SPYI vs VAIE: Dividend Yield & Total Return
SPYI and VAIE both write options for income. Net assets on Oct 19, 2026: $12.6bn for NEOS S&P 500 High Income ETF and $67m for VegaShares US Equity Autocallable Income ETF.
SPYI costs 0.06 points a year less; SPYI is far larger, $12.6bn against $67m.
Points (pts) are percentage points.
| SPYI | VAIE | |
|---|---|---|
| Expense ratio | 0.68% | 0.74% |
| Net assets, as of Oct 19, 2026 | $12.6bn | $67m |
| Total return, 1 year | +15.0% | not published |
| Benchmark | S&P 500, measured through SPY | not published |
| Holdings in common | not published | |
| Price change | rose 1.9% (1 year) | fell 3.6% (since May 12, 2026) |
| Return of capital, issuer estimate | 93% of the Jun 18, 2026 payment | |
0.8 pts behind SPY
SPYI over 1 year: paid 12.0%, price +1.9%, total +15.0%, SPY +15.8%, −0.8 pts. Figures to Oct 20, 2026.
SPY
+15.8%
SPYI
+15.0%
12.0% of it arrived as cash
0.8 pts behind SPY
Total return, distributions reinvested
0.8 pts behind SPY
SPYI over 1 year: paid 12.0%, price +1.9%, total +15.0%, SPY +15.8%, −0.8 pts. Figures to Oct 20, 2026.
SPY
+15.8%
SPYI
+15.0%
12.0% as cash
0.8 pts behind SPY
12.0% of it arrived as cash. Total return, distributions reinvested. SPYI over 1 year: paid 12.0%, price +1.9%, total +15.0%, SPY +15.8%, −0.8 pts. Figures to Oct 20, 2026.
Figures to Oct 20, 2026.
Not measured
VAIE since launch: paid 6.8%, price −3.6%, total +3.3%, not measured against a benchmark. Figures to Oct 20, 2026.
VAIE
+3.3%
6.8% as cash
Total return, distributions reinvested
Not measured
VAIE since launch: paid 6.8%, price −3.6%, total +3.3%, not measured against a benchmark. Figures to Oct 20, 2026.
VAIE
+3.3%
6.8% of it arrived as cash. Both charts share one scale, with zero at the line. VAIE since launch: paid 6.8%, price −3.6%, total +3.3%, not measured against a benchmark. Figures to Oct 20, 2026.
Figures to Oct 20, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Window | SPYI | VAIE | SPYI | VAIE | SPYI | VAIE |
| 3 months | +3.6% | +2.5% | 3.0% | 4.1% | +0.6 pts | not measured |
| 6 months | +9.1% | – | 6.1% | – | −0.7 pts | – |
| 1 year | +15.0% | – | 12.0% | – | −0.8 pts | – |
| 3 years | +65.6% | – | 39.6% | – | −23.7 pts | – |
| Since launch Not the same days: SPYI Aug 2022 · VAIE May 2026 | +79.1% | +3.3% | 50.3% | 6.8% | −25.2 pts | not measured |
Source: ETFIQ. – means no data for this window, usually because the fund is younger than it. Open this comparison in the app →
On the same fields
As of Oct 20, 2026. Source: ETFIQ. Cash paid is what the fund distributed over the window, as a share of its price at the start. Payout rate is its latest payment, annualized, over today’s price.
About SPYI
Over the year to Oct 20, 2026, SPYI paid 12.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price rose 1.9%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.0%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +15.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 0.8 pts. At its price on Oct 20, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 11.9%, paid monthly. NEOS estimates that 93% of the distribution paid Jun 18, 2026 was a return of capital (its 19a-1 notice). That is a tax label, not a measure of erosion.
About VAIE
Over the period from its first trade on May 12, 2026 to Oct 20, 2026, VAIE paid 6.8% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 3.6%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +3.3%. At its price on Oct 20, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 16.8%, paid weekly.
Questions people ask
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How this is computed
Every figure is an ETFIQ calculation with distributions reinvested.
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ETFIQ, SPYI against VAIE, data as of Oct 20, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/spyi-vs-vaie
ETFIQ. (Oct 20, 2026). SPYI against VAIE. Retrieved from https://etfiq.com/compare/income/spyi-vs-vaie
[SPYI against VAIE (ETFIQ, Oct 20, 2026)](https://etfiq.com/compare/income/spyi-vs-vaie)
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