Which is cheaper, NLSI or TCAL?

NLSI charges 2.89% a year and TCAL charges 0.34%, so TCAL is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Income ETFs

NLSI vs TCAL: Dividend Yield & Total Return

NLSI and TCAL both write options for income.

askIQ about this page

Net assets: $5.3m on Oct 28, 2026 for NEOS Long/Short Equity Income ETF, and $324m on Nov 3, 2026 for T. Rowe Price Capital Appreciation Premium Income ETF.

NLSI on its own →TCAL on its own →

At a glance

5.0%

NLSI cash paid, since launch, Dec 10, 2025

11.4%

TCAL cash paid, 1 year

+17.7%

NLSI total return, since launch, Dec 10, 2025

+11.2%

TCAL total return, 1 year

NLSI · since launch to Nov 4, 2026 5 pts ahead of SPY

NLSI

+17.7%

SPY

+12.7%

5 pts ahead of SPY

NLSI since launch: paid 5.0%, price +12.0%, total +17.7%, SPY +12.7%, +5.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+12.7%

NLSI

+17.7%

5.0% as cash

5 pts ahead of SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

5 pts ahead of SPY

NLSI since launch: paid 5.0%, price +12.0%, total +17.7%, SPY +12.7%, +5.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+12.7%

NLSI

+17.7%

5 pts ahead of SPY

5.0% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. NLSI since launch: paid 5.0%, price +12.0%, total +17.7%, SPY +12.7%, +5.0 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

TCAL · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 3.4 pts behind its own stocks

TCAL

+11.2%

Own

+14.6%

3.4 pts behind its own stocks

TCAL over 1 year: paid 11.4%, price −1.2%, total +11.2%, its own stocks +14.6%, −3.4 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

its own stocks

+14.6%

TCAL

+11.2%

11.4% of it arrived as cash

3.4 pts behind its own stocks

Total return, distributions reinvested

3.4 pts behind its own stocks

TCAL over 1 year: paid 11.4%, price −1.2%, total +11.2%, its own stocks +14.6%, −3.4 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

its own stocks

+14.6%

TCAL

+11.2%

11.4% cash

3.4 pts behind its own stocks

11.4% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. TCAL over 1 year: paid 11.4%, price −1.2%, total +11.2%, its own stocks +14.6%, −3.4 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

TCAL costs 2.55 points a year less; TCAL is far larger, $320m against $5.3m.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

NLSI vs TCAL: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	NLSI	TCAL
Paid and earned
Measure	NLSI	TCAL
Total return, 1 year	not published	+11.2%
Price change	rose 12.0% (since Dec 10, 2025)	fell 1.2% (1 year)
Against its benchmark
Measure	NLSI	TCAL
Benchmark	S&P 500, measured through SPY	its own stocks
Against its benchmark, same days	ahead by 5.0 pts	behind by 3.4 pts
Cost and size
Measure	NLSI	TCAL
Expense ratio	2.89%	0.34%
Net assets, as of Oct 28, 2026	$5.3m	$320m
Holdings
Measure	NLSI	TCAL
Holdings in common	2%

Method

What they share

By the books each fund has filed, NLSI and TCAL hold 2% 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

2% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first NLSI TCAL

Northrop Grumman Corp 3.97% 1.58%

Progressive Corp 4.11% 0.52%

Walmart Inc -1.47% 0.78%

Cisco Systems Inc -1.68% 1.15%

Amazon.com Inc -1.76% 1.55%

CSX Corp -1.89% 0.51%

Starbucks Corp -1.91% 0.60%

Meta Platforms Inc -1.95% 1.02%

Waters Corp -2.12% 1.99%

Only in one fund ↓

Only in NLSI

Micron Technology Inc 12.00%

Marathon Petroleum Corp 5.94%

Valero Energy Corp 5.14%

Chevron Corp 4.51%

Intuit Inc 4.45%

Walt Disney Co 4.42%

Phillips 66 4.39%

Comfort Systems USA Inc 4.30%

Only in TCAL

DANAHER CORP 2.02%

VERALTO CORP 1.89%

WASTE CONNECTIONS INC 1.82%

YUM BRANDS INC 1.73%

MCDONALD S CORP 1.71%

VISA INC-CLASS A SHARES 1.71%

LINDE PLC 1.65%

LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP 1.61%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

NLSI NEOS Long/Short Equity Income ETF · Option income on SPY, paying monthly TCAL T. Rowe Price Capital Appreciation Premium Income ETF · Covered call on its own stocks, paying monthly

Issuer NEOS T. Rowe Price

Strategy option income covered call

Benchmark S&P 500 (SPY) TCAL's own stocks, without the options (from its filed holdings, rebalanced at each filing; latest Jun 30, 2026)

Pays monthly monthly

Payout rate, annualized 5.6% 13.0%

Expense ratio 2.89% 0.34%

Cash paid, 1 year 5.0% (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) 11.4%

Price change, 1 year +12.0% (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) −1.2%

Total return, 1 year +17.7% (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) +11.2%

Benchmark return, 1 year +12.7% (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) +14.6%

Ahead or behind +5.0 pts (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) −3.4 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate 100% not published

Age 329 days 1.6 years

Net assets, NLSI as of Oct 28, 2026 and TCAL as of Nov 3, 2026 $5.3m $324m

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: NLSI vs TCAL: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	NLSI	TCAL	NLSI	TCAL	NLSI	TCAL
3 months	+6.7%	+5.3%	1.4%	2.6%	+6.9 pts	−1.8 pts
6 months	+21.4%	+12.3%	3.0%	6.3%	+16.4 pts	−0.9 pts
1 year	–	+11.2%	–	11.4%	–	−3.5 pts
Since launchNot the same days: NLSI Dec 2025 · TCAL Mar 2025	+17.7%	+12.0%	5.0%	16.9%	+4.9 pts	not measured

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

Alert

About each fund

NLSI

Over the period from its first trade on Dec 10, 2025 to Nov 4, 2026, NLSI paid 5.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 12.0%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +17.7%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +12.7% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 5.0 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 5.6%, paid monthly. NEOS estimates that 100% 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.

TCAL

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, TCAL paid 11.4% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 1.2%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +11.2%. TCAL's own stocks, without the options (from its filed holdings, rebalanced at each filing; latest Jun 30, 2026) returned +14.6% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 3.4 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 13.0%, paid monthly.

Questions people ask

Which is cheaper, NLSI or TCAL?: NLSI charges 2.89% a year and TCAL charges 0.34%, so TCAL is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

NLSI vs SCEP NLSI vs RNTY NLSI vs HEMI NLSI vs CVRD TCAL vs TPRY TCAL vs OCTJ TCAL vs OCTH TCAL vs SPUT

Where to next

S&P 500 (SPY) →All income ETFs ranked by the Distribution Coverage Score →How the scores are computed →NLSI on its own →TCAL on its own →NLSI dividend history →NLSI holdings →TCAL dividend history →TCAL holdings →Method →Standards and sources →

Sources and dates

NLSI filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

NLSI prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

NLSI 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

NEOS page for NLSI ↗

TCAL filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

TCAL prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

T. Rowe Price website ↗

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, NLSI against TCAL, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/nlsi-vs-tcal

Open data →

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