Data as of .
QLDY vs YMAG: which paid, and which earned it?
Over the year YMAG paid 35.5% of its price in cash against QLDY’s 29.2%, though QLDY returned more with it reinvested.
ETFIQ Return Stability Score: YMAG scores higher
Was the payout funded by returns, or by your own capital?
A percentile among the 173 income ETFs writing on an index or proxy. It is a position in a set, not a rating, and neither end of it is a recommendation. All income ETFs ranked by it · How it is computed
What they hold in common
By the books each fund has filed, QLDY and YMAG hold 1% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | QLDY | YMAG |
|---|---|---|
| First American Government Obligations Fund 12/01/2031 | 4.77% | 0.87% |
| Only in QLDY | Only in YMAG |
|---|---|
| Ndx 12/18/2026 2001.44 C 94.80% | YieldMax NVDA Option Income Strategy ETF 14.58% |
| United States Treasury Note/bond 2.375% 05/15/2027 0.53% | YieldMax AAPL Option Income Strategy ETF 14.24% |
| Ndxp Us 09/21/26 P29500 0.08% | YieldMax Tsla Option Income ETF 14.21% |
| Xnd 12/18/2026 10.44 C 0.05% | YieldMax Amzn Option Income ETF 14.11% |
| Cash & Other -0.06% | YieldMax GOOGL Option Income Strategy ETF 14.11% |
| Nasdaq-1 Put Opt 09/26 29650 -0.16% | YieldMax Meta Option Income Strategy ETF 13.99% |
| YieldMax MSFT Option Income Strategy ETF 13.90% |
Weight overlap is an ETFIQ calculation: for every security both funds hold, the smaller of the two weights, summed. Above 50%, holding both is close to holding one of them twice. Holdings dated Sep 21, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QLDY | YMAG | QLDY | YMAG | QLDY | YMAG | |
| 3 months | −6.6% | +6.1% | 8.3% | 9.4% | −4.1 pts | −1.6 pts |
| 6 months | +20.1% | +15.4% | 18.7% | 21.1% | −4.2 pts | −5.3 pts |
| 1 year | +10.6% | +9.7% | 29.2% | 35.5% | −11.2 pts | −1.5 pts |
| Since launch | +10.6% | +70.7% | 29.2% | 89.1% | −11.2 pts | −34.1 pts |
| QLDY Defiance Nasdaq 100 LightningSpread(TM) Income ETF Option income on QQQ, paying weekly | YMAG YieldMax(R) Magnificent 7 Fund of Option Income ETFs Synthetic covered call on MAGS, paying weekly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | Defiance | YieldMax |
| Strategy | option income | synthetic covered call |
| Benchmark | Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) | Magnificent Seven (MAGS) |
| Pays | weekly | weekly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 19.6% | 30.9% |
| Expense ratio | 1.04% | 1.34% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 29.2% | 35.5% |
| Price change, 1 year | −20.3% | −28.1% |
| Total return, 1 year | +10.6% | +9.7% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +21.8% | +11.2% |
| Ahead or behind | −11.2 pts | −1.5 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | 100% | 80% |
| Age | 365 days | 962 days |
| Net assets | $52m | $297m |
QLDY in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, QLDY paid 29.2% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 20.3%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +10.6%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +21.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 11.2 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 19.6%, paid weekly. Defiance estimates that 100% of the distribution paid Sep 17, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterization rather than a measure of erosion).
YMAG in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, YMAG paid 35.5% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 28.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +9.7%. Magnificent Seven (MAGS) returned +11.2% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 1.5 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 30.9%, paid weekly. YieldMax estimates that 80% of the distribution paid Sep 17, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterization rather than a measure of erosion).
Questions people ask
- Which paid more, QLDY or YMAG?
- Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, QLDY paid 29.2% of its starting price in cash and YMAG paid 35.5%, so YMAG 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 YMAG?
- With every distribution reinvested, QLDY returned +10.6% and YMAG returned +9.7% over the year to Sep 18, 2026, so QLDY returned more.
- Which is cheaper, QLDY or YMAG?
- QLDY charges 1.04% a year and YMAG charges 1.34%, so QLDY is cheaper. Fees come from each fund's prospectus.
Other comparisons
Where these figures came from
ETFIQ links to the documents behind every figure. It is not affiliated with any issuer, and a link is not an endorsement.
Cite this page. ETFIQ, QLDY against YMAG, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/qldy-vs-ymag Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.