Dividend comparison

JEPQ vs XYLD: Which Is Better for Income?

Fees, yield, total returns, drawdowns, holdings overlap and dividend history for JPMorgan Nasdaq Equity Premium Income ETF and Global X - S&P 500 Covered Call ETF, side by side. Updated October 21, 2026.

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JEPQ vs XYLD: key differences

The short answer, from the latest data on this page.

Fees. JEPQ is cheaper at 0.35% a year versus 0.60% for XYLD. On $10,000 that is $25 a year less in fees.
Income. JEPQ pays more income, yielding 11.58% over the last twelve months versus 10.44% for XYLD. That is about $114 more a year on $10,000. Both pay monthly.
Performance. Over the last 3 years, JEPQ returned 61.0% versus 37.0% for XYLD, with dividends reinvested. $10,000 would have grown to $16,100 in JEPQ and $13,695 in XYLD.
Risk. Their worst declines over the last 3 years were similar: -20.1% for JEPQ and -18.6% for XYLD from peak to trough.
Diversification. XYLD holds 505 positions and JEPQ holds 110. The ten largest positions make up 43.1% of JEPQ and 39.9% of XYLD.
Overlap. At least 48% of the two portfolios overlap by weight, across 47 shared holdings.
Dividend growth. JEPQ grew its yearly payout 7.6% a year over the last 2 years, versus 4.8% for XYLD.
Size. JEPQ is the larger fund with $43.8 billion in assets, against $3.4 billion for XYLD.

Bottom line: JEPQ fits better if you care most about lower fees, more income today, stronger 3-year returns and faster dividend growth. XYLD fits better if you care most about broader diversification.

Side-by-side snapshot

Trailing twelve-month figures where available. Higher yield is highlighted — not a buy recommendation.

Metric	JEPQ JPMorgan Nasdaq Equity Premium Income ETF	XYLD Global X - S&P 500 Covered Call ETF
Dividend yield (TTM)	11.58%	10.44%
Dividend / share (TTM)	$6.88	$4.32
Payout frequency	Monthly	Monthly
Last dividend	$0.5669 on Oct 5, 2026	$0.2964 on Sep 24, 2026
Ex-dividend date	Oct 1, 2026	Oct 19, 2026
Next payment	—	$0.3140 on Oct 22, 2026
Dividend growth (CAGR)	7.6% over 2 yrs	4.8% over 4 yrs
Price	$59.44	$41.40
Dividend growth streak	2 years	1 year
Beta	0.83	0.41
Max drawdown (5Y)	-20.1%	-18.6%
Market cap	$43.19B	$3.41B
Exchange	NASDAQ	AMEX
Expense ratio	0.35%	0.60%
Assets under management	$43.83B	$3.38B
Number of holdings	110	505
Top 10 concentration	43.1%	39.9%

Income on a $10,000 investment

Illustrative only — assumes current TTM yield stays constant. Actual distributions change.

JEPQ

$96.52/mo

$1158 /yr at 11.58% yield

XYLD

$87.02/mo

$1044 /yr at 10.44% yield

Dividend history

Total dividends paid per share in each calendar year. JEPQ pays monthly; XYLD pays monthly.

Year	JEPQ	XYLD
2025	$6.0025	$5.4603
2024	$5.3800	$3.9372
2023	$5.1840	$4.2377
2022	—	$5.3660
2021	—	$4.5310

Strategy: Options income

These funds own equities and sell call options against them, converting a share of future price appreciation into cash paid out now. How much upside is surrendered depends on the design: writing at the money on the whole portfolio pays the most and keeps the least, while writing on a partial slice or using purchased offsets keeps more of a rally. Distributions come mainly from option premium rather than from company dividends, so the headline yield is not comparable to a dividend fund's.

Payouts are variable rather than contractual, are often taxed as ordinary income, and a fund that pays out more than the strategy earns will see its net asset value drift down over time.

What JEPQ vs XYLD actually do

JEPQ

The Nasdaq-100 version of the same JPMorgan strategy: an actively managed portfolio of large-cap growth stocks plus call options written through equity-linked notes.

The equity sleeve stays close to the Nasdaq-100 while applying JPMorgan's own research overlay, and equity-linked notes supply the short call exposure on the index. Because Nasdaq-100 options carry higher implied volatility than S&P 500 options, the fund collects more premium and pays a bigger monthly distribution than its S&P 500 sibling. The trade is symmetrical: the underlying portfolio is more volatile, so drawdowns are deeper and the capped upside costs more in a technology-led melt-up.

Suits an income investor who wants exposure to large-cap technology but would rather be paid monthly than wait for capital gains. Not a fit for anyone who wants full participation in Nasdaq rallies or who cannot tolerate a growth-heavy, concentrated portfolio underneath the options.

Aggressive equity income

XYLD

The S&P 500 version of the Global X buy-write approach, owning the index and selling at-the-money monthly index calls.

It tracks the Cboe S&P 500 BuyWrite Index, holding S&P 500 stocks and writing one-month calls at roughly the current index level. The mechanics match its Nasdaq sibling, but S&P 500 implied volatility is lower, so the premium collected and the resulting distribution are smaller. The same distribution guideline applies, capped at the lower of half the premiums received or 1% of net asset value.

Suits someone who wants the buy-write structure applied to a broader, less concentrated index than the Nasdaq-100. Not appropriate for an account that still needs capital growth, since full at-the-money overwriting caps the market return that funds it.

High current income, capped upside

Performance

Total returns with dividends reinvested, from the adjusted closing price series. $10,000 invested on May 4, 2022 would now be worth $17,289 in JEPQ and $12,778 in XYLD.

Period	JEPQ	XYLD
1 month	-1.33%	-0.05%
3 months	1.59%	0.61%
Year to date	2.27%	1.90%
1 year	4.26%	5.56%
3 years	61.00%	36.95%
5 years	—	30.19%

JEPQ
XYLD

Both series indexed to 100 on 2022-05-04 using the adjusted closing price series. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Sector allocation

Weight of each sector within the fund. Sectors are aligned on the same row so the two funds can be read against each other directly.

JEPQ
XYLD

JEPQ vs XYLD holdings overlap

At least 48% overlap by weight, with 47 holdings in common. Overlap adds up the smaller of the two weights for every stock both funds own, so 100% would mean identical portfolios.

Largest shared holdings	JEPQ weight	XYLD weight
NVDANVIDIA CORP COMMON STOCK	7.17%	8.32%
AAPLAPPLE INC COMMON STOCK	6.73%	7.57%
MSFTMICROSOFT CORP COMMON	5.54%	6.10%
AMZNAMAZON.COM INC COMMON	4.02%	3.88%
GOOGALPHABET INC-CL C -	4.83%	2.51%
METAMETA PLATFORMS INC	2.96%	2.49%
AVGOBROADCOM INC COMMON	1.90%	2.57%
MUMICRON TECHNOLOGY INC	4.29%	1.70%
TSLATESLA INC COMMON STOCK	2.13%	1.62%
AMDADVANCED MICRO DEVICES	3.55%	1.48%

Top 10 holdings

Largest positions by portfolio weight.

JEPQ110 holdings total

Name	Weight
NVDANVIDIA CORP COMMON STOCK	7.17%
AAPLAPPLE INC COMMON STOCK	6.73%
MSFTMICROSOFT CORP COMMON	5.54%
GOOGALPHABET INC-CL C -	4.83%
MUMICRON TECHNOLOGY INC	4.29%
AMZNAMAZON.COM INC COMMON	4.02%
AMDADVANCED MICRO DEVICES	3.55%
METAMETA PLATFORMS INC	2.96%
TSLATESLA INC COMMON STOCK	2.13%
AVGOBROADCOM INC COMMON	1.90%

XYLD505 holdings total

Name	Weight
NVDANVIDIA CORP	8.32%
AAPLAPPLE INC	7.57%
MSFTMICROSOFT CORP	6.10%
AMZNAMAZON.COM INC	3.88%
GOOGLALPHABET INC-CL A	3.14%
AVGOBROADCOM INC	2.57%
GOOGALPHABET INC-CL C	2.51%
METAMETA PLATFORMS INC	2.49%
MUMICRON TECHNOLOGY INC	1.70%
TSLATESLA INC	1.62%

Quick verdict

JEPQ fits better if you care most about lower fees, more income today, stronger 3-year returns and faster dividend growth. XYLD fits better if you care most about broader diversification. Model the holding inside your real portfolio before deciding.

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Frequently asked questions

Is JEPQ or XYLD better for dividend income?

It depends on your goals. JEPQ currently yields 11.58% Trailing Twelve Months (TTM) while XYLD yields 10.44%. Higher yield means more current income per dollar invested, but may come with different risk, growth, or NAV characteristics. Compare total return and payout sustainability — not just the headline yield.

What is the difference between JEPQ and XYLD?

JPMorgan Nasdaq Equity Premium Income ETF (JEPQ) is an ETF listed on NASDAQ. Global X - S&P 500 Covered Call ETF (XYLD) is an ETF listed on AMEX. Side-by-side metrics on this page cover yield, fees, returns, drawdowns, holdings overlap and dividend history when available.

Which is cheaper, JEPQ or XYLD?

JEPQ has the lower expense ratio. JEPQ charges 0.35% a year and XYLD charges 0.60%, a difference of $25 a year on a $10,000 investment.

Which has performed better, JEPQ or XYLD?

Over the last 3 years, JEPQ has the higher total return with dividends reinvested: JEPQ returned 61.0% and XYLD returned 37.0%. Past performance does not predict future returns.

Which is riskier, JEPQ or XYLD?

Measured by the worst peak-to-trough decline over the last five years, JEPQ has been riskier: JEPQ fell as much as 20.1% and XYLD as much as 18.6%. Their betas are 0.83 and 0.41.

How much do JEPQ and XYLD overlap?

At least 48% of the two portfolios overlap by weight, across 47 shared holdings. The largest shared positions are NVDA, AAPL, MSFT. Holding both still adds meaningful diversification.

How often do JEPQ and XYLD pay dividends?

Both pay monthly. The most recent payments were $0.5669 for JEPQ and $0.2964 for XYLD.

How much income does $10,000 in JEPQ vs XYLD generate?

At current TTM yields, $10,000 in JEPQ would generate roughly $96.52 per month ($1158 annually). The same amount in XYLD would produce about $87.02 per month ($1044 annually). Actual payouts vary with distribution changes and reinvestment.

Can I hold both JEPQ and XYLD?

Yes. Many income investors hold both to diversify strategy or index exposure. Whether the combination actually diversifies depends on overlapping holdings and factor exposure. Model both inside Dividend Wealth to see combined income, sector mix, and forecast impact.

Where can I compare JEPQ vs XYLD with my full portfolio?

Create a free Dividend Wealth account to import or enter holdings, forecast dividend income, and see how JEPQ and XYLD fit alongside the rest of your portfolio. A 14-day free trial of Standard is available with no credit card required; a limited Free plan is also available.

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For informational and educational purposes only. Not investment advice. Past performance and current yields do not guarantee future results. Verify figures independently before making investment decisions.