Best MLPI Alternatives in 2026

MLPI combines midstream exposure with an index-options income strategy. AMLP, the Alerian MLP ETF, and MLPA emphasize MLPs through different portfolio and tax structures, while MLPX, ENFR, EMLP, and TPYP broaden the universe toward corporate midstream operators and other Alerian energy infrastructure benchmarks. Those choices affect corporate tax drag, K-1 exposure, concentration, fees, and sensitivity to energy infrastructure cash flows. MLPI's option premium can lift current distributions but may surrender part of a strong rally. A fair comparison therefore puts after-tax structure and total return beside the headline yield.

• Strategy mismatch: several funds on this list track a different index or use a different income mechanism than MLPI, so swapping into one changes the exposure — upside participation, payout cadence, and tax character can all shift, not just the ticker.
• Concentration in one theme: most funds here focus on MLP, so the whole list tends to draw down together when that corner of the market falls out of favor — diversification across the table is lower than the fund count suggests.
• Expense drag: expense ratios in this group average 0.67% — several times what broad index funds charge — and that cost compounds directly against total return.
• Distributions are not contractual: each payout is declared period by period, so the yields on this page can fall without notice when portfolio income, option premium, or fund policy changes.
• Methodology divergence: every fund here follows its own index rules or mandate, so two funds with similar headline yields can hold very different portfolios and diverge sharply in a drawdown — category membership is not interchangeability.

• Universe: a hand-curated peer set, split into close peers (6 here — same core exposure and same income mechanism, so a like-for-like swap) and broader substitutes (a different index, underlying asset, or income mechanism). Every fund is labelled in the Strategy fit column; MLPI itself is excluded.
• Eligibility: active ETFs only — liquidated, delisted, and renamed funds drop out automatically. Leveraged and inverse products are never listed: a daily-reset 2x or -1x fund is not an alternative to a long income position.
• Ranking: assets under management, a size-and-liquidity proxy. Never ranked by yield — yields are shown as data, not used to order the list.
• Fit: how each fund's strategy differs from MLPI — and who each one suits — is covered in the strategy notes and FAQ below.