Compare/Updated Oct 26, 2026, refreshed every trading day
QQQI vs QQQ
NEOS Nasdaq-100 High Income ETF against Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1: 3 years of returns, risk and today’s technical read, from Kavout’s own data.
QQQ did better over the period: $1,000 invested on Jan 30, 2024 grew to $1,680, versus $1,561 for QQQI—a 68.0% return compared with 56.1%. QQQ also led over 3- and 6-month, YTD, and 1-year periods, while QQQI performed slightly better over 3 months and had a stronger 1-month result. The trade-off was risk: QQQ’s 12-month volatility was 20.0% and its worst drawdown was -22.8%, compared with QQQI’s 16.8% volatility and -20.0% drawdown. QQQI’s high-income approach therefore reduced volatility and drawdown but lagged QQQ’s overall growth. Its 0.68% expense ratio was also higher than QQQ’s 0.20%. With a 0.984 daily-move correlation and QQQI moving 0.82% for each 1% move in QQQ, the funds remained highly similar, but QQQ offered the stronger total-return outcome.
- Price is above its 200-day average ($51); 50-day at $54.
- RSI 36, neutral. Supertrend says sell. ADX 26, so the trend is strong.
- Price is above its 200-day average ($676); 50-day at $725.
- RSI 37, neutral. Supertrend says sell. ADX 25, so the trend is developing.
Head to head
Which has returned more, QQQI or QQQ?
QQQI beat QQQ in 19 of the last 33 months; QQQ won the other 14. The typical monthly gap was 0.73 points.
Total return by period
Which is riskier?
Both: Feb 19, 2025 to Apr 8, 2025
- 0.984
- correlation of daily moves, 3 years
- 0.82
- QQQI move per 1% in QQQ
- 0.988
- correlation, last 12 months
Month by month
Of the last 33 months. The typical gap was 0.73 points.
When did they diverge?
| Month | QQQI | QQQ | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 2026 | +10.3% | +15.7% | -5.42 pts |
| May 2026 | +6.9% | +10.6% | -3.63 pts |
| June 2024 | +3.6% | +6.5% | -2.86 pts |
| May 2025 | +7.0% | +9.2% | -2.14 pts |
Where the numbers come from. 687 daily adjusted closes per fund from the Kavout market-data API, dividends included. Signals and indicators are Kavout’s own, refreshed nightly. Every figure is calculated from those adjusted closes.
Holdings and fees
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