year: paid 8.9%, price −1.2%, total +8.1%, SPY +14.8%, −6.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

FTHI

+8.1%

8.9% cash

6.7 pts behind SPY

8.9% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. FTHI over 1 year: paid 8.9%, price −1.2%, total +8.1%, SPY +14.8%, −6.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

QLDY · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 3.2 pts behind QQQ

QLDY

+9.1%

QQQ

+12.3%

3.2 pts behind QQQ

QLDY over 1 year: paid 35.3%, price −27.2%, total +9.1%, QQQ +12.3%, −3.2 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

QQQ

+12.3%

QLDY

+9.1%

35.3% of it arrived as cash

3.2 pts behind QQQ

Total return, distributions reinvested

3.2 pts behind QQQ

QLDY over 1 year: paid 35.3%, price −27.2%, total +9.1%, QQQ +12.3%, −3.2 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

QQQ

+12.3%

QLDY

+9.1%

35.3% cash

3.2 pts behind QQQ

35.3% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. QLDY over 1 year: paid 35.3%, price −27.2%, total +9.1%, QQQ +12.3%, −3.2 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

FTHI costs 0.29 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 1.0 point; FTHI is far larger, $2.5bn against $53m.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

FTHI vs QLDY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	FTHI	QLDY
Paid and earned
Measure	FTHI	QLDY
Total return, 1 year	+8.1%	+9.1%
Price change, 1 year	fell 1.2%	fell 27.2%
Return of capital, issuer estimate	92% of the Oct 30, 2026 payment	0% of the Nov 2, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
Measure	FTHI	QLDY
Benchmark	S&P 500, measured through SPY	Nasdaq-100, measured through QQQ
Cost and size
Measure	FTHI	QLDY
Expense ratio	0.75%	1.04%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026	$2.5bn	$53m
Holdings
Measure	FTHI	QLDY
Holdings in common	0%

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

IQ Income Score52.4FTHI24.9QLDY

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

FTHI 52.4

QLDY 24.9

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, FTHI and QLDY hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Nov 3, 2026 and Nov 4, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first FTHI QLDY

Only in one fund ↓

Only in FTHI

Apple Inc. 7.86%

NVIDIA Corporation 6.59%

Microsoft Corporation 3.18%

JPMorgan Chase & Co. 2.65%

Amazon.com, Inc. 2.57%

ASML Holding N.V. (New York Registry Shares) 2.06%

Costco Wholesale Corporation 2.04%

Alphabet Inc. (Class A) 1.99%

Only in QLDY

Ndx 12/18/2026 2001.44 C 92.84%

United States Treasury Note/bond 2.375% 05/15/2027 0.49%

Exchange Put Opt 11/26 28320 0.15%

Xnd 12/18/2026 10.44 C 0.05%

Nasdaq-1 Put Opt 11/26 28470 -0.24%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

FTHI First Trust BuyWrite Income ETF · Covered call on SPY, paying monthly QLDY Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread Income ETF · Option income on QQQ, paying weekly

Issuer First Trust Defiance

Strategy covered call option income

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

Pays monthly weekly

Payout rate, annualized 9.0% 19.7%

Expense ratio 0.75% 1.04%

Cash paid, 1 year 8.9% 35.3%

Price change, 1 year −1.2% −27.2%

Total return, 1 year +8.1% +9.1%

Benchmark return, 1 year +14.8% +12.3%

Ahead or behind −6.7 pts −3.2 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate 92% 0%

Age 12.8 years 1.1 years

Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $2.5bn $53m

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: FTHI vs QLDY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	FTHI	QLDY	FTHI	QLDY	FTHI	QLDY
3 months	−0.5%	−4.5%	2.2%	9.5%	−0.3 pts	−1.1 pts
6 months	+2.5%	−3.1%	4.4%	18.5%	−2.5 pts	−2.8 pts
1 year	+8.1%	+9.1%	8.9%	35.3%	−6.7 pts	−3.2 pts
3 years	+48.1%	–	29.7%	–	−34.8 pts	–
Since launchNot the same days: FTHI Jan 2014 · QLDY Sep 2025	+155.0%	+13.2%	84.3%	39.1%	−262.6 pts	−3.7 pts

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Alert

About each fund

FTHI

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, FTHI paid 8.9% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 1.2%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +8.1%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 6.7 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 9.0%, paid monthly. First Trust estimates that 92% of the distribution paid Oct 30, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

QLDY

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, QLDY paid 35.3% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 27.2%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +9.1%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +12.3% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 3.2 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 19.7%, paid weekly. Defiance estimates that 0% of the distribution paid Nov 2, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which paid more, FTHI or QLDY?: Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, FTHI paid 8.9% of its starting price in cash and QLDY paid 35.3%, so QLDY paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
Which returned more once distributions are counted, FTHI or QLDY?: With every distribution reinvested, FTHI returned +8.1% and QLDY +9.1% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.
Which is cheaper, FTHI or QLDY?: FTHI charges 0.75% a year and QLDY charges 1.04%, so FTHI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

FTHI vs QDTY FTHI vs QQQY FTHI vs QYLG FTHI vs QRMI QLDY vs XYLD QLDY vs GPIX QLDY vs SPYI QLDY vs JEPI

Where to next

S&P 500 (SPY) →Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) →FTHI on its own →QLDY on its own →FTHI dividend history →FTHI holdings →QLDY dividend history →QLDY holdings →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

FTHI filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

FTHI prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

FTHI 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

First Trust page for FTHI ↗

QLDY filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

QLDY prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

QLDY 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

Defiance page for QLDY ↗

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.

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ETFIQ, FTHI against QLDY, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/fthi-vs-qldy

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