Is DEF or RYLD a better dividend investment in 2026?

DEF currently yields 1.25% with a 5% 5-year dividend growth rate. RYLD yields 12.14% with 5% growth. The better choice depends on your goal: RYLD offers higher current income.

What is the dividend yield difference between DEF and RYLD?

DEF has a forward dividend yield of 1.25% ($0.85/share annually). RYLD yields 12.14% ($1.81/share annually). The yield gap is 10.89 percentage points.

Home › Compare › DEF vs RYLD

DEF vs RYLD: Dividend Comparison 2026

DEF yields 1.25% · RYLD yields 12.14%● Live data

vsPost on X →

After 10 years · $10,000 invested · DRIP enabled

🏆 RYLD wins by $23.1K in total portfolio value

INVESTMENT

TIME HORIZON10 years

DEF

● Live price

1.25%

Share price

$67.84

Annual div

$0.85

5Y div CAGR

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$21.5K

Annual income

$135.07

Full DEF calculator →

RYLD

● Live price

12.14%

Share price

$14.95

Annual div

$1.81

5Y div CAGR

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$44.5K

Annual income

$2,587.35

Full RYLD calculator →

Portfolio growth — DEF vs RYLD

📍 RYLD pulled ahead of the other in Year 1

Annual dividend income

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Recession Test — Did They Cut Dividends?

How each stock treated shareholders during the 3 biggest crises of the last 20 years

Crisis Period	DEF	RYLD
2008–2009 GFC	— No data	— No data
2020 Q1–Q2 COVID	— No data	— No data
2022 Q4 Rate Hike	— No data	— No data

Based on dividend payment history. "Increased" = dividend grew during crisis. "Maintained" = held within 3%. "Cut" = reduced by more than 3%.

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Dividend Calendar Overlap

Combined, DEF + RYLD cover 0 of 12 months — good coverage

Jan

—

Feb

—

Mar

—

Apr

—

May

—

Jun

—

Jul

—

Aug

—

Sep

—

Oct

—

Nov

—

Dec

—

DEF pays

RYLD pays

Both pay

Neither

💰

Tax Bracket Optimizer

Which stock is actually better after tax? Adjust your rate to find out.

DEF

Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)

$105.90/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$114.81/yr

RYLD

Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)

$1,031.60/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$2,199.25/yr

At 15% tax rate, RYLD beats the other by $2,084.44/year in after-tax income after 10 years on $10,000

⚖️

Lazy Portfolio Split Optimizer

What's the optimal mix of DEF + RYLD for your $10,000?

DEF: 50%RYLD: 50%

100% RYLD50/50100% DEF

Portfolio after 10yr

$33.0K

Annual income

$1,361.20/yr

Blended yield

4.13%

🏛️

Copy Congress — What Are Politicians Buying?

Senate & House STOCK Act disclosures (last 90 days)

DEF buys

RYLD buys

No recent congressional trades found for DEF or RYLD in the last 90 days.

STOCK Act mandates disclosure within 45 days of transaction. Data via FMP.Full tracker →

MetricDEFRYLD

Forward yield	1.25%	12.14% ✓
Annual dividend / share	$0.85	$1.81 ✓
Payout ratio	50%	50%
1-year div growth	0%	0%
5-year div CAGR	0%	0%
Portfolio after 10y	$21.5K	$44.5K ✓
Annual income after 10y	$135.07	$2,587.35 ✓
Total dividends collected	$1.3K	$18.8K ✓
Payment frequency	quarterly	quarterly
Sector	Stock	ETF

Year-by-year: DEF vs RYLD ($10,000, DRIP)

Year	DEF Portfolio	DEF Income/yr	RYLD Portfolio	RYLD Income/yr	Gap
1← crossover	$10,825	$124.58	$11,914	$1,213.65	$1.1K → RYLD
2	$11,708	$126.03	$14,099	$1,351.30	$2.4K → RYLD
3	$12,655	$127.40	$16,580	$1,494.55	$3.9K → RYLD
4	$13,670	$128.70	$19,384	$1,642.61	$5.7K → RYLD
5	$14,757	$129.92	$22,535	$1,794.70	$7.8K → RYLD
6	$15,921	$131.08	$26,063	$1,950.00	$10.1K → RYLD
7	$17,167	$132.17	$29,995	$2,107.69	$12.8K → RYLD
8	$18,502	$133.19	$34,361	$2,266.99	$15.9K → RYLD
9	$19,932	$134.16	$39,194	$2,427.12	$19.3K → RYLD
10	$21,462	$135.07	$44,525	$2,587.35	$23.1K → RYLD

DEF vs RYLD: Complete Analysis 2026

DEF — Stock

The fund generally will invest at least 80% of its total assets in the securities that comprise the underlying index. The underlying index is comprised of a subset of securities from the S&P 500® Index (the S&P 500). The fund will concentrate its investments in securities of issuers in any one industry or group of industries only to the extent that the underlying index reflects a concentration in that industry or group of industries.

Full DEF Calculator →

RYLD — ETF

The Global X Russell 2000 Covered Call ETF (RYLD) seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Cboe Russell 2000 BuyWrite Index.

Full RYLD Calculator →

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⚠️ Educational purposes only. Not financial advice. Congressional trades sourced from SEC STOCK Act filings via FMP. Past performance does not guarantee future results.