Data as of Nov 4, 2026.

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Income ETFs

QLDY vs SDTY: 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 SDTY’s 24.9%, though SDTY returned more with it reinvested.

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Net assets on Nov 3, 2026: $53m for Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread Income ETF and $40m for YieldMax S&P 500 0DTE Covered Call Strategy ETF.

At a glance
35.3%
QLDY cash paid, 1 year
24.9%
SDTY cash paid, 1 year
+9.1%
QLDY total return, 1 year
+14.7%
SDTY total return, 1 year
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. Total return, distributions reinvested. 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.
SDTY · 1 year to Nov 4, 2026 About even with VOO
SDTY
+14.7%
VOO
+14.8%

About even with VOO

SDTY over 1 year: paid 24.9%, price −12.3%, total +14.7%, VOO +14.8%, −0.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

VOO

+14.8%

SDTY

+14.7%

24.9% of it arrived as cash

about even with VOO

Total return, distributions reinvested

About even with VOO

SDTY over 1 year: paid 24.9%, price −12.3%, total +14.7%, VOO +14.8%, −0.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

VOO

+14.8%

SDTY

+14.7%

24.9% as cash

about even with VOO

24.9% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. SDTY over 1 year: paid 24.9%, price −12.3%, total +14.7%, VOO +14.8%, −0.1 pts. Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Data to Nov 4, 2026.

Pair scorecard

QLDY costs 0.04 points a year less; their one-year returns differ by 5.6 points; QLDY is 1.3 times larger.

Points (pts) are percentage points.

QLDY vs SDTY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
MeasureQLDYSDTY
Paid and earned
Total return, 1 year+9.1%+14.7%
Price change, 1 yearfell 27.2%fell 12.3%
Return of capital, issuer estimate0% of the Nov 2, 2026 payment
Against its benchmark
BenchmarkNasdaq-100, measured through QQQVanguard S&P 500 ETF, measured through VOO
Cost and size
Expense ratio1.04%1.08%
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026$53m$40m
Holdings
Holdings in common0%
ETFIQ Distribution Coverage Score · SDTY scores higher How much of what it paid out did its total return cover?
IQ Income Score24.9QLDY40.4SDTY

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

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

0%

By the books each fund has filed, QLDY and SDTY hold 0% of their money in the same securities at the same weight. Holdings dated Nov 4, 2026.

0 half 100%

half

0% in common

Positions both hold · largest shared weight first QLDY SDTY
Only in one fund ↓
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%
Only in SDTY
SPX 12/18/2026 1200.26 C 85.22%
United States Treasury Note/Bond 3.375% 09/15/2027 1.62%
Check overlap with more funds →

Side by side

QLDY Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread Income ETF · Option income on QQQ, paying weekly SDTY YieldMax S&P 500 0DTE Covered Call Strategy ETF · 0DTE covered call on VOO, paying weekly
Strategy option income 0DTE covered call
Benchmark Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO)
Pays weekly weekly
Payout rate, annualized 19.7% 23.2%
Expense ratio 1.04% 1.08%
Cash paid, 1 year 35.3% 24.9%
Price change, 1 year −27.2% −12.3%
Total return, 1 year +9.1% +14.7%
Benchmark return, 1 year +12.3% +14.8%
Ahead or behind −3.2 pts −0.1 pts
Return of capital, latest estimate 0% not published
Age 1.1 years 1.7 years
Net assets, as of Nov 3, 2026 $53m $40m

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: QLDY vs SDTY: Dividend Yield & Total Return
Total returnCash paidAgainst the benchmark
WindowQLDYSDTYQLDYSDTYQLDYSDTY
3 months−4.5%+1.2%9.5%5.4%−1.1 pts+1.4 pts
6 months−3.1%+6.6%18.5%11.7%−2.8 pts+1.5 pts
1 year+9.1%+14.7%35.3%24.9%−3.2 pts−0.1 pts
Since launchNot the same days: QLDY Sep 2025 · SDTY Feb 2025+13.2%+23.8%39.1%37.8%−3.7 pts−5.3 pts

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About each fund
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.

SDTY

Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, SDTY paid 24.9% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 12.3%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +14.7%. Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) returned +14.8% over the same days, so a holder was about even. At its price on Nov 4, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 23.2%, paid weekly.

Questions people ask

Which paid more, QLDY or SDTY?
Over the year to Nov 4, 2026, QLDY paid 35.3% of its starting price in cash and SDTY paid 24.9%, 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, QLDY or SDTY?
With every distribution reinvested, QLDY returned +9.1% and SDTY +14.7% over the year to Nov 4, 2026.
Which is cheaper, QLDY or SDTY?
QLDY charges 1.04% a year and SDTY charges 1.08%, so QLDY is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
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Sources and dates

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

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