Across the 430 buffer ETFs tracked as of October 14, 2026, 103 funds, or 24%, sat at their cap, meaning those funds have no further upside this period in index terms. Another 54 funds, 13% of the total, had their buffer already absorbing losses. The remaining 273 funds, 63%, were open, with room to move before either edge is reached. For the median fund, issuer numbers show room to gain 6.1% from the current price and room to fall 4.2% before the buffer begins to work.
The picture varies by issuer. Innovator, with 138 funds, had 32 at cap and 23 with buffers working; its median fund could still gain 7.4% and had 4.7% of room before the buffer starts, with a median expense ratio of 0.80%. First Trust, with 104 funds, had 31 at cap and 10 with buffers working, a median remaining gain of 5.7%, and 6.2% of room before the buffer, also at a 0.80% median expense ratio. AllianzIM's 57 funds had 7 at cap and 8 with buffers working, a median gain of 5.3%, and the smallest median cushion before the buffer among issuers reporting that number, at 2.8%, with a 0.70% median expense ratio. PGIM's 44 funds showed 15 at cap, 2 with buffers working, a 4.7% median remaining gain, 3.4% of room before the buffer, and a 0.50% median expense ratio. Corgi, Calamos, TrueShares, and iShares each reported smaller fund counts, with TrueShares showing none at cap and none with buffers working among its 11 funds, and iShares showing 3 of 8 at cap.
Looking ahead by reset month, the data show a pattern tied to how far into its term each fund is. Funds resetting soonest carry the least remaining cap, because their underlying index has had the most time to rise toward it, while fresh caps sit in the months that reset last. October 2026, the nearest reset month, had 25 funds with a median remaining gain of just 0.9% and 13 of those at cap, alongside a median index move since the period began of +12.6%. The pattern eases through the months that follow: November 2026 shows a 1.9% median remaining gain, December 2026 shows 3.3%, and by March 2027, with 37 funds and 24 at cap, the median index move since period start reaches +18.1%, the largest in the twelve-month table. From April 2027 onward, median remaining gains widen steadily, reaching 15.0% by September 2027, where only 1 of 35 funds sits at cap and the median index move since period start is a modest +0.7%.
These numbers are issuer-published, covering remaining cap and downside before the buffer in fund-price terms, while band states are ETFIQ's own calculations in index terms drawn from published terms and the reference return. All medians are simple medians across funds rather than weighted by assets. Readers can check individual fund cap levels, buffer terms, and reset dates on ETFIQ's fund pages.