Forget JEPI. NEOS’s S&P Income Fund Returned 14.46% Over the Past Year Against JEPI’s 8.75%.
A newer, lesser-known S&P 500 income fund has been quietly outpacing JEPI by a wide margin, but its short track record raises a question every retiree relying on monthly payouts needs to answer before making a move.
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JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF (NYSEARCA:JEPI) is the best-known options-income fund among retirees, and JEPI owners value it for clear reasons. It pays monthly, holds large U.S. stocks, and aims to move less than the broad market. Over the past year, though, JEPI returned 8.75%, while the newer NEOS S&P 500 High Income ETF (CBOE:SPYI) returned 14.46%. That is a gap of 5.71 percentage points. Both one-year windows end on the same date, October 20, 2025, and both results reflect reinvested distributions.
What These Returns Assume About Your Payouts
Each fund pays large monthly distributions, and many owners spend them. A total return figure assumes every payout bought more shares. Taking the cash instead means missing these exact returns, so the account will show a different result.
This matters most for retirees using either fund as a paycheck. The figures above compare how the two funds performed. They do not show what a spending investor ended up with, so treat them only as a fund comparison.
SPYI Leads This Year, but Not Every Month
Year to date, SPYI is up 11.4% against JEPI’s 6.47%, a lead of 4.93 percentage points. For JEPI holders, that means the past-year gap reflects more than a single strong run late in 2025.
Over the past month, JEPI returned 2.69%, while SPYI returned 0.7%. JEPI was ahead, so SPYI’s lead does not hold in every period.
A Short Track Record You Need to Weigh
SPYI is newer. Price history for it begins on August 30, 2022, so no five-year or ten-year comparison with JEPI exists, and none can be built. JEPI’s longer record has no matching SPYI period to compare against.
For a JEPI holder, that means SPYI’s edge rests on a short window: the lead is real but recent and has not yet been tested over a full market cycle.
How Each Fund Turns Stocks Into Income
Each fund holds large U.S. stocks and sells options to earn extra income, but they go about it differently. JEPI combines selling options with investing in U.S. large-cap stocks, according to JPMorgan’s September 30, 2026 fact sheet. Its monthly income comes from option premiums and stock dividends. JEPI builds a diversified, low-volatility stock portfolio through proprietary research and looks for less volatility than the U.S. large-cap market.
NEOS says SPYI looks for high monthly income with the potential for upside appreciation in rising markets. The fund invests in S&P 500 stocks and options on the S&P 500 Index. Its June 30, 2026 holdings filing lists Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL | AAPL Price Prediction), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) among its largest positions.
Income from both funds varies. Option premiums rise and fall with market conditions, so payouts from either strategy shift over time.
Check What Your Distributions Actually Contain
Some options-income fund distributions can include return of capital. That means part of a payout may be your own money coming back to you rather than income the fund earned. A large distribution can look like pure income when part of it is not.
Before buying either fund, read its distribution notices and the year-end tax forms your broker sends. Those documents break each payout into its parts. The same check applies to JEPI shares you already own.
If a monthly paycheck is the whole reason you own JEPI, it is worth seeing what the comparison looks like outside of fund wrappers. We lined up seven individual monthly payers, from REITs to BDCs, in a free report on stocks that pay every 30 days.
Considering a Switch From JEPI to SPYI
Investors who can accept a track record that starts in August 2022 in exchange for SPYI’s stronger past-year and year-to-date results may want to research how SPYI compares with a JEPI position. That move is cleanest inside an IRA, since selling JEPI outside a tax-sheltered account can trigger capital gains. Retirees who value JEPI’s longer history and low-volatility design have reasons to favor it, because one strong year and a weaker past month do not yet prove SPYI can hold its lead. If SPYI keeps that lead through a full market downturn, its record will carry much more weight.
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Ryne Mauck is an investment writer covering exchange-traded funds, retirement planning, and portfolio strategy. Through his work at 24/7 Wall St. and other investment platforms, including Seeking Alpha, he aims to provide clear, research-driven insights that help investors make more informed decisions while maintaining a long-term approach to investing.
Ryne holds a B.Sc. in Finance and an M.A. in Political Science. He is a formerly registered Municipal Advisor Representative and has passed the Series 50, Series 63, and Series 65 exams. His articles are not intended to be, nor should they be interpreted as, financial advice.
