Is RAFI or QYLD a better dividend investment in 2026?

RAFI currently yields 7.42% 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 RAFI and QYLD?

RAFI has a forward dividend yield of 7.42% ($0.31/share annually). QYLD yields 11.92% ($2.04/share annually). The yield gap is 4.50 percentage points.

Home › Compare › RAFI vs QYLD

RAFI vs QYLD: Dividend Comparison 2026

RAFI yields 7.42% · QYLD yields 11.92%● Live data

vsPost on X →

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

🏆 RAFI wins by $7.1K in total portfolio value

INVESTMENT

TIME HORIZON10 years

RAFI

● Live price

7.42%

Share price

$4.18

Annual div

$0.31

5Y div CAGR

-0.2%

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$32.5K

Annual income

$1,158.60

Full RAFI 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 — RAFI vs QYLD

📍 RAFI 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	RAFI	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%.

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Dividend Calendar Overlap

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

Jan

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Feb

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Mar

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Apr

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May

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Jun

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Jul

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Aug

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Sep

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Oct

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Nov

—

Dec

—

RAFI pays

QYLD pays

Both pay

Neither

💰

Tax Bracket Optimizer

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

RAFI

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

$630.38/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$984.81/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 $3,825.60/year in after-tax income after 10 years on $10,000

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Lazy Portfolio Split Optimizer

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

RAFI: 50%QYLD: 50%

100% QYLD50/50100% RAFI

Portfolio after 10yr

$29.0K

Annual income

$3,408.96/yr

Blended yield

11.77%

🏛️

Copy Congress — What Are Politicians Buying?

Senate & House STOCK Act disclosures (last 90 days)

RAFI buys

QYLD buys

Politician	Chamber	Ticker	Type	Amount	Date
Tim Moore	🏢 House	$QYLD	▼ Sell	$15,001 - $50,000	2025-05-02
Tim Moore	🏢 House	$QYLD	▲ Buy	$15,001 - $50,000	2025-04-07
Dwight Evans	🏢 House	$QYLD	▼ Sell	$1,001 - $15,000	2022-11-14
Dwight Evans	🏢 House	$QYLD	▼ Sell	$1,001 - $15,000	2020-10-29

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

MetricRAFIQYLD

Forward yield	7.42%	11.92% ✓
Annual dividend / share	$0.31	$2.04 ✓
Payout ratio	50%	50%
1-year div growth	0%	0%
5-year div CAGR	-0.2%	0% ✓
Portfolio after 10y	$32.5K ✓	$25.4K
Annual income after 10y	$1,158.60	$5,659.31 ✓
Total dividends collected	$9.6K	$27.1K ✓
Payment frequency	quarterly	monthly
Sector	Stock	ETF

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

Year	RAFI Portfolio	RAFI Income/yr	QYLD Portfolio	QYLD Income/yr	Gap
1← crossover	$11,440	$740.14	$10,352	$1,192.36	+$1.1K → RAFI
2	$13,031	$789.76	$10,830	$1,347.57	+$2.2K → RAFI
3	$14,782	$839.03	$11,460	$1,539.07	+$3.3K → RAFI
4	$16,704	$887.74	$12,275	$1,777.84	+$4.4K → RAFI
5	$18,809	$935.69	$13,323	$2,078.95	+$5.5K → RAFI
6	$21,109	$982.71	$14,667	$2,463.34	+$6.4K → RAFI
7	$23,615	$1,028.63	$16,396	$2,960.57	+$7.2K → RAFI
8	$26,341	$1,073.32	$18,631	$3,612.97	+$7.7K → RAFI
9	$29,302	$1,116.68	$21,548	$4,482.15	+$7.8K → RAFI
10	$32,512	$1,158.60	$25,398	$5,659.31	+$7.1K → RAFI

RAFI vs QYLD: Complete Analysis 2026

RAFI — Stock

Regency Affiliates, Inc., through its interest in MESC Capital, LLC, owns an on-site energy facility that supplies approximately 61 megawatts of steam and electricity to a Kimberly-Clark tissue mill in Mobile, Alabama. It also owns and operates 34.3 acres of land and rental property of approximately 717,000 square feet comprising a 2-story office building and a connected 6-story office tower in Woodlawn, Maryland through a limited partnership interest. The company is based in New York, New York.

Full RAFI 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 →

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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.