Across 431 buffer ETFs from 8 issuers, the picture on Oct 23, 2026 is split roughly into three groups. 72 funds, or 17% of the total, sat at their cap, meaning the index they track has risen far enough that those funds have no further upside left for the current period. 236 funds, or 55%, remained open, with room to move in either direction before either their cap or their buffer comes into play. The remaining 122 funds, or 28%, had their buffer already absorbing losses, with one fund showing its buffer exhausted. For the median fund across all 431, the issuers' own numbers show 6.6% of further gain still available before the cap binds, and a 3.6% drop in the fund's price before the buffer begins to cushion further losses.
The issuer breakdown shows meaningful variation in how far funds have moved toward their caps. Innovator, with 138 funds, had 24 at cap and 40 with buffers working, and its median fund could still gain 8.0% while tolerating a 4.5% fall before buffer. First Trust's 104 funds included 19 at cap and 31 in buffer, with a median remaining gain of 6.9% and a 5.0% cushion before buffer. AllianzIM's 57 funds had only 3 at cap, a median gain room of 5.9%, and the smallest buffer cushion among issuers reporting one, at 2.4%. PGIM's 44 funds split 11 at cap and 12 in buffer, with 5.1% median gain room and a 3.2% cushion. Calamos had 13 of its 32 funds at cap, the highest proportion of any issuer in the table, though its median gain number was not reported. Corgi and TrueShares had no funds at cap at all, and Corgi's median cushion before buffer, at 0.7%, was the smallest of any issuer shown. Expense ratios ranged from Corgi's 0.30% up to 0.80% for Innovator, First Trust, and TrueShares.
Looking ahead by reset month, the data shows a pattern tied to how long each fund's current period has run. Funds resetting soonest, in Oct and Nov 2026, carry the least remaining cap room, at a median of 1.9% and 2.2%, alongside the largest index gains already logged since period start, at +11.4% and +11.2%. This matches the explanation that these indexes have had more time to climb toward their caps. By contrast, funds resetting furthest out, in Aug and Sep 2027, show median remaining gain room of 14.5% and 15.3%, with their underlying indexes down slightly since period start, at −0.9% and −0.4%. The number of funds at cap also varies sharply by reset month, from 21 of 37 funds reaching cap in the Mar 2027 cohort down to zero in the May 2027 and Aug 2027 cohorts.
Readers can check any individual fund's current cap, buffer level, and reset date, along with its issuer and expense ratio, on ETFIQ's fund pages.