497

CHAPMAN AND CUTLER LLP                                 111 WEST MONROE STREET
                                                      CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60603


                               February 22, 2013


Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F Street, N.E.
Washington, DC 20549


         Re:           First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund III
                     (Registration Nos. 333-176976, 811-22245)
                   ---------------------------------------------


Ladies and Gentlemen:

      On behalf of First Trust Exchange-Traded Fund III (the "Registrant"), we
are transmitting for electronic filing pursuant to Rule 497(e) under the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the exhibits containing interactive data
format risk/return summary information that mirrors the risk/return summary
information in the form of Prospectus for the Registrant filed pursuant to Rule
497(c) on February 12, 2013. The Registration Statement relates to First Trust
Preferred Securities and Income ETF. a series of the Registrant.

      If you have any questions or comments, please telephone the undersigned at
(312) 845-3484.

                                               Very truly yours,

                                               CHAPMAN AND CUTLER LLP


                                               By: /s/ Morrison C. Warren
                                                   ----------------------------
                                                       Morrison C. Warren
Enclosures

XML

First Trust Preferred Securities and Income ETF

SUMMARY INFORMATION

INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

The Fund's investment objective is to seek total return and to provide current income.

FEES AND EXPENSES OF THE FUND

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold Shares of the Fund. Investors purchasing and selling Shares may be subject to costs (including customary brokerage commissions) charged by their broker.

SHAREHOLDER FEES (FEES PAID DIRECTLY FROM YOUR INVESTMENT)

Shareholder Fees	First Trust Preferred Securities and Income ETF
Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)	none

ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (Expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Annual Fund Operating Expenses		First Trust Preferred Securities and Income ETF
Management Fees		0.85%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	[1]	none
Other Expenses	[2]	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses		0.85%

EXAMPLE

The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account customary brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling shares of the Fund in the secondary market.

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's net operating expenses remain at current levels until February 12, 2014 and thereafter at 1.10% to represent the imposition of the 12b-1 fee of 0.25% per annum of the Fund's average daily net assets. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Expense Example, No Redemption (USD $)	1 Year	3 Years
First Trust Preferred Securities and Income ETF	87	325

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund's performance.

PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in preferred securities ("Preferred Securities") and income-producing debt securities ("Income Securities"). The Fund invests in securities that are traded over-the-counter or listed on an exchange. For purposes of the 80% test set forth above, securities of open-end funds, closed-end funds or other exchange-traded funds ("ETFs") registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act"), that invest primarily in Preferred Securities or Income Securities are deemed to be Preferred Securities or Income Securities.

Preferred Securities held by the Fund generally pay fixed or adjustable-rate distributions to investors and have preference over common stock in the payment of distributions and the liquidation of a company's assets, but are generally junior to all forms of the company's debt, including both senior and subordinated debt. Certain of the Preferred Securities may be issued by trusts or other special purpose entities created by companies specifically for the purpose of issuing such securities ("Trust Preferred Securities").

Income Securities held by the Fund include corporate bonds, high yield securities, commonly referred to as "junk" bonds, and convertible securities. The broad category of corporate debt securities includes debt issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of all kinds, including those with small-, mid- and large-capitalizations. Corporate debt may carry fixed or floating rates of interest.

The Fund may invest in U.S. and non-U.S. debt and equity securities that are traded over-the-counter or listed on an exchange. The non-U.S. equity securities listed on a foreign exchange in which the Fund may invest will be limited to securities that trade in markets that are members of the Intermarket Surveillance Group ("ISG"), which includes all U.S. national securities exchanges and certain foreign exchanges, or are parties to a comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement with the Exchange.

The anticipated average duration of the securities held by the Fund is three to 12 years. Duration is a mathematical calculation of the average life of a debt security (or portfolio of debt securities) that serves as a measure of its price risk. In general, each year of duration represents an expected 1% change in the value of a security for every 1% immediate change in interest rates. For example, if the portfolio has an average duration of three years, its value can be expected to fall about 3% if interest rates rise by 1%. Conversely, the portfolio's value can be expected to rise about 3% if interest rates fall by 1%. As a result, prices of instruments with shorter durations tend to be less sensitive to interest rate changes than instruments with longer durations. As the value of a security changes over time, so will its duration.

Because the issuers of Preferred Securities are often financial companies, the Fund concentrates its investments by investing at least 25% of its total assets in the group of industries that comprise the financial sector, which may include banks, thrifts, brokerage firms, broker/dealers, investment banks, finance companies, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and companies involved in the insurance industry.

The Fund invests at least 60% of its net assets in securities rated investment grade (BBB-/Baa3 or higher) at the time of purchase by at least one independent rating agency, such as Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., Moody's Investors Service, Inc., or another nationally recognized statistical rating organization, and unrated securities judged to be of comparable quality by the Fund's sub-advisor. The Fund may invest up to 40% of its net assets in securities rated below investment grade (BB+/Ba1 or lower) at the time of purchase, which are commonly referred to as "high yield" securities or "junk bonds." For securities with a split rating, the highest available rating will be used. In addition, at least 80% of the Fund's net assets are issued by issuers that have long-term issuer credit ratings of investment grade at the time of purchase.

The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in cash and/or cash equivalents. The Fund may invest in securities issued by companies domiciled in the United States, U.S. dollar-denominated depositary receipts and U.S. dollar-denominated foreign securities. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in Rule 144A securities, which are generally securities of U.S. and foreign issuers that are not listed on an exchange and may be (a) Preferred Securities or Income Securities issued by public companies, (b) securities of non-U.S. issuers that do not want to become subject to U.S. reporting requirements or (c) common stock by non-reporting issuers. Rule 144A Securities are generally subject to resale restrictions and may be illiquid.

The Fund is classified as "non-diversified" under the 1940 Act and as a result may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. The Fund is only limited as to the percentage of its assets which may be invested in the securities of any one issuer by diversification requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

PRINCIPAL RISKS

You could lose money by investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency. There can be no assurance that the Fund's investment objective will be achieved.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund may under certain circumstances effect a portion of creations and redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind securities. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects its creations and redemption for in-kind securities. Because the Fund may effect a portion of redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of shares may result in capital gains or losses, and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CONCENTRATION RISK. A fund concentrated in a single industry or sector is likely to present more risks than a fund that is broadly diversified over several industries or sectors. Compared to the broad market, an individual industry or sector may be more strongly affected by changes in the economic climate, broad market shifts, moves in a particular dominant stock, or regulatory changes.

CREDIT RISK. Credit risk is the risk that an issuer of a security will be unable or unwilling to make dividend, interest and/or principal payments when due and the related risk that the value of a security may decline because of concerns about the issuer's ability to make such payments. Credit risk may be heightened if the Fund invests in "high yield" or "junk" debt; such securities, while generally offering higher yields than investment grade debt with similar maturities, involve greater risks, including the possibility of dividend or interest deferral, default or bankruptcy, and are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer's capacity to pay dividends or interest and repay principal.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying securities in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the securities into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the securities of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

FINANCIAL COMPANY RISK. Financial companies are especially subject to the adverse effects of economic recession, currency exchange rates, government regulation, decreases in the availability of capital, volatile interest rates, portfolio concentrations in geographic markets and in commercial and residential real estate loans, and competition from new entrants in their fields of business.

HIGH YIELD SECURITIES RISK. High yield securities are subject to greater market fluctuations and risk of loss than securities with higher ratings. These securities are issued by companies that may have limited operating history, narrowly focused operations, and/or other impediments to the timely payment of periodic interest and principal at maturity. If the economy slows down or dips into recession, the issuers of high yield securities may not have sufficient resources to continue making timely payment of periodic interest and principal at maturity. The market for high yield securities is smaller and less liquid than that for investment grade securities. High yield securities are generally not listed on a national securities exchange but trade in the over-the-counter markets. Due to the smaller, less liquid market for high yield securities, the bid-offer spread on such securities is generally greater than it is for investment grade securities and the purchase or sale of such securities may take longer to complete.

ILLIQUID SECURITIES RISK. Illiquid securities involve the risk that the securities will not be able to be sold at the time desired by the Fund or at prices approximately the value at which the Fund is carrying the securities on its books.

INCOME RISK. If interest rates fall, the income from the Fund's portfolio will decline as the Fund invests the proceeds from new share sales, or from matured or called debt securities, at interest rates that are below the portfolio's current earnings rate.

INTEREST RATE RISK. If interest rates rise, the prices of the fixed-rate instruments held by the Fund may fall.

MANAGEMENT RISK. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. In managing the Fund's investment portfolio, the sub-advisor will apply investment techniques and risk analyses that may not have the desired result. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security owned by the Fund or shares of the Fund in general may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Overall securities values could decline generally or could underperform other investments.

NEW FUND RISK. The Fund currently has fewer assets than larger funds, and like other relatively new funds, large inflows and outflows may impact the Fund's market exposure for limited periods of time. This impact may be positive or negative, depending on the direction of market movement during the period effected.

NON-DIVERSIFICATION RISK. The Fund is classified as "non-diversified" under the 1940 Act. As a result, the Fund is only limited as to the percentage of its assets which may be invested in the securities of any one issuer by the diversification requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. As a result, the Fund may be more susceptible to a single adverse economic or regulatory occurrence affecting one or more of these issuers, experience increased volatility and be highly concentrated in certain issuers.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. The Fund may invest in securities of non-U.S. issuers. Such securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of exchanges in foreign countries.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred Securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred Securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company's capital structure, in terms of priority to corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. Preferred Securities are also subject to credit risk, interest rate risk and income risk.

REIT RISK. Investing in REITs involves risks related to their structure and focus, which include, but are not limited to, dependency upon management skills, limited diversification, the risks of locating and managing financing for projects, heavy cash flow dependency, possible default by borrowers, the costs and potential losses of self-liquidation of one or more holdings, the risk of a possible lack of mortgage funds and associated interest rate risks, overbuilding, property vacancies, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in zoning laws, losses due to environmental damages, changes in neighborhood values and appeal to purchases, the possibility of failing to maintain exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act and, in many cases, relatively small market capitalization, which may result in less market liquidity and greater price volatility. Fund shareholders indirectly pay REIT fees and expenses.

PERFORMANCE

The Fund has not yet commenced operations and, therefore, does not have a performance history. Once available, the Fund's performance information, and information that gives some indication of the risks of an investment in the Fund by comparing the Fund's performance with a broad measure of market performance, will be available on the Fund's website at www.ftportfolios.com.

[1] Although the Fund has adopted a 12b-1 plan that permits it to pay up to 0.25% per annum, it will not pay 12b-1 fees at any time before February 12, 2014.

[2] Because the Fund has no operating history, "Other Expenses" are estimates for the current fiscal year.

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Label

Element

Value

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Document Type

dei_DocumentType

Other

Document Period End Date

dei_DocumentPeriodEndDate

Feb. 12, 2013

Registrant Name

dei_EntityRegistrantName

First Trust Exchange Traded Fund III

Central Index Key

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0001424212

Amendment Flag

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false

Document Creation Date

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Feb. 12, 2013

Document Effective Date

dei_DocumentEffectiveDate

Feb. 12, 2013

Prospectus Date

rr_ProspectusDate

Feb. 12, 2013

First Trust Preferred Securities and Income ETF

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Risk/Return [Heading]

rr_RiskReturnHeading

SUMMARY INFORMATION

Objective [Heading]

rr_ObjectiveHeading

INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

Objective, Primary [Text Block]

rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock

The Fund's investment objective is to seek total return and to provide current income.

Expense [Heading]

rr_ExpenseHeading

FEES AND EXPENSES OF THE FUND

Expense Narrative [Text Block]

rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock

The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold Shares of the Fund. Investors purchasing and selling Shares may be subject to costs (including customary brokerage commissions) charged by their broker.

Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]

rr_ShareholderFeesCaption

SHAREHOLDER FEES (FEES PAID DIRECTLY FROM YOUR INVESTMENT)

Operating Expenses Caption [Text]

rr_OperatingExpensesCaption

ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (Expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Portfolio Turnover [Heading]

rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading

PORTFOLIO TURNOVER

Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]

rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock

The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or "turns over" its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund's performance.

Expense Example [Heading]

rr_ExpenseExampleHeading

EXAMPLE

Expense Example Narrative [Text Block]

rr_ExpenseExampleNarrativeTextBlock

The example below is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. This example does not take into account customary brokerage commissions that you pay when purchasing or selling shares of the Fund in the secondary market.

The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund's net operating expenses remain at current levels until February 12, 2014 and thereafter at 1.10% to represent the imposition of the 12b-1 fee of 0.25% per annum of the Fund's average daily net assets. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Strategy [Heading]

rr_StrategyHeading

PRINCIPAL INVESTMENT STRATEGIES

Strategy Narrative [Text Block]

rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock

Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets (including investment borrowings) in preferred securities ("Preferred Securities") and income-producing debt securities ("Income Securities"). The Fund invests in securities that are traded over-the-counter or listed on an exchange. For purposes of the 80% test set forth above, securities of open-end funds, closed-end funds or other exchange-traded funds ("ETFs") registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act"), that invest primarily in Preferred Securities or Income Securities are deemed to be Preferred Securities or Income Securities.

Preferred Securities held by the Fund generally pay fixed or adjustable-rate distributions to investors and have preference over common stock in the payment of distributions and the liquidation of a company's assets, but are generally junior to all forms of the company's debt, including both senior and subordinated debt. Certain of the Preferred Securities may be issued by trusts or other special purpose entities created by companies specifically for the purpose of issuing such securities ("Trust Preferred Securities").

Income Securities held by the Fund include corporate bonds, high yield securities, commonly referred to as "junk" bonds, and convertible securities. The broad category of corporate debt securities includes debt issued by U.S. and non-U.S. companies of all kinds, including those with small-, mid- and large-capitalizations. Corporate debt may carry fixed or floating rates of interest.

The Fund may invest in U.S. and non-U.S. debt and equity securities that are traded over-the-counter or listed on an exchange. The non-U.S. equity securities listed on a foreign exchange in which the Fund may invest will be limited to securities that trade in markets that are members of the Intermarket Surveillance Group ("ISG"), which includes all U.S. national securities exchanges and certain foreign exchanges, or are parties to a comprehensive surveillance sharing agreement with the Exchange.

The anticipated average duration of the securities held by the Fund is three to 12 years. Duration is a mathematical calculation of the average life of a debt security (or portfolio of debt securities) that serves as a measure of its price risk. In general, each year of duration represents an expected 1% change in the value of a security for every 1% immediate change in interest rates. For example, if the portfolio has an average duration of three years, its value can be expected to fall about 3% if interest rates rise by 1%. Conversely, the portfolio's value can be expected to rise about 3% if interest rates fall by 1%. As a result, prices of instruments with shorter durations tend to be less sensitive to interest rate changes than instruments with longer durations. As the value of a security changes over time, so will its duration.

Because the issuers of Preferred Securities are often financial companies, the Fund concentrates its investments by investing at least 25% of its total assets in the group of industries that comprise the financial sector, which may include banks, thrifts, brokerage firms, broker/dealers, investment banks, finance companies, real estate investment trusts ("REITs") and companies involved in the insurance industry.

The Fund invests at least 60% of its net assets in securities rated investment grade (BBB-/Baa3 or higher) at the time of purchase by at least one independent rating agency, such as Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., Moody's Investors Service, Inc., or another nationally recognized statistical rating organization, and unrated securities judged to be of comparable quality by the Fund's sub-advisor. The Fund may invest up to 40% of its net assets in securities rated below investment grade (BB+/Ba1 or lower) at the time of purchase, which are commonly referred to as "high yield" securities or "junk bonds." For securities with a split rating, the highest available rating will be used. In addition, at least 80% of the Fund's net assets are issued by issuers that have long-term issuer credit ratings of investment grade at the time of purchase.

The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in cash and/or cash equivalents. The Fund may invest in securities issued by companies domiciled in the United States, U.S. dollar-denominated depositary receipts and U.S. dollar-denominated foreign securities. The Fund may invest up to 15% of its net assets in Rule 144A securities, which are generally securities of U.S. and foreign issuers that are not listed on an exchange and may be (a) Preferred Securities or Income Securities issued by public companies, (b) securities of non-U.S. issuers that do not want to become subject to U.S. reporting requirements or (c) common stock by non-reporting issuers. Rule 144A Securities are generally subject to resale restrictions and may be illiquid.

The Fund is classified as "non-diversified" under the 1940 Act and as a result may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. The Fund is only limited as to the percentage of its assets which may be invested in the securities of any one issuer by diversification requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

Risk [Heading]

rr_RiskHeading

PRINCIPAL RISKS

Risk Narrative [Text Block]

rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock

You could lose money by investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency. There can be no assurance that the Fund's investment objective will be achieved.

CASH TRANSACTIONS RISK. The Fund may under certain circumstances effect a portion of creations and redemptions for cash, rather than in-kind securities. As a result, an investment in the Fund may be less tax-efficient than an investment in an ETF that effects its creations and redemption for in-kind securities. Because the Fund may effect a portion of redemptions for cash, it may be required to sell portfolio securities in order to obtain the cash needed to distribute redemption proceeds. A sale of shares may result in capital gains or losses, and may also result in higher brokerage costs.

CONCENTRATION RISK. A fund concentrated in a single industry or sector is likely to present more risks than a fund that is broadly diversified over several industries or sectors. Compared to the broad market, an individual industry or sector may be more strongly affected by changes in the economic climate, broad market shifts, moves in a particular dominant stock, or regulatory changes.

CREDIT RISK. Credit risk is the risk that an issuer of a security will be unable or unwilling to make dividend, interest and/or principal payments when due and the related risk that the value of a security may decline because of concerns about the issuer's ability to make such payments. Credit risk may be heightened if the Fund invests in "high yield" or "junk" debt; such securities, while generally offering higher yields than investment grade debt with similar maturities, involve greater risks, including the possibility of dividend or interest deferral, default or bankruptcy, and are regarded as predominantly speculative with respect to the issuer's capacity to pay dividends or interest and repay principal.

DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS RISK. Depositary receipts may be less liquid than the underlying securities in their primary trading market. Any distributions paid to the holders of depositary receipts are usually subject to a fee charged by the depositary. Holders of depositary receipts may have limited voting rights, and investment restrictions in certain countries may adversely impact the value of depositary receipts because such restrictions may limit the ability to convert the securities into depositary receipts and vice versa. Such restrictions may cause the securities of the underlying issuer to trade at a discount or premium to the market price of the depositary receipts.

FINANCIAL COMPANY RISK. Financial companies are especially subject to the adverse effects of economic recession, currency exchange rates, government regulation, decreases in the availability of capital, volatile interest rates, portfolio concentrations in geographic markets and in commercial and residential real estate loans, and competition from new entrants in their fields of business.

HIGH YIELD SECURITIES RISK. High yield securities are subject to greater market fluctuations and risk of loss than securities with higher ratings. These securities are issued by companies that may have limited operating history, narrowly focused operations, and/or other impediments to the timely payment of periodic interest and principal at maturity. If the economy slows down or dips into recession, the issuers of high yield securities may not have sufficient resources to continue making timely payment of periodic interest and principal at maturity. The market for high yield securities is smaller and less liquid than that for investment grade securities. High yield securities are generally not listed on a national securities exchange but trade in the over-the-counter markets. Due to the smaller, less liquid market for high yield securities, the bid-offer spread on such securities is generally greater than it is for investment grade securities and the purchase or sale of such securities may take longer to complete.

ILLIQUID SECURITIES RISK. Illiquid securities involve the risk that the securities will not be able to be sold at the time desired by the Fund or at prices approximately the value at which the Fund is carrying the securities on its books.

INCOME RISK. If interest rates fall, the income from the Fund's portfolio will decline as the Fund invests the proceeds from new share sales, or from matured or called debt securities, at interest rates that are below the portfolio's current earnings rate.

INTEREST RATE RISK. If interest rates rise, the prices of the fixed-rate instruments held by the Fund may fall.

MANAGEMENT RISK. The Fund is subject to management risk because it is an actively managed portfolio. In managing the Fund's investment portfolio, the sub-advisor will apply investment techniques and risk analyses that may not have the desired result. There can be no guarantee that the Fund will meet its investment objective.

MARKET RISK. Market risk is the risk that a particular security owned by the Fund or shares of the Fund in general may fall in value. Securities are subject to market fluctuations caused by such factors as economic, political, regulatory or market developments, changes in interest rates and perceived trends in securities prices. Overall securities values could decline generally or could underperform other investments.

NEW FUND RISK. The Fund currently has fewer assets than larger funds, and like other relatively new funds, large inflows and outflows may impact the Fund's market exposure for limited periods of time. This impact may be positive or negative, depending on the direction of market movement during the period effected.

NON-DIVERSIFICATION RISK. The Fund is classified as "non-diversified" under the 1940 Act. As a result, the Fund is only limited as to the percentage of its assets which may be invested in the securities of any one issuer by the diversification requirements imposed by the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The Fund may invest a relatively high percentage of its assets in a limited number of issuers. As a result, the Fund may be more susceptible to a single adverse economic or regulatory occurrence affecting one or more of these issuers, experience increased volatility and be highly concentrated in certain issuers.

NON-U.S. SECURITIES RISK. The Fund may invest in securities of non-U.S. issuers. Such securities are subject to higher volatility than securities of domestic issuers due to possible adverse political, social or economic developments, restrictions on foreign investment or exchange of securities, lack of liquidity, currency exchange rates, excessive taxation, government seizure of assets, different legal or accounting standards, and less government supervision and regulation of exchanges in foreign countries.

PREFERRED SECURITIES RISK. Preferred Securities combine some of the characteristics of both common stocks and bonds. Preferred Securities are typically subordinated to bonds and other debt instruments in a company's capital structure, in terms of priority to corporate income, and therefore will be subject to greater credit risk than those debt instruments. Preferred Securities are also subject to credit risk, interest rate risk and income risk.

REIT RISK. Investing in REITs involves risks related to their structure and focus, which include, but are not limited to, dependency upon management skills, limited diversification, the risks of locating and managing financing for projects, heavy cash flow dependency, possible default by borrowers, the costs and potential losses of self-liquidation of one or more holdings, the risk of a possible lack of mortgage funds and associated interest rate risks, overbuilding, property vacancies, increases in property taxes and operating expenses, changes in zoning laws, losses due to environmental damages, changes in neighborhood values and appeal to purchases, the possibility of failing to maintain exemptions from registration under the 1940 Act and, in many cases, relatively small market capitalization, which may result in less market liquidity and greater price volatility. Fund shareholders indirectly pay REIT fees and expenses.

Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]

rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading

PERFORMANCE

Performance Narrative [Text Block]

rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock

The Fund has not yet commenced operations and, therefore, does not have a performance history. Once available, the Fund's performance information, and information that gives some indication of the risks of an investment in the Fund by comparing the Fund's performance with a broad measure of market performance, will be available on the Fund's website at www.ftportfolios.com.

First Trust Preferred Securities and Income ETF | First Trust Preferred Securities and Income ETF

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Maximum Sales Charge (Load) Imposed on Purchases (as a percentage of offering price)

rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice

none

Management Fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

0.85%

Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees

rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets

none

^[1]

Other Expenses

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

none

^[2]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

rr_ExpensesOverAssets

0.85%

Expense Example, No Redemption, 1 Year

rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01

87

3 Years

rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03

325

[1] Although the Fund has adopted a 12b-1 plan that permits it to pay up to 0.25% per annum, it will not pay 12b-1 fees at any time before February 12, 2014.

[2] Because the Fund has no operating history, "Other Expenses" are estimates for the current fiscal year.