Which paid more, FTQI or QXQ?

Over the year to Nov 12, 2026, FTQI paid 12.0% of its starting price in cash and QXQ paid 15.1%, so QXQ paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.

Which returned more once distributions are counted, FTQI or QXQ?

With every distribution reinvested, FTQI returned +15.2% and QXQ +12.1% over the year to Nov 12, 2026.

Which is cheaper, FTQI or QXQ?

FTQI charges 0.75% a year and QXQ charges 0.98%, so FTQI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 12, 2026.

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FTQI vs QXQ: Dividend Yield & Total Return

Return, fees and overlap, side by side.

Return gap

+3.1 pts

1 year to Nov 12, 2026: FTQI ahead, total return

Fee gap

0.23 pts

A year: FTQI 0.75%, QXQ 0.98%, per filings dated Jan 5, 2026 and Apr 30, 2026

Overlap

–

No book read for both funds

Net flow

–

Needs daily flows for both funds

Pair scorecard

FTQI costs 0.23 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.1 points.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

FTQI vs QXQ: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	FTQI	QXQ
Paid and earned
Measure	FTQI	QXQ
Total return, 1 year	+15.2%	+12.1%
Price change, 1 year	rose 2.4%	fell 4.7%
Return of capital, issuer estimate	99% of the Oct 30, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
Measure	FTQI	QXQ
Benchmark	Nasdaq-100, measured through QQQ	Nasdaq-100, measured through QQQ
Cost and size
Measure	FTQI	QXQ
Expense ratio	0.75%	0.98%
Net assets, FTQI as of Nov 11, 2026 and QXQ as of Aug 31, 2026	$998m	$82m
Holdings
Measure	FTQI	QXQ
Holdings in common	not published

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

IQ Income Score75.7FTQI52QXQ

How much of its payouts the fund's total return covered, ranked against 171 income ETFs not writing on a single company. 100 is best. How it is computed

FTQI 75.7

QXQ 52

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

Key numbers

12.0%

FTQI cash paid, 1 year

15.1%

QXQ cash paid, 1 year

+15.2%

FTQI total return, 1 year

+12.1%

QXQ total return, 1 year

FTQI · 1 year to Nov 12, 2026 3.9 pts ahead of QQQ

FTQI

+15.2%

QQQ

+11.3%

3.9 pts ahead of QQQ

FTQI over 1 year: paid 12.0%, price +2.4%, total +15.2%, QQQ +11.3%, +3.9 pts. Data to Nov 12, 2026.

QQQ

+11.3%

FTQI

+15.2%

12.0% of it arrived as cash

3.9 pts ahead of QQQ

Total return, distributions reinvested

3.9 pts ahead of QQQ

FTQI over 1 year: paid 12.0%, price +2.4%, total +15.2%, QQQ +11.3%, +3.9 pts. Data to Nov 12, 2026.

QQQ

+11.3%

FTQI

+15.2%

12.0% as cash

3.9 pts ahead of QQQ

12.0% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. FTQI over 1 year: paid 12.0%, price +2.4%, total +15.2%, QQQ +11.3%, +3.9 pts. Data to Nov 12, 2026.

Data to Nov 12, 2026.

QXQ · 1 year to Nov 12, 2026 0.8 pts ahead of QQQ

QXQ

+12.1%

QQQ

+11.3%

0.8 pts ahead of QQQ

QXQ over 1 year: paid 15.1%, price −4.7%, total +12.1%, QQQ +11.3%, +0.8 pts. Data to Nov 12, 2026.

QQQ

+11.3%

QXQ

+12.1%

15.1% of it arrived as cash

0.8 pts ahead of QQQ

Total return, distributions reinvested

0.8 pts ahead of QQQ

QXQ over 1 year: paid 15.1%, price −4.7%, total +12.1%, QQQ +11.3%, +0.8 pts. Data to Nov 12, 2026.

QQQ

+11.3%

QXQ

+12.1%

15.1% as cash

0.8 pts ahead of QQQ

15.1% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. QXQ over 1 year: paid 15.1%, price −4.7%, total +12.1%, QQQ +11.3%, +0.8 pts. Data to Nov 12, 2026.

Data to Nov 12, 2026.

Side by side

FTQI First Trust Nasdaq BuyWrite Income ETF · Covered call on QQQ, paying monthly QXQ SGI Enhanced Nasdaq-100 ETF · Covered call on QQQ, paying quarterly

Issuer First Trust SGI

Strategy covered call covered call

Benchmark Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) Nasdaq-100 (QQQ)

Pays monthly quarterly

Payout rate, annualized 12.3% 1.0%

Expense ratio 0.75% 0.98%

Cash paid, 1 year 12.0% 15.1%

Price change, 1 year +2.4% −4.7%

Total return, 1 year +15.2% +12.1%

Benchmark return, 1 year +11.3% +11.3%

Ahead or behind +3.9 pts +0.8 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate 99% not published

Age 12.8 years 2.4 years

Net assets, FTQI as of Nov 11, 2026 and QXQ as of Aug 31, 2026 $998m $82m

As of Nov 12, 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: FTQI vs QXQ: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	FTQI	QXQ	FTQI	QXQ	FTQI	QXQ
3 months	−0.7%	−5.4%	3.0%	0.2%	+5.2 pts	+0.5 pts
6 months	+5.0%	−3.8%	5.9%	0.5%	+9.2 pts	+0.4 pts
1 year	+15.2%	+12.1%	12.0%	15.1%	+3.9 pts	+0.8 pts
3 years	+58.4%	–	37.6%	–	−27.1 pts	–
Since launchNot the same days: FTQI Jan 2014 · QXQ Jun 2024	+138.0%	+47.7%	81.1%	22.8%	−637.3 pts	+2.2 pts

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

Alert

About each fund

FTQI

Over the year to Nov 12, 2026, FTQI paid 12.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 2.4%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.2%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +11.3% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 3.9 pts. At its price on Nov 12, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 12.3%, paid monthly. First Trust estimates that 99% 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.

QXQ

Over the year to Nov 12, 2026, QXQ paid 15.1% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 4.7%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +12.1%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +11.3% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 0.8 pts. At its price on Nov 12, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 1.0%, paid quarterly.

Questions people ask

Which paid more, FTQI or QXQ?: Over the year to Nov 12, 2026, FTQI paid 12.0% of its starting price in cash and QXQ paid 15.1%, so QXQ paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
Which returned more once distributions are counted, FTQI or QXQ?: With every distribution reinvested, FTQI returned +15.2% and QXQ +12.1% over the year to Nov 12, 2026.
Which is cheaper, FTQI or QXQ?: FTQI charges 0.75% a year and QXQ charges 0.98%, so FTQI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

FTQI vs QRMI FTQI vs QLDY FTQI vs QQQY FTQI vs QYLG QXQ vs ROCQ QXQ vs XQQI QXQ vs QYLG QXQ vs GPIQ

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

FTQI filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

FTQI prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

FTQI 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

First Trust page for FTQI ↗

QXQ filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

QXQ prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

SGI 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.

Every number is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.

Cite this pageCitation, APA and Markdown

ETFIQ, FTQI against QXQ, data as of Nov 12, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/ftqi-vs-qxq

Open data →

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

Net assets: $998m on Nov 11, 2026 for First Trust Nasdaq BuyWrite Income ETF, and $82m on Aug 31, 2026 for SGI Enhanced Nasdaq-100 ETF.

FTQI on its own →QXQ on its own →

Growth of 100

FTQI and QXQ

Total return, distributions reinvested, 1 year.

FTQI +15.2%QXQ +12.1%

Nov 12, 2025Nov 12, 2026

FTQI +15.2%, QXQ +12.1%: FTQI +3.1 pts ahead, 1 year, Nov 12, 2025 to Nov 12, 2026.