Which paid more, OEI or QLDY?

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, OEI paid 9.2% 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, OEI or QLDY?

With every distribution reinvested, OEI returned +12.9% and QLDY +9.1% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.

Which is cheaper, OEI or QLDY?

OEI charges 1.02% a year and QLDY charges 1.04%, so OEI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Income ETFs

OEI 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 OEI’s 9.2%, though OEI returned more with it reinvested.

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Net assets: $46m on Jul 31, 2026 for Optimized Equity Income ETF, and $53m on Nov 3, 2026 for Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread Income ETF.

OEI on its own →QLDY on its own →

At a glance

9.2%

OEI cash paid, 1 year

35.3%

QLDY cash paid, 1 year

+12.9%

OEI total return, 1 year

+9.1%

QLDY total return, 1 year

OEI · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 1.9 pts behind SPY

OEI

+12.9%

SPY

+14.8%

1.9 pts behind SPY

OEI over 1 year: paid 9.2%, price +3.0%, total +12.9%, SPY +14.8%, −1.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

OEI

+12.9%

9.2% of it arrived as cash

1.9 pts behind SPY

Total return, distributions reinvested

1.9 pts behind SPY

OEI over 1 year: paid 9.2%, price +3.0%, total +12.9%, SPY +14.8%, −1.9 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

SPY

+14.8%

OEI

+12.9%

9.2% cash

1.9 pts behind SPY

9.2% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. OEI over 1 year: paid 9.2%, price +3.0%, total +12.9%, SPY +14.8%, −1.9 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

OEI costs 0.02 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 3.8 points.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

OEI vs QLDY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Measure	OEI	QLDY
Paid and earned
Measure	OEI	QLDY
Total return, 1 year	+12.9%	+9.1%
Price change, 1 year	rose 3.0%	fell 27.2%
Return of capital, issuer estimate		0% of the Nov 2, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
Measure	OEI	QLDY
Benchmark	S&P 500, measured through SPY	Nasdaq-100, measured through QQQ
Cost and size
Measure	OEI	QLDY
Expense ratio	1.02%	1.04%
Net assets, OEI as of Jul 31, 2026 and QLDY as of Nov 3, 2026	$46m	$53m
Holdings
Measure	OEI	QLDY
Holdings in common	0%

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

IQ Income Score75.7OEI24.9QLDY

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

OEI 75.7

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, OEI and QLDY hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Jul 31, 2026 and Nov 4, 2026.

50%

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first OEI QLDY

Only in one fund ↓

Only in OEI

NVIDIA Corp 8.22%

Microsoft Corp 5.93%

Amazon.com Inc 4.51%

Apple Inc 4.23%

Alphabet Inc 3.44%

Broadcom Inc 3.01%

Alphabet Inc 2.76%

Micron Technology Inc 2.54%

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

OEI Optimized Equity Income ETF · Option income on SPY, paying monthly QLDY Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread Income ETF · Option income on QQQ, paying weekly

Issuer Core Alternative Defiance

Strategy option income option income

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

Pays monthly weekly

Payout rate, annualized 9.6% 19.7%

Expense ratio 1.02% 1.04%

Cash paid, 1 year 9.2% 35.3%

Price change, 1 year +3.0% −27.2%

Total return, 1 year +12.9% +9.1%

Benchmark return, 1 year +14.8% +12.3%

Ahead or behind −1.9 pts −3.2 pts

Return of capital, latest estimate not published 0%

Age 1.0 years 1.1 years

Net assets, OEI as of Jul 31, 2026 and QLDY as of Nov 3, 2026 $46m $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: OEI vs QLDY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
	Total return		Cash paid		Against the benchmark
Window	OEI	QLDY	OEI	QLDY	OEI	QLDY
3 months	+3.3%	−4.5%	2.4%	9.5%	+3.4 pts	−1.1 pts
6 months	+6.3%	−3.1%	4.7%	18.5%	+1.3 pts	−2.8 pts
1 year	+12.9%	+9.1%	9.2%	35.3%	−1.9 pts	−3.2 pts
Since launchNot the same days: OEI Oct 2025 · QLDY Sep 2025	+15.0%	+13.2%	9.4%	39.1%	−1.1 pts	−3.7 pts

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Alert

About each fund

OEI

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, OEI paid 9.2% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 3.0%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +12.9%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 1.9 pts. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 9.6%, paid monthly.

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). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.

Questions people ask

Which paid more, OEI or QLDY?: Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, OEI paid 9.2% 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, OEI or QLDY?: With every distribution reinvested, OEI returned +12.9% and QLDY +9.1% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.
Which is cheaper, OEI or QLDY?: OEI charges 1.02% a year and QLDY charges 1.04%, so OEI is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.

Other comparisons

OEI vs QDTY OEI vs CAIQ OEI vs XQQI OEI vs ROCQ QLDY vs WDTE QLDY vs XYLG QLDY vs XSPI QLDY vs SEPI

Where to next

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

Sources and dates

OEI filings on SEC EDGAR ↗

OEI prospectus with the expense ratio (SEC) ↗

Core Alternative website ↗

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

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