Is HDEF or QYLD a better dividend investment in 2026?

HDEF currently yields 3.61% with a 5% 5-year dividend growth rate. QYLD yields 11.92% with -2.1% growth. The better choice depends on your goal: QYLD offers higher current income.

What is the dividend yield difference between HDEF and QYLD?

HDEF has a forward dividend yield of 3.61% ($1.17/share annually). QYLD yields 11.92% ($2.04/share annually). The yield gap is 8.31 percentage points.

Home › Compare › HDEF vs QYLD

HDEF vs QYLD: Dividend Comparison 2026

HDEF yields 3.61% · QYLD yields 11.92%● Live data

vsPost on X →

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

🏆 QYLD wins by $132.00 in total portfolio value· pulled ahead in Year 10

INVESTMENT

TIME HORIZON10 years

HDEF

● Live price

3.61%

Share price

$32.41

Annual div

$1.17

5Y div CAGR

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$25.3K

Annual income

$455.36

Full HDEF calculator →

QYLD

Global X Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF

● Live price

11.92%

Share price

$17.15

Annual div

$2.04

5Y div CAGR

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$25.4K

Annual income

$5,659.31

Full QYLD calculator →

Portfolio growth — HDEF vs QYLD

📍 QYLD pulled ahead of the other in Year 10

Annual dividend income

🛡️

Recession Test — Did They Cut Dividends?

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

Crisis Period	HDEF	QYLD
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%.

📅

Dividend Calendar Overlap

Combined, HDEF + QYLD cover 0 of 12 months — good coverage

Jan

—

Feb

—

Mar

—

Apr

—

May

—

Jun

—

Jul

—

Aug

—

Sep

—

Oct

—

Nov

—

Dec

—

HDEF pays

QYLD pays

Both pay

Neither

💰

Tax Bracket Optimizer

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

HDEF

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

$306.88/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$387.06/yr

QYLD

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

$1,013.51/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$4,810.41/yr

At 15% tax rate, QYLD beats the other by $4,423.36/year in after-tax income after 10 years on $10,000

⚖️

Lazy Portfolio Split Optimizer

What's the optimal mix of HDEF + QYLD for your $10,000?

HDEF: 50%QYLD: 50%

100% QYLD50/50100% HDEF

Portfolio after 10yr

$25.3K

Annual income

$3,057.34/yr

Blended yield

12.07%

🏛️

Copy Congress — What Are Politicians Buying?

Senate & House STOCK Act disclosures (last 90 days)

HDEF buys

QYLD buys

No recent congressional trades found for HDEF or QYLD in the last 90 days.

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

MetricHDEFQYLD

Forward yield	3.61%	11.92% ✓
Annual dividend / share	$1.17	$2.04 ✓
Payout ratio	50%	50%
1-year div growth	0%	0%
5-year div CAGR	0%	0%
Portfolio after 10y	$25.3K	$25.4K ✓
Annual income after 10y	$455.36	$5,659.31 ✓
Total dividends collected	$4.1K	$27.1K ✓
Payment frequency	quarterly	monthly
Sector	Stock	ETF

Year-by-year: HDEF vs QYLD ($10,000, DRIP)

Year	HDEF Portfolio	HDEF Income/yr	QYLD Portfolio	QYLD Income/yr	Gap
1	$11,061	$361.03	$10,352	$1,192.36	+$709.00 → HDEF
2	$12,209	$373.22	$10,830	$1,347.57	+$1.4K → HDEF
3	$13,448	$384.98	$11,460	$1,539.07	+$2.0K → HDEF
4	$14,786	$396.33	$12,275	$1,777.84	+$2.5K → HDEF
5	$16,228	$407.25	$13,323	$2,078.95	+$2.9K → HDEF
6	$17,782	$417.73	$14,667	$2,463.34	+$3.1K → HDEF
7	$19,454	$427.78	$16,396	$2,960.57	+$3.1K → HDEF
8	$21,253	$437.40	$18,631	$3,612.97	+$2.6K → HDEF
9	$23,188	$446.59	$21,548	$4,482.15	+$1.6K → HDEF
10← crossover	$25,266	$455.36	$25,398	$5,659.31	$132.00 → QYLD

HDEF vs QYLD: Complete Analysis 2026

HDEF — Stock

Xtrackers MSCI EAFE High Dividend Yield Equity ETF (the “Fund”) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the performance, before fees and expenses, of the MSCI EAFE High Dividend Yield Index (the “Underlying Index”).

Full HDEF Calculator →

QYLD — ETF

The Global X Nasdaq 100 Covered Call ETF (QYLD) seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Cboe Nasdaq-100 BuyWrite V2 Index.

Full QYLD Calculator →

📬

Get this HDEF vs QYLD comparison by email

Save your analysis + weekly dividend insights. Free forever.

More comparisons

HDEF vs SCHD HDEF vs JEPI HDEF vs O HDEF vs KO HDEF vs MAIN HDEF vs XYLD HDEF vs JEPQ HDEF vs RYLD

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