Most Income Investors Have Never Heard of These 3 ETFs Paying Up to 15 Percent Every Month

Three monthly-paying ETFs quietly deliver income streams that dwarf what most retirees get from their bond portfolios, and none of them show up on the popular high-yield lists dominated by JEPI, QYLD, and SCHD. The Goldman Sachs Nasdaq-100 Core Premium Income ETF (NASDAQ:GPIQ), the Virtus InfraCap U.S. Preferred Stock ETF (NYSEARCA:PFFA), and the NEOS Russell 2000 High Income ETF (CBOE:IWMI) each pull income from a distinct engine: large-cap tech call premiums, leveraged preferred stock, and small-cap options overlays.

Each one fills a different structural gap in an income portfolio. With the 10-year Treasury yield now sitting near 5%, the spread these funds offer over risk-free paper remains wide enough to matter, provided investors understand what they are taking in exchange.

IWMI: Small-Cap Premiums With a Tax Wrapper

IWMI is perhaps the least familiar name on this list and the highest payer. The fund runs a data-driven call-writing overlay on Russell 2000 exposure, harvesting the elevated implied volatility that small caps carry relative to the S&P 500. Because it writes index options rather than single-stock options, the premium income is generally taxed under Section 1256, meaning distributions can benefit from a 60/40 long-term/short-term split rather than being treated as fully ordinary income.

That tax structure matters because small-cap volatility is structurally richer than large-cap volatility, which translates into fatter option premiums. IWMI’s trailing 12-month payout is $7.24 per share, and the ex-dividend date for October landed on October 21, 2026. Against the fund’s current share price, the trailing 12-month distribution rate sits at roughly 14.5% to 15%, making it the highest-yielding fund in this group.

Total return through September 30, 2026 came to about 16.3% over the trailing year on a NAV basis, a solid result for a strategy designed to trade some upside for income. The expense ratio is 0.68% net (0.76% gross), which is on the higher end for an equity ETF but reasonable given the active options management involved.

The tradeoff is capped upside. When small caps rip higher, IWMI’s written calls surrender the tail of that move. In a sideways or grinding market, that trade favors the fund. In a violent rally off a bottom, holders will trail a plain Russell 2000 index fund by a meaningful margin.

GPIQ: Nasdaq-100 Growth With a Premium Kicker

GPIQ is Goldman Sachs’ answer to JEPQ, and it takes a lighter hand with the options overlay than the older, more aggressive Nasdaq call-writing funds. The portfolio holds the actual Nasdaq-100 constituents and writes calls against a portion of the notional exposure, preserving meaningful equity participation while still generating monthly premium income.

The holdings read like a who’s-who of mega-cap tech. As of the June 30, 2026 filing, top positions were NVIDIA at roughly 7.5% of net assets, Apple near 6.6%, Micron at 5.6%, Amazon at 4.2%, and AMD at 4.1%:

1. NVIDIA — roughly 7.5% of net assets
2. Apple — near 6.6%
3. Micron — 5.6%
4. Amazon — 4.2%
5. AMD — 4.1%

Four written call positions against Morgan Stanley as counterparty appear as negative weights totaling roughly negative 0.85% of net assets, illustrating just how modest the option overlay is relative to the equity book.

That lighter overlay explains why GPIQ has kept pace with a bull market better than heavier call-writers. The fund paid $0.50881 per share in October 2026 (ex-date October 1), up from $0.49683 in September and $0.48615 in August, a steady upward drift that reflects rising premium income. The trailing 12-month distribution is now $5.77, and the forward annualized figure has climbed to roughly $6.11, putting the distribution rate at approximately 10.5% to 11% against current prices near $55. Net assets have grown to $6.36 billion, nearly a quarter more than the $5.1 billion reported at mid-year. For an investor who wants Nasdaq exposure without sacrificing all the upside for yield, GPIQ remains the most balanced covered-call product in the category.

PFFA: Leveraged Preferreds for a Different Return Stream

PFFA is the contrarian pick, and the one that behaves least like the other two. It is an actively managed portfolio of U.S. preferred securities that uses modest leverage, typically 20% to 25% of fund assets, to amplify yield. Preferreds sit between bonds and common stock in the capital structure, paying fixed or floating coupons and typically trading more like credit than equity. Layering leverage on top of that coupon stream is how PFFA reaches its double-digit distribution rate.

The portfolio spans financials, REITs, insurers, utilities, and infrastructure names. As of the April 30, 2026 filing, top weights were Energy Transfer’s preferred series I at roughly 2.4% of net assets, First Citizens Bancshares at 2.4%, Telephone & Data Systems at 2.3%, Banc of California at 2.3%, and KKR at 2.2%:

1. Energy Transfer preferred series I — roughly 2.4% of net assets
2. First Citizens Bancshares — 2.4%
3. Telephone & Data Systems — 2.3%
4. Banc of California — 2.3%
5. KKR — 2.2%

Multiple preferred series from Triton International, Chimera Investment, Two Harbors, and Vornado Realty appear as well, reflecting the fund’s willingness to size up when it likes an issuer’s whole preferred stack.

The distribution has been steady at $0.1725 per share monthly through all of 2026, an increase from $0.17 in 2025 and $0.1675 in 2024. Shares have pulled back from the $21 level mentioned when this article was first published, settling near $18.78 as of late October 2026 as Treasury yields climbed past 5%. At that price, the fund’s distribution rate is closer to 11%, a meaningful jump from the 10% figure cited earlier in the year.

That dynamic illustrates the core risk plainly. Rising long rates pressure preferred prices, and PFFA’s leverage amplifies the NAV drawdown. Total return on price alone is roughly 3% over the trailing year, with the distribution doing most of the heavy lifting. That is precisely what you should expect from a fixed-income-flavored product where the investment case is coupon-driven rather than capital-gain-driven.

Choosing Between the Three

These funds are not interchangeable. GPIQ suits an investor who still wants tech beta and is willing to give up some upside for a monthly check that scales with market volatility. IWMI fits someone who believes small caps will chop rather than rocket, and who values the Section 1256 tax treatment in a taxable account. PFFA belongs in a portfolio that already has equity exposure and needs a genuinely different return stream, one driven by preferred coupons and leverage rather than call premiums.

The common thread is that all three trade some price appreciation for a large, dependable, monthly distribution. For an income-focused portfolio built to spend the yield rather than reinvest it, that trade can be exactly the right one (we rounded up seven more monthly payers, across REITs, BDCs, and funds, in a free report for readers who want to widen the bench).

Editor’s note: This pass updated the 10-year Treasury yield reference from roughly 4.8% to roughly 5%, refreshed GPIQ’s trailing 12-month distribution to $5.77 and AUM to $6.36 billion, corrected PFFA’s share price from $21 to approximately $18.78 with a distribution rate now near 11%, and updated IWMI’s distribution rate to roughly 14.5% to 15% reflecting the October 21, 2026 ex-dividend date.

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