Which is cheaper, NLSI or XYLD?

NLSI charges 2.89% a year and XYLD charges 0.60%, so XYLD is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Income ETFs

NLSI vs XYLD: Dividend Yield & Total Return

NLSI and XYLD both write options for income.

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Net assets: $5.3m on Oct 28, 2026 for NEOS Long/Short Equity Income ETF, and $3.4bn on Oct 12, 2026 for Global X S&P 500 Covered Call ETF.

NLSI on its own →XYLD on its own →

At a glance

5.0%

NLSI cash paid, since launch, Dec 10, 2025

10.7%

XYLD cash paid, 1 year

+17.7%

NLSI total return, since launch, Dec 10, 2025

+15.9%

XYLD 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.

XYLD · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 1.1 pts ahead of SPY

XYLD

+15.9%

SPY

+14.8%

1.1 pts ahead of SPY

XYLD over 1 year: paid 10.7%, price +4.4%, total +15.9%, SPY +14.8%, +1.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

XYLD

+15.9%

10.7% of it arrived as cash

1.1 pts ahead of SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

1.1 pts ahead of SPY

XYLD over 1 year: paid 10.7%, price +4.4%, total +15.9%, SPY +14.8%, +1.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

XYLD

+15.9%

10.7% cash

1.1 pts ahead of SPY

10.7% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, 0 to +17.7%. XYLD over 1 year: paid 10.7%, price +4.4%, total +15.9%, SPY +14.8%, +1.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Both charts share one scale, 0 to +17.7%. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

XYLD costs 2.29 points a year less; XYLD is far larger, $3.4bn against $4.7m.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

NLSI vs XYLD: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	NLSI	XYLD
Paid and earned
Measure	NLSI	XYLD
Total return, 1 year	not published	+15.9%
Price change	rose 12.0% (since Dec 10, 2025)	rose 4.4% (1 year)
Return of capital, issuer estimate	100% of the Oct 30, 2026 payment	93% of the Sep 24, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
Measure	NLSI	XYLD
Benchmark	S&P 500, measured through SPY	S&P 500, measured through SPY
Against its benchmark, same days	ahead by 5.0 pts	ahead by 1.1 pts
Cost and size
Measure	NLSI	XYLD
Expense ratio	2.89%	0.60%
Net assets, as of Oct 12, 2026	$4.7m	$3.4bn
Holdings
Measure	NLSI	XYLD
Holdings in common	6%

Method

What they share

By the books each fund has filed, NLSI and XYLD hold 6% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Nov 3, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

6% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first NLSI XYLD

Micron Technology Inc 12.00% 1.46%

Chevron Corp 4.51% 0.58%

Goldman Sachs Group Inc 3.27% 0.47%

Seagate Technology Holdings PLC 4.06% 0.30%

Western Digital Corp 2.46% 0.29%

Walt Disney Co 4.42% 0.26%

Uber Technologies Inc 3.74% 0.22%

Capital One Financial Corp 3.59% 0.20%

Progressive Corp 4.11% 0.19%

ServiceNow Inc 4.07% 0.18%

AppLovin Corp 2.75% 0.16%

Marathon Petroleum Corp 5.94% 0.15%

Only in one fund ↓

Only in NLSI

SPXW US 11/12/26 P7000 0.03%

SPXW US 11/12/26 P6850 0.02%

SPXW US 11/12/26 P6950 0.02%

SPXW US 11/12/26 P7175 -0.05%

SPXW US 11/12/26 P7250 -0.07%

SPXW US 11/12/26 P7310 -0.09%

Only in XYLD

NVIDIA CORPORATION 7.64%

APPLE INC. 7.13%

MICROSOFT CORPORATION 5.42%

BROADCOM INC. 2.90%

ALPHABET INC. 2.65%

JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. 1.48%

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC. 1.47%

ELI LILLY AND COMPANY 1.43%

Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

NLSI NEOS Long/Short Equity Income ETF · Option income on SPY, paying monthly XYLD Global X S&P 500 Covered Call ETF · Covered call on SPY, paying monthly

Issuer NEOS Global X

Strategy option income covered call

Benchmark S&P 500 (SPY) S&P 500 (SPY)

Pays monthly monthly

Payout rate, annualized 5.6% 9.1%

Expense ratio 2.89% 0.60%

Cash paid, 1 year 5.0% (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) 10.7%

Price change, 1 year +12.0% (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) +4.4%

Total return, 1 year +17.7% (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) +15.9%

Benchmark return, 1 year +12.7% (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) +14.8%

Ahead or behind +5.0 pts (since launch, Dec 10, 2025) +1.1 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate 100% 93%

Age 329 days 13.4 years

Net assets, NLSI as of Oct 28, 2026 and XYLD as of Oct 12, 2026 $5.3m $3.4bn

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 XYLD: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	NLSI	XYLD	NLSI	XYLD	NLSI	XYLD
3 months	+6.7%	+2.4%	1.4%	2.2%	+6.9 pts	+2.6 pts
6 months	+21.4%	+7.9%	3.0%	5.1%	+16.4 pts	+2.9 pts
1 year	–	+15.9%	–	10.7%	–	+1.1 pts
3 years	–	+48.4%	–	34.0%	–	−34.5 pts
Since launchNot the same days: NLSI Dec 2025 · XYLD Jun 2013	+17.7%	+194.8%	5.0%	114.5%	+4.9 pts	−316.0 pts

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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.

XYLD

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, XYLD paid 10.7% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 4.4%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.9%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was ahead by 1.1 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 9.1%, paid monthly. Global X estimates that 93% of the distribution paid Sep 24, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice).

Questions people ask

Which is cheaper, NLSI or XYLD?: NLSI charges 2.89% a year and XYLD charges 0.60%, so XYLD is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

NLSI vs FTHI NLSI vs GPIX NLSI vs BALI NLSI vs DIVO XYLD vs TPRY XYLD vs OCTJ XYLD vs OCTH XYLD vs SCLZ

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 →XYLD on its own →NLSI dividend history →NLSI holdings →XYLD dividend history →XYLD 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 ↗

XYLD filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

XYLD prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

XYLD 19a-1 distribution notice ↗

Global X page for XYLD ↗

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 XYLD, data as of Nov 4, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/nlsi-vs-xyld

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