YMAX vs. SPY

Last updated Apr 1, 2026

Compare and contrast key facts about YieldMax Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs (YMAX) and State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY).

YMAX and SPY are both exchange-traded funds (ETFs), meaning they are traded on stock exchanges and can be bought and sold throughout the day. YMAX is an actively managed fund by YieldMax. It was launched on Jan 16, 2024. SPY is a passively managed fund by State Street that tracks the performance of the S&P 500 Index. It was launched on Jan 22, 1993.

Performance

YMAX vs. SPY - Performance Comparison

The chart below illustrates the hypothetical performance of a $10,000 investment in YieldMax Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs (YMAX) and State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY). The values are adjusted to include any dividend payments, if applicable.

YMAX vs. SPY - Yearly Performance Comparison

	2026 (YTD)	2025	2024
YMAX YieldMax Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs	-13.13%	6.04%	26.26%
SPY State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF	-4.37%	17.72%	25.68%

Returns By Period

In the year-to-date period, YMAX achieves a -13.13% return, which is significantly lower than SPY's -4.37% return.

YMAX

• 1D: 4.26%
• 1M: -6.12%
• YTD: -13.13%
• 6M: -20.13%
• 1Y: 2.76%
• 3Y*: —
• 5Y*: —
• 10Y*: —

SPY

• 1D: 2.91%
• 1M: -4.94%
• YTD: -4.37%
• 6M: -1.82%
• 1Y: 17.59%
• 3Y*: 18.19%
• 5Y*: 11.69%
• 10Y*: 13.98%

*Multi-year figures are annualized to reflect compound growth (CAGR)

YMAX vs. SPY - Expense Ratio Comparison

YMAX has a 1.28% expense ratio, which is higher than SPY's 0.09% expense ratio.

YMAX

YieldMax Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs

SPY

State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF

Return for Risk

YMAX vs. SPY — Risk / Return Rank

Compare risk-adjusted metric ranks to identify better-performing investments over the past 12 months.

YMAX

YMAX Risk / Return Rank: 15
YMAX Sharpe Ratio Rank: 15
YMAX Sortino Ratio Rank: 16
YMAX Omega Ratio Rank: 16
YMAX Calmar Ratio Rank: 14
YMAX Martin Ratio Rank: 14

SPY

SPY Risk / Return Rank: 64
SPY Sharpe Ratio Rank: 56
SPY Sortino Ratio Rank: 60
SPY Omega Ratio Rank: 65
SPY Calmar Ratio Rank: 65
SPY Martin Ratio Rank: 75

The rank (0–100) shows how this investment's returns compare to the risk taken. Higher = better. Based on the past 12 months of data, combining Sharpe, Sortino, and other metrics used by quantitative funds and institutional investors.

YMAX vs. SPY - Risk-Adjusted Trends Comparison

This table presents a comparison of risk-adjusted performance metrics for YieldMax Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs (YMAX) and State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY). Risk-adjusted metrics are performance indicators that assess an investment's returns in relation to its risk, enabling a more accurate comparison of different investment options.

	YMAX	SPY	Difference
Sharpe ratio Return per unit of total volatility	0.11	0.93	-0.82
Sortino ratio Return per unit of downside risk	0.32	1.45	-1.13
Omega ratio Gain probability vs. loss probability	1.04	1.22	-0.18
Calmar ratio Return relative to maximum drawdown	0.06	1.53	-1.46
Martin ratio Return relative to average drawdown	0.18	7.30	-7.12
Data is calculated on a 1-year rolling basis and updated daily. The trend shows the change in the indicator over the past month.

YMAX vs. SPY - Sharpe Ratio Comparison

The current YMAX Sharpe Ratio is 0.11, which is lower than the SPY Sharpe Ratio of 0.93. The chart below compares the historical Sharpe Ratios of YMAX and SPY, offering insights into how both investments have performed under varying market conditions. These values are calculated using daily returns over the previous 12 months.

Sharpe Ratios by Period

	YMAX	SPY	Difference
Sharpe Ratio (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	0.11	0.93	-0.82
Sharpe Ratio (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period	—	0.69	—
Sharpe Ratio (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period	—	0.78	—
Sharpe Ratio (All Time) Calculated using the full available price history	0.31	0.56	-0.25

Correlation

The correlation between YMAX and SPY is 0.80, which is considered to be high. That indicates a strong positive relationship between their price movements. Having highly-correlated positions in a portfolio may signal a lack of diversification, potentially leading to increased risk during market downturns.

Dividends

YMAX vs. SPY - Dividend Comparison

YMAX's dividend yield for the trailing twelve months is around 86.03%, more than SPY's 1.14% yield.

	TTM	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
YMAX YieldMax Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs	86.03%	78.70%	44.20%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
SPY State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF	1.14%	1.07%	1.21%	1.40%	1.65%	1.20%	1.52%	1.75%	2.04%	1.80%	2.03%	2.06%

Drawdowns

YMAX vs. SPY - Drawdown Comparison

The maximum YMAX drawdown since its inception was -26.13%, smaller than the maximum SPY drawdown of -55.19%. Use the drawdown chart below to compare losses from any high point for YMAX and SPY.

Drawdown Indicators

	YMAX	SPY	Difference
Max Drawdown Largest peak-to-trough decline	-26.13%	-55.19%	+29.06%
Max Drawdown (1Y) Largest decline over 1 year	-26.13%	-12.05%	-14.08%
Max Drawdown (5Y) Largest decline over 5 years	—	-24.50%	—
Max Drawdown (10Y) Largest decline over 10 years	—	-33.72%	—
Current Drawdown Current decline from peak	-22.99%	-6.24%	-16.75%
Average Drawdown Average peak-to-trough decline	-5.84%	-9.09%	+3.25%
Ulcer Index Depth and duration of drawdowns from previous peaks	9.61%	2.52%	+7.09%

Volatility

YMAX vs. SPY - Volatility Comparison

YieldMax Universe Fund of Option Income ETFs (YMAX) has a higher volatility of 9.85% compared to State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) at 5.31%. This indicates that YMAX's price experiences larger fluctuations and is considered to be riskier than SPY based on this measure. The chart below showcases a comparison of their rolling one-month volatility.

Volatility by Period

	YMAX	SPY	Difference
Volatility (1M) Calculated over the trailing 1-month period	9.85%	5.31%	+4.54%
Volatility (6M) Calculated over the trailing 6-month period	17.65%	9.47%	+8.18%
Volatility (1Y) Calculated over the trailing 1-year period	25.35%	19.05%	+6.30%
Volatility (5Y) Calculated over the trailing 5-year period, annualized	23.02%	17.06%	+5.96%
Volatility (10Y) Calculated over the trailing 10-year period, annualized	23.02%	17.92%	+5.10%