NFLY vs SPY: Performance, Holdings, Fees & Risk

NFLY and SPY are ETFs, but they can differ materially in exposure, yield, fees and risk. NFLY is YieldMax NFLX Option Income Strategy ETF, while SPY is State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF. SPY is broader by holdings count, with 505 positions versus 11 for NFLY. SPY has the lower expense ratio. Current AlgovestIQ evidence has SPY ahead on AIQ Score, 66 versus 38.

Market data as of Oct 21, 2026 market close· Fund characteristics as of Oct 21, 2026
NFLY
YieldMax
vs
SPY
SPDR
NFLY
YieldMax NFLX Option Income Strategy ETF
Issuer
YieldMax
Inception
2023-08-07
SPY
State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF
Issuer
SPDR
Inception
1993-01-22

What is the main difference between NFLY and SPY?

SPY holds 505 positions to NFLY's 11, and 0% of their weight is in the same securities.

Expense ratio
NFLY
1.01%
SPY
0.09%
Lower annual fund costSPY
Holdings
NFLY
11
SPY
505
Broader reported basketSPY
1Y return
NFLY
-58.4%
SPY
+16.4%
Trailing performanceSPY
Annualized volatility
NFLY
29.9%
SPY
12.8%
Lower realized volatilitySPY
MetricNFLYSPY
Fund
Expense ratio1.01%0.09%
Holdings11505
Distribution yieldTrailing 12 months61.79%0.99%
Average volume65,97846,698,705
Performance
1Y return-58.4%+16.4%
YTD return-44.8%+12.8%
Risk
Annualized volatility29.9%12.8%
Max drawdown (1Y)-60.1%-9.1%
Beta0.311.00
Sharpe ratio-2.960.91
Sortino ratio-3.991.39
AlgovestIQ
AIQ Score38/10066/100
AIQ Edge Score2/109/10
Momentum32/10063/100
Risk Resilience57/10088/100

AlgovestIQ AIQ Comparison

YieldMax NFLX Option Income Strategy ETF vs State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF

Data as of Oct 21, 2026· market close· Coverage 63/66 fields· High confidence
AIQ VerdictStableAIQ Comparison Conviction 10/10

SPY leads

SPY leads by 28 AIQ points, primarily on Quality and Momentum.

Stable: 3 of 3 evidence groups support SPY, and its current signal state is conflicted.

Evidence agreement: 3 of 3Comparison trend: Stable
NFLY

YieldMax NFLX Option Income Strategy ETF

AIQ Score
38/100
AIQ Edge Score
2/10
SPY

State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF

Leads
AIQ Score
66/100
AIQ Edge Score
9/10

The Algovestiq AIQ Score currently favors SPY over NFLY, 66 versus 38 as of Oct 21, 2026. SPY's advantage is driven primarily by stronger quality and momentum. SPY also shows the stronger technical structure relative to its 50-day moving average. 3 of 3 covered evidence groups favor SPY today, and the comparison is rated Stable on stability: the leader is throwing conflicting signals. SPY lead: Stable — the AIQ differential has held near 28 points over 30 sessions.

Compare YieldMax NFLX Option Income Strategy ETF and State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF across performance, expense ratio, dividend yield, drawdown, volatility and the Algovestiq AIQ Score.

NFLY vs SPY: which fits what

Each row is settled by a single measure. Where the gap is too small to matter it reads Similar, and no row decides the comparison as a whole.

If you wantNFLYSPYFits
Lower costExpense ratio1.01%0.09%SPY
Broader diversificationNumber of holdings11505SPY
Higher incomeTrailing 12-month distribution yield61.79%0.99%NFLY
Smaller drawdownsMax drawdown, 1 year-60.1%-9.1%SPY
Lower volatilityAnnualized volatility, 1 year29.9%12.8%SPY

Similar means the gap is within 0.01 percentage points of expense ratio, 25% more holdings, 3 points of top-10 weight, 0.2 points of yield, 2 points of drawdown or 1 point of volatility. Past drawdowns and volatility describe the funds’ history, not their future.

Currently unavailable

Performance over time

Total return with distributions reinvested, from daily closes for both ETFs.

NFLY
+30.5%
SPY
+78.3%

Total return comparison

Growth of $10,000, distributions reinvested

NFLY $13,050 · SPY $17,833

Split-adjusted closes; each distribution is reinvested at the close on its ex-dividend date. Taxes and trading costs are not modeled.

Compare NFLY and SPY against another ticker

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AIQ Factor Divergence

Where the two separate, on the four dimensions behind the AIQ Score. Bars read outward from a shared zero: further from the centre is a wider gap.

NFLY advantage
0
SPY advantage
  • Quality34 vs 84
    SPY +50
  • Momentum32 vs 63
    SPY +31
  • Risk Resilience57 vs 88
    SPY +31

3 of 3 evidence groups favor SPY. SPY’s edge is concentrated in quality and momentum.

What changed since the last close

Latest scored session 2026-10-20, compared against the prior scored session 2026-10-19.

NFLY0 AIQ

Largest factor move: Risk Resilience -1, not enough on its own to move the overall score.

No signal started or stopped since the prior session; its 4 active signals are unchanged.

SPY+4 AIQ

Largest factor move: Momentum +16

New signals

  • Uptrend Structure Active — bullish, trend, long horizon

SPY's lead widened by 4 AIQ points in the latest session.

Deeper signal detail for each name lives on its own signals page — NFLY and SPY both carry a full feed there.

Fund facts, side by side

Two funds tracking overlapping universes are separated by cost and risk far more than by holdings. Those lead here.

MeasureNFLYSPYWhy it matters
Expense ratio1.01%0.09%Lower is better — it compounds against you every year you hold.
Holdings11505More holdings means broader diversification, not better returns.
Average volume65,97846,698,705Liquidity — matters most if you trade size.
Annualized volatility29.9%12.8%Lower is a steadier ride for the same exposure.
Max drawdown (1Y)-60.1%-9.1%The worst peak-to-trough loss over the past year.
Sharpe ratio-2.960.91Return per unit of risk. Higher is better.
Beta0.311.00Sensitivity to the broad market. Neither direction is better — it depends on the role in your portfolio.

Where the exposure actually sits

Sector exposure for each fund, ordered by the size of the difference.

Cash & Others100.0% vs 0.0%
Technology0.0% vs 38.4%
Financial Services0.0% vs 11.7%
Communication Services0.0% vs 9.8%
Healthcare0.0% vs 9.6%
Consumer Cyclical0.0% vs 8.8%
Industrials0.0% vs 8.0%
Consumer Defensive0.0% vs 4.7%
NFLYSPY

How much of the same holdings they own

NFLY and SPY share 0% of their weighted exposure across 0 common holdings.

4 holdings are unique to NFLY, and 504 holdings are unique to SPY. Owning both is genuinely additive — most of the capital sits in different securities.

What NFLY adds that SPY doesn’t

HoldingNFLYSPY
United States Treasury Bill 07/08/202737.77%Not held
United States Treasury Bill 02/18/202724.01%Not held
United States Treasury Note/Bond 2.375% 05/15/202720.04%Not held
First American Government Obligations Fund 12/01/20312.45%Not held

What SPY adds that NFLY doesn’t

HoldingSPYNFLY
NVDANVIDIA CORP8.08%Not held
AAPLAPPLE INC7.33%Not held
MSFTMICROSOFT CORP5.59%Not held
AMZNAMAZON.COM INC3.77%Not held
GOOGLALPHABET INC CL A2.98%Not held
AVGOBROADCOM INC2.61%Not held

Each list is a fund’s largest positions by weight that the other fund does not hold, or holds at less than half the weight.

NFLY vs SPY: five-year payout growth

SPY grew its split-adjusted payout at 5.05% a year over 2020-2025. NFLY began paying distributions in 2023, so it has no 2020-2025 growth rate to compare.

Dividend metricNFLYSPY
2025 annual payout$7.390$7.281
Peer ranknot ranked#95 of 138

Split-adjusted annual distributions, 2020–2025. Research as of Sep 19, 2026. Yield and expense ratio above are current values, not part of this window.

AIQ Agreement Matrix

3 of 3 covered evidence groups favor SPY. A wide gap backed by one group is a weaker case than a narrow gap backed by five.

Evidence groupFavorsReading
AIQ ScoreSPY38 vs 66
FundamentalsNot coveredNot covered
ValuationNot coveredNot covered
TechnicalsSPYPrice vs 50-day -13% vs 0.6%; vs 200-day -29% vs 5.9%
Risk ResilienceSPYRisk Resilience 57 vs 88
Analyst expectationsNot coveredNot covered

✓ agrees with the overall verdict · ✕ points the other way. Groups marked “not covered” lack data on one or both of NFLY and SPY and are excluded from the count.

AIQ Decision Stability

Stable

The conclusion rests on a wide gap and broad agreement. It is unlikely to turn on a single session.

  • The AIQ gap is wide at 28 points. (supports the conclusion holding)
  • 3 of 3 covered evidence groups point the same way. (supports the conclusion holding)
  • The leader is throwing conflicting signals. (argues the conclusion is provisional)

Stability combines the score gap, how broadly the evidence agrees, how steady the lead has been across daily snapshots, the current signal state on both names, and analyst dispersion on SPY.

How the comparison changed

45 daily snapshots · Sep 6 – Oct 20

SPY lead: Stable — the AIQ differential has held near 28 points over 30 sessions.

Sep 6NFLY leads above the line · SPY leads belowOct 20
Today
SPY +28
38 vs 66
7 sessions ago
SPY +26
40 vs 66
30 sessions ago
SPY +30
36 vs 66
90 sessions ago
Not covered

The lead has not changed hands in this window.

AIQ Signal Divergence

Only the signals that bear on the head-to-head. A conflicted name is carrying bullish and bearish rules at the same time — the technical evidence is not pointing one way.

NFLYConflicted

1 bullish / 3 bearish, conflicted

Only NFLY

  • Death Cross Active — bearish, trend, long horizon (25.80%)
  • 52-Week Low Proximity — bearish, risk, long horizon (0.0%)
  • Downtrend Structure Active — bearish, trend, long horizon
  • MACD Bullish Crossover — bullish, momentum, short horizon
SPYConflicted

4 bullish / 1 bearish / 1 neutral, conflicted

Only SPY

  • Golden Cross Active — bullish, trend, long horizon (5.84%)
  • ATR Contraction - Coiling — neutral, volatility, short horizon (0.92%)
  • EMA Ribbon Expansion Bullish — bullish, trend, medium horizon
  • 52-Week High Proximity — bullish, risk, long horizon (1.2%)
  • Uptrend Structure Active — bullish, trend, long horizon
  • MACD Bearish Crossover — bearish, momentum, short horizon

SPY leads the comparison while carrying a conflicted signal state, which is one reason the stability rating is not higher.

Price vs model alignment

Whether the latest session's price move confirms what the model did over the same session, or contradicts it.

NFLYNo material change

Neither the price nor the AIQ Score moved enough in the latest session to confirm or contradict the other (price -2.61%, AIQ 0 points).

SPYConfirmed strength

Price and the AIQ Score both moved up over the latest session (price +0.53%, AIQ +4 points).

What would flip this result

A state, not a forecast. These are the specific, observable changes that would reverse the verdict — not a price prediction.

  1. 1NFLY closes the Quality gap — currently 50 points behind, the largest single contributor to SPY's edge.
  2. 2NFLY's Death Cross Active resolves — a bearish trend rule currently active against it.
  3. 3SPY's conflicting signal state resolves bearish — it currently carries 4 bullish and 1 bearish rules at once.
  4. 4A regime shift changes factor weighting — Quality and Value carry the heaviest weights in the composite, so a rotation toward either would move the result most.

The full evidence

Every number behind the verdict. The leader is called above each group so you are not left to solve it from the table.

Performance

SPY leads 6 of 6 windows
MetricNFLYSPY
1 week (5 sessions)-3.2%-1.2%
1 month (20 sessions)-7.3%-0.6%
3 months (63 sessions)-10.8%2.9%
6 months (126 sessions)-36.8%9.2%
Year to date-44.8%12.8%
1 year (252 sessions)-58.4%16.4%

Technicals

SPY has the stronger structure
MetricNFLYSPY
RSI (14)38.256.2
ADX (14)31.412.5
Price vs 50-day-13%0.6%
Price vs 200-day-29%5.9%
Volatility (1M, annualized)21.8%9%

Risk

SPY is the more resilient
MetricNFLYSPY
Beta0.311
Sharpe ratio-2.960.91
Sortino ratio-3.991.39
Max drawdown-60.1%-9.1%
Current drawdown-60.1%-1.3%
Annualized volatility29.9%12.8%
Value at risk (95%)-3.1%-1.4%

Straight answers

Short answers to the questions fund investors ask about this pair, from the figures above.

What is the difference between NFLY and SPY?

SPY holds 505 positions to NFLY's 11, and 0% of their weight is in the same securities.

How much do NFLY and SPY overlap?

NFLY and SPY share 0% of their weighted exposure across 0 common holdings. 4 holdings are unique to NFLY, and 504 holdings are unique to SPY. Owning both is genuinely additive — most of the capital sits in different securities.

Which ETF is more diversified, NFLY or SPY?

SPY holds more positions: 505 versus 11 for NFLY.

Which has the lower expense ratio?

SPY has the lower expense ratio, 0.09% a year against 1.01% for NFLY.

Which ETF has the higher distribution yield?

NFLY, with a trailing 12-month distribution yield of 61.79% against 0.99% for SPY.

Which ETF has been more volatile?

NFLY has been more volatile over the past year, at 29.9% annualized against 12.8% for SPY.

Which ETF has had the smaller drawdown?

SPY fell less from peak to trough over the past year: -9.1% against -60.1% for NFLY.

Compare NFLY and SPY with others

Continue your research

This page answers which of the two. These answer the questions on either side of it.

How this comparison is scored

The Algovestiq AIQ Score composites four factors — Quality, Value, Momentum and Risk, each carrying a fixed weight. Sentiment is reported separately as SentimentPulse and is not folded into the composite. Scores refresh every trading day, and this page regenerates from the latest snapshot rather than being written once.

The verdict names a leader, states how broadly six independent evidence groups agree, and rates how durable that conclusion is given the score gap, its recent trajectory and the current signal state on both names.

How to use side-by-side comparison →

This comparison is informational and educational, not investment advice. AIQ scores update daily; re-check after earnings, guidance or macro data that materially changes either name’s factor profile.