Data as of .
ULTY vs XPAY: which paid, and which earned it?
Over the year ULTY paid 44.9% of its price in cash against XPAY’s 19.9%, though XPAY returned more with it reinvested.
ETFIQ Return Stability Score: XPAY 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, ULTY and XPAY hold 3% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | ULTY | XPAY |
|---|---|---|
| First American Government Obligations Fund 12/01/2031 | 2.74% | 4.95% |
| Only in ULTY | Only in XPAY |
|---|---|
| Advanced Micro Devices Inc 5.23% | SPY 02/12/2027 33.47 C 13.75% |
| MercadoLibre Inc 4.99% | SPY 07/16/2027 36.7 C 11.79% |
| Lumentum Holdings Inc 4.75% | SPY 03/12/2027 33.67 C 11.51% |
| Strategy Inc 4.66% | SPY 04/16/2027 33.87 C 11.49% |
| Comfort Systems USA Inc 4.61% | SPY 06/11/2027 37.11 C 10.07% |
| Alphabet Inc 4.39% | SPY 01/15/2027 33.21 C 6.96% |
| Lam Research Corp 4.34% | SPY 12/11/2026 33.1 C 6.40% |
| Coherent Corp 4.30% | SPY 09/10/2027 37.99 C 5.57% |
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 18, 2026 and Sep 21, 2026.
Performance, window by window
| Window | Total return | Cash paid | Against the benchmark | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ULTY | XPAY | ULTY | XPAY | ULTY | XPAY | |
| 3 months | −1.1% | +2.0% | 13.7% | 5.0% | −3.3 pts | −0.3 pts |
| 6 months | +14.0% | +17.8% | 30.1% | 11.1% | −4.0 pts | −0.2 pts |
| 1 year | −7.8% | +15.7% | 44.9% | 19.9% | −24.3 pts | −0.9 pts |
| Since launch | +10.7% | +34.7% | 86.9% | 37.5% | −44.1 pts | −2.3 pts |
| ULTY YieldMax(R) Ultra Option Income Strategy ETF Synthetic covered call on SPY, paying weekly | XPAY Roundhill S&P 500 Target 20 Managed Distribution ETF Option income on SPY, paying monthly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | YieldMax | Roundhill |
| Strategy | synthetic covered call | option income |
| Benchmark | S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy | S&P 500 (SPY) |
| Pays | weekly | monthly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 59.8% | 20.8% |
| Expense ratio | 1.30% | 0.49% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 44.9% | 19.9% |
| Price change, 1 year | −54.1% | −5.8% |
| Total return, 1 year | −7.8% | +15.7% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +16.6% | +16.6% |
| Ahead or behind | −24.3 pts | −0.9 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | 100% | not published |
| Age | 932 days | 687 days |
| Net assets | $721m | $179m |
ULTY in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, ULTY paid 44.9% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 54.1%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned −7.8%. S&P 500 (SPY), used as a default proxy returned +16.6% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 24.3 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 59.8%, paid weekly. YieldMax 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).
XPAY in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, XPAY paid 19.9% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 5.8%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.7%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +16.6% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 0.9 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 20.8%, paid monthly.
Questions people ask
- Which paid more, ULTY or XPAY?
- Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, ULTY paid 44.9% of its starting price in cash and XPAY paid 19.9%, so ULTY paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
- Which returned more once distributions are counted, ULTY or XPAY?
- With every distribution reinvested, ULTY returned −7.8% and XPAY returned +15.7% over the year to Sep 18, 2026, so XPAY returned more.
- Which is cheaper, ULTY or XPAY?
- ULTY charges 1.30% a year and XPAY charges 0.49%, so XPAY 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, ULTY against XPAY, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/ulty-vs-xpay Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.