Data as of .
WDTE vs YQQQ: which paid, and which earned it?
Over the year WDTE paid 28.0% of its price in cash against YQQQ’s 23.1%, and returned more with it reinvested.
ETFIQ Return Stability Score: WDTE 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, WDTE and YQQQ hold 6% of their money in the same securities at the same weight.
| Holding | WDTE | YQQQ |
|---|---|---|
| First American Government Obligations Fund 12/01/2031 | 6.61% | 5.94% |
| Only in WDTE | Only in YQQQ |
|---|---|
| Spx Us 12/18/26 C600 92.83% | United States Treasury Note/Bond 2.375% 05/15/2027 28.76% |
| Cash & Other 0.69% | United States Treasury Bill 07/08/2027 28.59% |
| Spx 09/21/2026 7674.22 C 0.11% | United States Treasury Bill 02/18/2027 17.25% |
| Spx 09/21/2026 7650.5 C -0.24% | United States Treasury Bill 12/10/2026 13.01% |
| United States Treasury Bill 10/15/2026 7.09% | |
| QQQ 10/16/2026 720.02 P 1.66% | |
| QQQ US 09/25/26 P690 0.06% | |
| QQQ US 09/18/26 P685 0.00% |
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 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WDTE | YQQQ | WDTE | YQQQ | WDTE | YQQQ | |
| 3 months | +3.2% | +5.8% | 7.4% | 6.5% | +0.9 pts | +8.3 pts |
| 6 months | +17.3% | −13.9% | 15.7% | 10.8% | −0.7 pts | −38.2 pts |
| 1 year | +15.8% | −3.5% | 28.0% | 23.1% | −0.8 pts | −25.3 pts |
| 3 years | +49.2% | not published | 77.8% | not published | −29.2 pts | not published |
| Since launch | +49.2% | −17.6% | 77.8% | 37.0% | −29.2 pts | −71.2 pts |
| WDTE Defiance S&P 500 Weekly Distribution ETF Option income on SPY, paying weekly | YQQQ YieldMax(R) Short N100 Option Income Strategy ETF Synthetic covered call on QQQ, paying weekly | |
|---|---|---|
| Issuer | Defiance | YieldMax |
| Strategy | option income | synthetic covered call |
| Benchmark | S&P 500 (SPY) | Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) |
| Pays | weekly | weekly |
| Payout rate, annualized | 29.9% | 21.3% |
| Expense ratio | 1.03% | 1.11% |
| Cash paid, 1 year | 28.0% | 23.1% |
| Price change, 1 year | −14.8% | −25.7% |
| Total return, 1 year | +15.8% | −3.5% |
| Benchmark return, 1 year | +16.6% | +21.8% |
| Ahead or behind | −0.8 pts | −25.3 pts |
| Return of capital, latest estimate | 38% | 0% |
| Age | 1095 days | 764 days |
| Net assets | $71m | $27m |
WDTE in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, WDTE paid 28.0% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 14.8%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned +15.8%. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +16.6% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 0.8 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 29.9%, paid weekly. Defiance estimates that 38% of the distribution paid Sep 18, 2026 was a return of capital (19a-1 notice, estimated, a tax characterization rather than a measure of erosion).
YQQQ in plain words
Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, YQQQ paid 23.1% of its starting value in cash distributions while its price fell 25.7%. With every distribution reinvested, the fund returned −3.5%. Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) returned +21.8% over the same days, so a holder was behind by 25.3 pts. At its price on Sep 18, 2026 the latest distribution annualizes to 21.3%, paid weekly. YieldMax estimates that 0% of the distribution paid Sep 18, 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, WDTE or YQQQ?
- Over the year to Sep 18, 2026, WDTE paid 28.0% of its starting price in cash and YQQQ paid 23.1%, so WDTE paid more. Cash paid is not the same as money made: the price change matters too.
- Which returned more once distributions are counted, WDTE or YQQQ?
- With every distribution reinvested, WDTE returned +15.8% and YQQQ returned −3.5% over the year to Sep 18, 2026, so WDTE returned more.
- Which is cheaper, WDTE or YQQQ?
- WDTE charges 1.03% a year and YQQQ charges 1.11%, so WDTE 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, WDTE against YQQQ, data as of Sep 18, 2026. https://etfiq.com/compare/income/wdte-vs-yqqq Free to use with attribution; the underlying files are at Open data.