3 Monthly Dividend ETFs Every Retiree Should Own

When it comes time to retire, one of the biggest shocks people face is needing more income than they expected. Now that the paychecks are no longer coming like clockwork, the challenge of generating steady cashflow can be stressful. The transition to retirement can be tricky, given the dynamic of having more time on your hands but often less income at your fingertips. This lifestyle change can be especially scary if a sudden health emergency emerges in which your expenses rise with little or no warning.

According to the National Council on Aging, nearly 47% of adults aged 65 or older are living below the income standard in their communities, as measured by what’s known as the Elder Index. This is where a retiree’s investment strategy can make all the difference, and dividend ETFs can rise to become an increasingly important part of the income mix. If you happen to uncover ETFs that make their cash distributions monthly instead of the usual quarterly payouts, you’ve probably just hit the jackpot. Fortunately, we’ve researched and found three monthly dividend ETFs that are strong candidates for any retiree’s investment portfolio.

JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF (JEPI) 

One of the most attractive features of the JPMorgan Equity Premium Income ETF is that it delivers monthly income to investors, which can be especially valuable to retirees. The JEPI ETF generates the income from a combination of option premiums by selling call options and stock dividends. This ETF’s strategy is to achieve diversification and low volatility through stocks with a compelling risk/reward proposition. On the capital appreciation front, JEPI targets returns similar to the S&P 500 but with less volatility.

If someone had invested $10,000 in the JEPI ETF at the start of 2025 (specifically, on January 2, 2025, when the share price was $57.49), they would have purchased approximately 174 shares. Based on the monthly dividends paid from February to July 2025, totaling $2.48891 per share, that investor would have earned approximately $432.93 in dividends year-to-date.

Top holdings in the JEPI ETF include dividend payers such as Visa (NYSE: V), Mastercard (NYSE: MA), Trane Technologies (NYSE: TT) and Progressive. This ETF also features some high-flying technology names, including Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT), Meta (Nasdaq: META), Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) and Nvidia (Nasdaq; NVDA), among others.

Despite a choppy year for many of the stocks in the JEPI ETF, this fund has delivered returns of approximately 4% year-to-date. With an expense ratio of 0.35%, retirees get to pocket much of those returns. JEPI’s monthly dividend amount varies as it is dependent on proceeds from selling call options plus the underlying dividends of its components. 

Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND) 

Considering that bonds are practically synonymous with income, we thought we would add one fixed income fund to the mix. We’ve selected the Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND) for its efficient cost, steady performance and reliable income. With a super low expense ratio of 0.03%, this Vanguard fund’s cost efficiency is hard to beat. Vanguard’s BND invests in thousands of intermediate-term bonds with an average maturity of 8.2 years, boasting a 30-day SEC yield of 4,.39%.  The BND ETF provides investors with the capital preservation and frequent income stream that retirees may need.

If someone had invested $10,000 in the Vanguard BND ETF at the start of 2025 (when the share price was $72.19), they would have purchased approximately 138 shares. Based on the monthly dividends paid by this ETF year-to-date, which total $1.4067 per share, that investor would have earned approximately $194.86 in dividend income so far in 2025.

On the performance side, BND has delivered year-to-date returns of 3.6% and a higher 6% over the past 12-month stretch. BND falls on the safer side of the risk/reward spectrum. This security makes BND a reasonable addition to any retiree’s portfolio, particularly someone seeking income on a monthly basis. BND’s annual dividend tally comes to $2.76 per share. 

JPMorgan Nasdaq Equity Premium Income ETF (JEPQ) 

We may have saved the best for last. We’d like to introduce the second of our favored JPMorgan funds, the JPMorgan Nasdaq Equity Premium Income ETF (JEPQ). This compelling ETF will add some excitement to your investment portfolio. The JEPQ ETF strives to deliver the best of both worlds to investors – monthly income and exposure to the tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 index but with low volatility. With an expense ratio of 0.35%, JPMorgan says the JEPQ ETF is competitively priced relative to its peers. 

With a 30-day SEC yield of 11.2%, the JEPQ ETF’s strategy is sophisticated, involving data science, fundamental research and call options. With over 100 holdings, this fund as delivered returns of 2.05% year-to-date. Over the past 12 months, returns are closer to 10%.

If someone had invested $10,000 in the JPMorgan Nasdaq Equity Premium Income ETF (JEPQ) at the start of 2025 (when the share price was $56.72), they would have purchased approximately 176 shares. Based on the monthly dividends paid so far in 2025, which total $3.1860 per share, that investor would have earned approximately $561.71 in dividend income so far this year. Not too shabby for a retiree looking to bolster their income streams in a volatile stock market backdrop.