Which paid more, LJAN or OCTJ?

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, LJAN paid 4.9% of its starting price in cash and OCTJ paid 5.3%, so OCTJ paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.

Which returned more once distributions are counted, LJAN or OCTJ?

With every distribution reinvested, LJAN returned +5.1% and OCTJ +5.8% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.

Which is cheaper, LJAN or OCTJ?

LJAN and OCTJ both charge 0.79% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Income ETFs

LJAN vs OCTJ: Dividend Yield & Total Return

Share on X Download as PDF

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, OCTJ paid 5.3% of its price in cash against LJAN’s 4.9%, and returned more with it reinvested.

askIQ about this page

askIQ about LJAN and OCTJ

Net assets on Nov 4, 2026: $12m for Innovator Premium Income 15 Buffer ETF - January and $15m for Innovator Premium Income 30 Barrier ETF - October.

LJAN on its own →OCTJ on its own →

At a glance

4.9%

LJAN cash paid, 1 year

5.3%

OCTJ cash paid, 1 year

+5.1%

LJAN total return, 1 year

+5.8%

OCTJ total return, 1 year

LJAN · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 9.7 pts behind VOO

LJAN

+5.1%

VOO

+14.8%

9.7 pts behind VOO

LJAN over 1 year: paid 4.9%, price +0.1%, total +5.1%, VOO +14.8%, −9.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

VOO

+14.8%

LJAN

+5.1%

4.9% of it arrived as cash

9.7 pts behind VOO

Total return, distributions reinvested

9.7 pts behind VOO

LJAN over 1 year: paid 4.9%, price +0.1%, total +5.1%, VOO +14.8%, −9.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

VOO

+14.8%

LJAN

+5.1%

9.7 pts behind VOO

4.9% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. LJAN over 1 year: paid 4.9%, price +0.1%, total +5.1%, VOO +14.8%, −9.7 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

OCTJ · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 9 pts behind SPY

OCTJ

+5.8%

SPY

+14.8%

9 pts behind SPY

OCTJ over 1 year: paid 5.3%, price +0.3%, total +5.8%, SPY +14.8%, −9.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

OCTJ

+5.8%

5.3% of it arrived as cash

9 pts behind SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

9 pts behind SPY

OCTJ over 1 year: paid 5.3%, price +0.3%, total +5.8%, SPY +14.8%, −9.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

OCTJ

+5.8%

9 pts behind SPY

5.3% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, 0 to +14.8%. OCTJ over 1 year: paid 5.3%, price +0.3%, total +5.8%, SPY +14.8%, −9.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Both charts share one scale, 0 to +14.8%. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

Both cost 0.79% a year; their one-year returns differ by 0.7 points; OCTJ is 1.3 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

LJAN vs OCTJ: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	LJAN	OCTJ
Paid and earned
Measure	LJAN	OCTJ
Total return, 1 year	+5.1%	+5.8%
Price change, 1 year	rose 0.1%	rose 0.3%
Return of capital, issuer estimate	47% of the Nov 2, 2026 payment	36% of the Oct 2, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
Measure	LJAN	OCTJ
Benchmark	Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, measured through VOO	S&P 500, measured through SPY
Against its benchmark, same days	behind by 9.7 pts	behind by 9.0 pts
Cost and size
Measure	LJAN	OCTJ
Expense ratio	0.79%	0.79%
Net assets	$12m	$15m
Holdings
Measure	LJAN	OCTJ
Holdings in common	0%

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

IQ Income Score60.2LJAN65OCTJ

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

LJAN 60.2

OCTJ 65

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, LJAN and OCTJ hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

LJAN Innovator Premium Income 15 Buffer ETF - January · Buffer with income on VOO, paying monthly OCTJ Innovator Premium Income 30 Barrier ETF - October · Defined income on SPY, paying quarterly

Issuer Innovator Innovator

Strategy buffer with income defined income

Benchmark Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) S&P 500 (SPY)

Pays monthly quarterly

Payout rate, annualized 4.9% 5.3%

Expense ratio 0.79% 0.79%

Cash paid, 1 year 4.9% 5.3%

Price change, 1 year +0.1% +0.3%

Total return, 1 year +5.1% +5.8%

Benchmark return, 1 year +14.8% +14.8%

Ahead or behind −9.7 pts −9.0 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate 47% 36%

Age 2.8 years 3.1 years

Net assets $12m $15m

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: LJAN vs OCTJ: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	LJAN	OCTJ	LJAN	OCTJ	LJAN	OCTJ
3 months	+1.1%	+1.0%	1.2%	1.3%	+1.2 pts	+1.2 pts
6 months	+2.6%	+2.4%	2.4%	2.6%	−2.4 pts	−2.7 pts
1 year	+5.1%	+5.8%	4.9%	5.3%	−9.7 pts	−9.0 pts
3 years	–	+18.1%	–	17.0%	–	−64.8 pts
Since launchNot the same days: LJAN Jan 2024 · OCTJ Oct 2023	+16.7%	+19.6%	14.8%	17.2%	−51.3 pts	−66.5 pts

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

Alert

About each fund

LJAN

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, LJAN paid 4.9% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 0.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +5.1%. Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 9.7 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 4.9%, paid monthly. Innovator estimates that 47% of the distribution paid Nov 2, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

OCTJ

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, OCTJ paid 5.3% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 0.3%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +5.8%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 9.0 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 5.3%, paid quarterly. Innovator estimates that 36% of the distribution paid Oct 2, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which paid more, LJAN or OCTJ?: Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, LJAN paid 4.9% of its starting price in cash and OCTJ paid 5.3%, so OCTJ paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
Which returned more once distributions are counted, LJAN or OCTJ?: With every distribution reinvested, LJAN returned +5.1% and OCTJ +5.8% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.
Which is cheaper, LJAN or OCTJ?: LJAN and OCTJ both charge 0.79% a year, so neither is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

LJAN vs OCTH LJAN vs XRMI LJAN vs WDTE LJAN vs XYLG OCTJ vs XISE OCTJ vs SDTY OCTJ vs XIJN OCTJ vs TPAY

Where to next

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) →S&P 500 (SPY) →LJAN on its own →OCTJ on its own →LJAN dividend history →OCTJ dividend history →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

LJAN and OCTJ filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

LJAN prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

LJAN 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

Innovator page for LJAN ↗

OCTJ prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

OCTJ 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

Innovator page for OCTJ ↗

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, LJAN against OCTJ, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/ljan-vs-octj

Open data →

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