Inflation-Adjusted S&P 500

The S&P 500 index tracks the performance of 500 large US companies, but its headline number (nominal value) doesn't account for the changing purchasing power of the dollar over time. This page adjusts the historical S&P 500 index level for inflation using the US Consumer Price Index, allowing for a more accurate comparison of the index's performance over time.

Explore the charts and data below to understand the S&P 500's real performance, compare nominal versus inflation-adjusted returns, and see how its long-term growth looks after accounting for inflation.

Adjusted prices baseline: June 2025 (latest available CPI).

The current value of the S&P 500 index is 6,243.76 (as of the close of Jul 15, 2025), 0.58% lower than the all-time high of 6,280.46 (Jul 10, 2025).

Since December 30, 1927, the inflation-adjusted total return for the index has been 1,796%, which is equivalent to an annual growth rate of 3.06%.

In nominal values, the total return since this date has been 35,255%, or an annualized rate of 6.2%.

Inflation-Adjusted Values by Month

This data presents the S&P 500 index's end-of-month closing levels over time. Inflation-adjusted figures show what past levels would be worth using roughly today's purchasing power (based on the latest CPI data). The latest entry in the table will have equal nominal and adjusted values until the next CPI figures are released.

Date Inflation-Adjusted Nominal value
Jul 2025 6,243.76 6,243.76
Jun 2025 6,204.95 6,204.95
May 2025 5,931.85 5,911.69
Apr 2025 5,599.72 5,569.06
Mar 2025 5,660.32 5,611.85
Feb 2025 6,019.42 5,954.5
Jan 2025 6,133.51 6,040.53
Dec 2024 6,011.26 5,881.63
Nov 2024 6,167.52 6,032.38
Oct 2024 5,830.11 5,705.45
Sep 2024 5,895.16 5,762.48
Aug 2024 5,787.73 5,648.4
Jul 2024 5,663.12 5,522.3
Jun 2024 5,606.23 5,460.48
May 2024 5,420.21 5,277.51
Apr 2024 5,180.44 5,035.69
Mar 2024 5,426.43 5,254.35
Feb 2024 5,297.2 5,096.27
Jan 2024 5,067.87 4,845.65
Dec 2023 5,015.75 4,769.83
Nov 2023 4,798.53 4,567.8
Oct 2023 4,396.76 4,193.8
Sep 2023 4,493.85 4,288.05
Aug 2023 4,735.74 4,507.66
Jul 2023 4,842.21 4,588.96
Jun 2023 4,704.94 4,450.38
May 2023 4,433.18 4,179.83
Apr 2023 4,433.34 4,169.48
Mar 2023 4,391.47 4,109.31
Feb 2023 4,256.8 3,970.15
Jan 2023 4,395.33 4,076.6
Dec 2022 4,172.79 3,839.5
Nov 2022 4,420.68 4,080.11
Oct 2022 4,190.94 3,871.98
Sep 2022 3,896.73 3,585.62
Aug 2022 4,307.41 3,955
Jul 2022 4,496.72 4,130.29
Jun 2022 4,120.72 3,785.38
May 2022 4,560 4,132.15
Apr 2022 4,610.02 4,131.93
Mar 2022 5,082.83 4,530.41
Feb 2022 4,972.8 4,373.94
Jan 2022 5,180.69 4,515.55
Dec 2021 5,514.25 4,766.18
Nov 2021 5,300.04 4,567
Oct 2021 5,370.84 4,605.38
Sep 2021 5,065.23 4,307.54
Aug 2021 5,332.66 4,522.68
Jul 2021 5,193.13 4,395.26
Jun 2021 5,102.05 4,297.5
May 2021 5,037.54 4,204.11
Apr 2021 5,050.22 4,181.17
Mar 2021 4,838.09 3,972.89
Feb 2021 4,674 3,811.15
Jan 2021 4,580.09 3,714.24
Dec 2020 4,651.37 3,756.07
Nov 2020 4,489.11 3,621.63
Oct 2020 4,050.73 3,269.96
Sep 2020 4,167.71 3,363
Aug 2020 4,343.92 3,500.31
Jul 2020 4,072.3 3,271.12
Jun 2020 3,879.15 3,100.29
May 2020 3,829.95 3,044.31
Apr 2020 3,664.11 2,912.43
Mar 2020 3,229.91 2,584.59
Feb 2020 3,683.79 2,954.22
Jan 2020 4,033.12 3,225.52
Dec 2019 4,055.37 3,230.78
Nov 2019 3,939.06 3,140.98
Oct 2019 3,807.32 3,037.56
Sep 2019 3,739.62 2,976.74
Aug 2019 3,679.33 2,926.46
Jul 2019 3,746.93 2,980.38
Jun 2019 3,704.56 2,941.76
May 2019 3,466.36 2,752.06
Apr 2019 3,718.32 2,945.83
Mar 2019 3,596.62 2,834.4
Feb 2019 3,553.22 2,784.49
Jan 2019 3,465.22 2,704.1
Dec 2018 3,218.57 2,506.85
Nov 2018 3,532.5 2,760.17
Oct 2018 3,458.89 2,711.74
Sep 2018 3,723.42 2,913.98
Aug 2018 3,711.81 2,901.52
Jul 2018 3,604.78 2,816.29
Jun 2018 3,479.68 2,718.37
May 2018 3,468.43 2,705.27
Apr 2018 3,409.18 2,648.05
Mar 2018 3,413.46 2,640.87
Feb 2018 3,515.69 2,713.83
Jan 2018 3,674.76 2,823.81
Dec 2017 3,498.25 2,673.61
Nov 2017 3,462.15 2,647.58
Oct 2017 3,367.67 2,575.26
Sep 2017 3,292.48 2,519.36
Aug 2017 3,247.24 2,471.65
Jul 2017 3,255.18 2,470.3
Jun 2017 3,191.19 2,423.41
May 2017 3,178.78 2,411.8
Apr 2017 3,145.09 2,384.2
Mar 2017 3,126 2,362.72
Feb 2017 3,129.76 2,363.64
Jan 2017 3,027 2,278.87
Dec 2016 2,991.15 2,238.83
Nov 2016 2,938.64 2,198.81
Oct 2016 2,837.12 2,126.15
Sep 2016 2,896.93 2,168.27
Aug 2016 2,907.48 2,170.95
Jul 2016 2,913.7 2,173.6
Jun 2016 2,808.96 2,098.86
May 2016 2,815.64 2,096.96
Apr 2016 2,784.35 2,065.3
Mar 2016 2,790.01 2,059.74
Feb 2016 2,628.57 1,932.23
Jan 2016 2,641.64 1,940.24
Dec 2015 2,787.42 2,043.94
Nov 2015 2,827.46 2,080.41
Oct 2015 2,820.07 2,079.36
Sep 2015 2,602.81 1,920.03
Aug 2015 2,669.35 1,972.18
Jul 2015 2,843.52 2,103.84
Jun 2015 2,788.65 2,063.11
May 2015 2,858.48 2,107.39
Apr 2015 2,843.23 2,085.51
Mar 2015 2,824.93 2,067.89
Feb 2015 2,892.06 2,104.5
Jan 2015 2,753.47 1,994.99
Dec 2014 2,828.31 2,058.9
Nov 2014 2,824.1 2,067.56
Oct 2014 2,741.59 2,018.05
Sep 2014 2,672.69 1,972.29
Aug 2014 2,716.85 2,003.37
Jul 2014 2,613.89 1,930.67
Jun 2014 2,652.87 1,960.23
May 2014 2,608.11 1,923.57
Apr 2014 2,563.31 1,883.95
Mar 2014 2,555.91 1,872.34
Feb 2014 2,554.66 1,859.45
Jan 2014 2,458.12 1,782.59
Dec 2013 2,558.3 1,848.36
Nov 2013 2,499.19 1,805.81
Oct 2013 2,426.04 1,756.54
Sep 2013 2,316.48 1,681.55
Aug 2013 2,252.18 1,632.97
Jul 2013 2,327.74 1,685.73
Jun 2013 2,218.91 1,606.28
May 2013 2,258.1 1,630.74
Apr 2013 2,216.11 1,597.57
Mar 2013 2,174.48 1,569.19
Feb 2013 2,104.43 1,514.68
Jan 2013 2,098.45 1,498.11
Dec 2012 2,003.62 1,426.19
Nov 2012 1,984.2 1,416.18
Oct 2012 1,969.19 1,412.16
Sep 2012 2,008.17 1,440.67
Aug 2012 1,969.4 1,406.58
Jul 2012 1,941.98 1,379.32
Jun 2012 1,914.69 1,362.16
May 2012 1,839.14 1,310.33
Apr 2012 1,959.76 1,397.91
Mar 2012 1,980.53 1,408.47
Feb 2012 1,934.94 1,365.68
Jan 2012 1,867.66 1,312.41
Dec 2011 1,797.53 1,257.6
Nov 2011 1,777.93 1,246.96
Oct 2011 1,785.46 1,253.3
Sep 2011 1,608.5 1,131.42
Aug 2011 1,735.49 1,218.89
Jul 2011 1,845.06 1,292.28
Jun 2011 1,887.22 1,320.64
May 2011 1,920.26 1,345.2
Apr 2011 1,955.69 1,363.61
Mar 2011 1,913.75 1,325.83
Feb 2011 1,934.44 1,327.22
Jan 2011 1,883.78 1,286.12
Dec 2010 1,850.84 1,257.64
Nov 2010 1,740.38 1,180.55
Oct 2010 1,745.1 1,183.26
Sep 2010 1,685.17 1,141.2
Aug 2010 1,550.41 1,049.33
Jul 2010 1,629.89 1,101.6
Jun 2010 1,525.32 1,030.71
May 2010 1,610.62 1,089.41
Apr 2010 1,755.8 1,186.69
Mar 2010 1,733.27 1,169.43
Feb 2010 1,643.74 1,104.49
Jan 2010 1,598.57 1,073.87
Dec 2009 1,665.61 1,115.1
Nov 2009 1,633.65 1,095.63
Oct 2009 1,546.11 1,036.19
Sep 2009 1,578.8 1,057.08
Aug 2009 1,525.3 1,020.62
Jul 2009 1,479.09 987.48
Jun 2009 1,374.81 919.32
May 2009 1,386.35 919.14
Apr 2009 1,320.27 872.81
Mar 2009 1,209.92 797.87
Feb 2009 1,117.43 735.09
Jan 2009 1,261.69 825.88
Dec 2008 1,385.89 903.25
Nov 2008 1,360.91 896.24
Oct 2008 1,442.84 968.75
Sep 2008 1,719.61 1,166.36
Aug 2008 1,888.71 1,282.83
Jul 2008 1,858.52 1,267.38
Jun 2008 1,886.88 1,280
May 2008 2,085.14 1,400.38
Apr 2008 2,080.49 1,385.59
Mar 2008 1,998.11 1,322.7
Feb 2008 2,027.51 1,330.63
Jan 2008 2,106.63 1,378.55
Dec 2007 2,255.02 1,468.36
Nov 2007 2,273.12 1,481.14
Oct 2007 2,391.97 1,549.38
Sep 2007 2,362.08 1,526.75
Aug 2007 2,286.74 1,473.99
Jul 2007 2,253.56 1,455.27
Jun 2007 2,327.42 1,503.35
May 2007 2,374.23 1,530.62
Apr 2007 2,313.44 1,482.37
Mar 2007 2,231.85 1,420.86
Feb 2007 2,229.91 1,406.82
Jan 2007 2,291.91 1,438.24
Dec 2006 2,267.04 1,418.3
Nov 2006 2,242.13 1,400.63
Oct 2006 2,202.53 1,377.94
Sep 2006 2,123.67 1,335.85
Aug 2006 2,062.59 1,303.82
Jul 2006 2,023.59 1,276.66
Jun 2006 2,019.3 1,270.2
May 2006 2,023.12 1,270.09
Apr 2006 2,098.02 1,310.61
Mar 2006 2,090.46 1,294.87
Feb 2006 2,078.97 1,280.66
Jan 2006 2,082.22 1,280.08
Dec 2005 2,045.98 1,248.29
Nov 2005 2,039.64 1,249.48
Oct 2005 1,954.49 1,207.01
Sep 2005 1,993.79 1,228.81
Aug 2005 2,004.23 1,220.33
Jul 2005 2,037.35 1,234.18
Jun 2005 1,975.72 1,191.33
May 2005 1,977.01 1,191.5
Apr 2005 1,917.55 1,156.85
Mar 2005 1,970.06 1,180.59
Feb 2005 2,024.16 1,203.6
Jan 2005 1,998.07 1,181.27
Dec 2004 2,054.22 1,211.92
Nov 2004 1,982.35 1,173.82
Oct 2004 1,909.68 1,130.2
Sep 2004 1,893.21 1,114.58
Aug 2004 1,879.6 1,104.24
Jul 2004 1,876.3 1,101.72
Jun 2004 1,939.85 1,140.84
May 2004 1,911.62 1,120.68
Apr 2004 1,899.85 1,107.3
Mar 2004 1,938.48 1,126.21
Feb 2004 1,983.42 1,144.94
Jan 2004 1,970.08 1,131.13
Dec 2003 1,946.08 1,111.92
Nov 2003 1,850.05 1,058.2
Oct 2003 1,831.99 1,050.71
Sep 2003 1,734.67 995.97
Aug 2003 1,761.35 1,008.01
Jul 2003 1,737.01 990.31
Jun 2003 1,711.14 974.5
May 2003 1,693.82 963.59
Apr 2003 1,609.15 916.92
Mar 2003 1,485.29 848.18
Feb 2003 1,481.83 841.15
Jan 2003 1,519.07 855.7
Dec 2002 1,568.8 879.82
Nov 2002 1,665.84 936.31
Oct 2002 1,575.91 885.76
Sep 2002 1,452.91 815.28
Aug 2002 1,635.24 916.07
Jul 2002 1,632.72 911.62
Jun 2002 1,774.75 989.82
May 2002 1,914.45 1,067.14
Apr 2002 1,931.99 1,076.92
Mar 2002 2,069.93 1,147.39
Feb 2002 2,007.81 1,106.73
Jan 2002 2,058.49 1,130.2
Dec 2001 2,095.79 1,148.08
Nov 2001 2,071.83 1,139.45
Oct 2001 1,923.71 1,059.78
Sep 2001 1,883.16 1,040.94
Aug 2001 2,059.99 1,133.58
Jul 2001 2,201.1 1,211.23
Jun 2001 2,218.75 1,224.38
May 2001 2,279.56 1,255.82
Apr 2001 2,278.28 1,249.46
Mar 2001 2,124.16 1,160.33
Feb 2001 2,275.06 1,239.94
Jan 2001 2,516.4 1,366.01
Dec 2000 2,447.53 1,320.28
Nov 2000 2,436.25 1,314.95
Oct 2000 2,649.82 1,429.4
Sep 2000 2,667.6 1,436.51
Aug 2000 2,833.01 1,517.68
Jul 2000 2,670.89 1,430.83
Jun 2000 2,721.56 1,454.6
May 2000 2,671.9 1,420.6
Apr 2000 2,734.95 1,452.43
Mar 2000 2,823.5 1,498.58
Feb 2000 2,595.72 1,366.42
Jan 2000 2,664.68 1,394.46
Dec 1999 2,815.94 1,469.25
Nov 1999 2,661.96 1,388.91
Oct 1999 2,613.72 1,362.93
Sep 1999 2,464.28 1,282.71
Aug 1999 2,548.85 1,320.41
Jul 1999 2,571.05 1,328.72
Jun 1999 2,664.16 1,372.71
May 1999 2,526.61 1,301.84
Apr 1999 2,591.32 1,335.18
Mar 1999 2,514.74 1,286.37
Feb 1999 2,428.19 1,238.33
Jan 1999 2,512.25 1,279.64
Dec 1998 2,419.17 1,229.23
Nov 1998 2,288.67 1,163.63
Oct 1998 2,160.9 1,098.67
Sep 1998 2,005.18 1,017.01
Aug 1998 1,889.73 957.28
Jul 1998 2,214.98 1,120.67
Jun 1998 2,243.76 1,133.84
May 1998 2,161.28 1,090.82
Apr 1998 2,206.81 1,111.75
Mar 1998 2,191.01 1,101.75
Feb 1998 2,090.65 1,049.34
Jan 1998 1,956.68 980.28
Dec 1997 1,940.63 970.43
Nov 1997 1,908.2 955.4
Oct 1997 1,825.62 914.62
Sep 1997 1,895.51 947.28
Aug 1997 1,804.32 899.47
Jul 1997 1,917.9 954.31
Jun 1997 1,781.11 885.14
May 1997 1,709.07 848.28
Apr 1997 1,613.49 801.34
Mar 1997 1,526.36 757.12
Feb 1997 1,598.29 790.82
Jan 1997 1,593.87 786.16
Dec 1996 1,506.52 740.74
Nov 1996 1,539.63 757.02
Oct 1996 1,437.1 705.27
Sep 1996 1,404.98 687.33
Aug 1996 1,336.98 651.99
Jul 1996 1,314.8 639.95
Jun 1996 1,380.47 670.63
May 1996 1,378.24 669.12
Apr 1996 1,350.03 654.17
Mar 1996 1,337.27 645.5
Feb 1996 1,333.62 640.43
Jan 1996 1,328.73 636.02
Dec 1995 1,294.3 615.93
Nov 1995 1,271.28 605.37
Oct 1995 1,220.36 581.5
Sep 1995 1,230.47 584.41
Aug 1995 1,185.35 561.88
Jul 1995 1,188.84 562.06
Jun 1995 1,152.23 544.75
May 1995 1,130.45 533.4
Apr 1995 1,092.99 514.71
Mar 1995 1,066.77 500.71
Feb 1995 1,041.84 487.39
Jan 1995 1,009.58 470.42
Dec 1994 989.6 459.27
Nov 1994 977.57 453.69
Oct 1994 1,019.14 472.35
Sep 1994 999.01 462.71
Aug 1994 1,029.36 475.49
Jul 1994 996.07 458.26
Jun 1994 968.27 444.27
May 1994 998.3 456.5
Apr 1994 986.74 450.91
Mar 1994 976.82 445.77
Feb 1994 1,027.14 467.14
Jan 1994 1,062.58 481.61
Dec 1993 1,031.95 466.45
Nov 1993 1,021.64 461.79
Oct 1993 1,035.72 467.83
Sep 1993 1,020.21 458.93
Aug 1993 1,032.64 463.56
Jul 1993 1,001.03 448.13
Jun 1993 1,006.39 450.53
May 1993 1,007.03 450.19
Apr 1993 986.03 440.19
Mar 1993 1,014.56 451.67
Feb 1993 999.42 443.38
Jan 1993 992.52 438.78
Dec 1992 990.44 435.71
Nov 1992 979.84 431.35
Oct 1992 952.4 418.68
Sep 1992 953.76 417.8
Aug 1992 947.83 414.03
Jul 1992 973.9 424.21
Jun 1992 939.02 408.14
May 1992 959.02 415.35
Apr 1992 959.47 414.95
Mar 1992 934.78 403.69
Feb 1992 960.47 412.7
Jan 1992 954.79 408.78
Dec 1991 975.61 417.09
Nov 1991 878.31 375.22
Oct 1991 921.32 392.45
Sep 1991 911.87 387.86
Aug 1991 933.75 395.43
Jul 1991 918.45 387.81
Jun 1991 880.31 371.16
May 1991 927.32 389.83
Apr 1991 895.49 375.34
Mar 1991 896.53 375.22
Feb 1991 878.36 367.07
Jan 1991 824.21 343.93
Dec 1990 796.08 330.22
Nov 1990 776.8 322.22
Oct 1990 734.52 304
Sep 1990 743.93 306.05
Aug 1990 790.62 322.56
Jul 1990 880.98 356.15
Jun 1990 889.02 358.02
May 1990 901.85 361.23
Apr 1990 827.8 330.8
Mar 1990 851.99 339.94
Feb 1990 836.37 331.89
Jan 1990 833.19 329.08
Dec 1989 903.99 353.4
Nov 1989 886.44 345.99
Oct 1989 874.1 340.36
Sep 1989 900.98 349.15
Aug 1989 909.82 351.45
Jul 1989 897.36 346.08
Jun 1989 826.49 317.98
May 1989 835.12 320.52
Apr 1989 811.35 309.64
Mar 1989 777.71 294.87
Feb 1989 766.24 288.86
Jan 1989 792.34 297.47
Dec 1988 743.42 277.72
Nov 1988 733.87 273.7
Oct 1988 748.63 278.97
Sep 1988 732.12 271.91
Aug 1988 708.88 261.52
Jul 1988 740.45 272.02
Jun 1988 747.63 273.5
May 1988 719.68 262.16
Apr 1988 719.85 261.33
Mar 1988 716.81 258.89
Feb 1988 744.73 267.82
Jan 1988 716.69 257.07
Dec 1987 690.63 247.08
Nov 1987 643.72 230.3
Oct 1987 704.4 251.79
Sep 1987 902.69 321.83
Aug 1987 929.9 329.8
Jul 1987 903.23 318.66
Jun 1987 863.95 304
May 1987 827.36 290.1
Apr 1987 825.32 288.36
Mar 1987 839.35 291.7
Feb 1987 821.43 284.2
Jan 1987 795.03 274.08
Dec 1986 706.92 242.17
Nov 1986 728.16 249.22
Oct 1986 713.49 243.98
Sep 1986 677.09 231.32
Aug 1986 743.71 252.93
Jul 1986 695.55 236.12
Jun 1986 738.92 250.84
May 1986 732.65 247.35
Apr 1986 699.54 235.52
Mar 1986 708.27 238.9
Feb 1986 669.68 226.92
Jan 1986 623.28 211.78
Dec 1985 623.52 211.28
Nov 1985 598.28 202.17
Oct 1985 563.28 189.82
Sep 1985 542.31 182.08
Aug 1985 563.38 188.63
Jul 1985 571.27 190.92
Jun 1985 575.12 191.85
May 1985 569.82 189.55
Apr 1985 542.62 179.83
Mar 1985 547.69 180.66
Feb 1985 551.34 181.18
Jan 1985 549.21 179.63
Dec 1984 512.3 167.24
Nov 1984 501.09 163.58
Oct 1984 508.78 166.09
Sep 1984 510.26 166.1
Aug 1984 514.49 166.68
Jul 1984 466.83 150.66
Jun 1984 476.47 153.18
May 1984 469.65 150.55
Apr 1984 500.74 160.05
Mar 1984 500.44 159.18
Feb 1984 494.74 157.06
Jan 1984 517.27 163.41
Dec 1983 525.17 164.93
Nov 1983 530.38 166.4
Oct 1983 522.33 163.55
Sep 1983 531.95 166.07
Aug 1983 529.23 164.4
Jul 1983 524.88 162.56
Jun 1983 543.46 167.64
May 1983 528.03 162.39
Apr 1983 537.92 164.43
Mar 1983 503.97 152.96
Feb 1983 487.83 148.06
Jan 1983 479.22 145.3
Dec 1982 464.81 140.64
Nov 1982 455.96 138.53
Oct 1982 439.23 133.72
Sep 1982 396.76 120.42
Aug 1982 394.57 119.51
Jul 1982 354.29 107.09
Jun 1982 364.49 109.61
May 1982 376.7 111.88
Apr 1982 395.77 116.44
Mar 1982 382.16 111.96
Feb 1982 385.68 113.11
Jan 1982 411.84 120.4
Dec 1981 420.53 122.55
Nov 1981 434.96 126.35
Oct 1981 420.95 121.89
Sep 1981 402.09 116.18
Aug 1981 429.11 122.79
Jul 1981 461.02 130.92
Jun 1981 467.14 131.21
May 1981 476.26 132.59
Apr 1981 480.8 132.81
Mar 1981 495.69 136
Feb 1981 481.71 131.27
Jan 1981 480.32 129.55
Dec 1980 507.43 135.76
Nov 1980 530.13 140.52
Oct 1980 484.87 127.47
Sep 1980 481.77 125.46
Aug 1980 473.89 122.38
Jul 1980 474.56 121.67
Jun 1980 445.58 114.24
May 1980 438.65 111.24
Apr 1980 423.27 106.29
Mar 1980 411.11 102.09
Feb 1980 464.67 113.66
Jan 1980 473.31 114.16
Dec 1979 453.94 107.94
Nov 1979 451.16 106.16
Oct 1979 436.74 101.82
Sep 1979 472.69 109.32
Aug 1979 477.81 109.32
Jul 1979 458.07 103.81
Jun 1979 459.13 102.91
May 1979 446.98 99.08
Apr 1979 464.93 101.76
Mar 1979 469.47 101.59
Feb 1979 449.44 96.28
Jan 1979 471.94 99.93
Dec 1978 457.92 96.11
Nov 1978 453.21 94.7
Oct 1978 447.79 93.15
Sep 1978 497.37 102.54
Aug 1978 504.81 103.29
Jul 1978 494.3 100.68
Jun 1978 472.61 95.53
May 1978 486.29 97.24
Apr 1978 488.79 96.83
Mar 1978 453.87 89.21
Feb 1978 446.35 87.04
Jan 1978 460.62 89.25
Dec 1977 493.97 95.1
Nov 1977 494.16 94.83
Oct 1977 483.53 92.34
Sep 1977 507.11 96.53
Aug 1977 510.04 96.77
Jul 1977 522.71 98.85
Jun 1977 533.95 100.48
May 1977 514.17 96.12
Apr 1977 529.22 98.44
Mar 1977 533.55 98.42
Feb 1977 544.81 99.82
Jan 1977 562.58 102.03
Dec 1976 595.57 107.46
Nov 1976 567.82 102.1
Oct 1976 573.26 102.9
Sep 1976 589.35 105.24
Aug 1976 578.31 102.91
Jul 1976 584.34 103.44
Jun 1976 592.19 104.28
May 1976 571.93 100.18
Apr 1976 584.4 101.64
Mar 1976 593.02 102.77
Feb 1976 576.39 99.71
Jan 1976 585.13 100.86
Dec 1975 524.18 90.19
Nov 1975 532.2 91.24
Oct 1975 523.15 89.04
Sep 1975 495.48 83.87
Aug 1975 516.1 86.88
Jul 1975 528.18 88.75
Jun 1975 572.85 95.19
May 1975 552.66 91.15
Apr 1975 532.32 87.3
Mar 1975 510.22 83.36
Feb 1975 501.29 81.59
Jan 1975 476.6 76.98
Dec 1974 426.1 68.56
Nov 1974 438.24 69.97
Oct 1974 466.48 73.9
Sep 1974 405.05 63.54
Aug 1974 465.46 72.15
Jul 1974 517.86 79.31
Jun 1974 566.13 86
May 1974 579.28 87.28
Apr 1974 606.89 90.31
Mar 1974 634.19 93.98
Feb 1974 657.56 96.22
Jan 1974 668.45 96.57
Dec 1973 681.08 97.55
Nov 1973 674.36 95.96
Oct 1973 766.01 108.29
Sep 1973 773.79 108.43
Aug 1973 745.61 104.25
Jul 1973 787.98 108.22
Jun 1973 760.86 104.26
May 1973 771.13 104.95
Apr 1973 791.38 106.97
Mar 1973 830.76 111.52
Feb 1973 839.71 111.68
Jan 1973 878.56 116.03
Dec 1972 895.96 118.05
Nov 1972 887.58 116.67
Oct 1972 850.86 111.58
Sep 1972 847.01 110.55
Aug 1972 853.17 111.09
Jul 1972 826.73 107.39
Jun 1972 828.76 107.14
May 1972 849.28 109.53
Apr 1972 836.87 107.67
Mar 1972 835.23 107.2
Feb 1972 832.33 106.57
Jan 1972 815.74 103.94
Dec 1971 801.22 102.09
Nov 1971 741.26 93.99
Oct 1971 743.15 94.23
Sep 1971 777.47 98.34
Aug 1971 782.92 99.03
Jul 1971 757.5 95.58
Jun 1971 784.16 98.7
May 1971 797.44 99.63
Apr 1971 836.16 103.95
Mar 1971 808.9 100.31
Feb 1971 782.15 96.75
Jan 1971 777.06 95.88
Dec 1970 746.83 92.15
Nov 1970 710.29 87.2
Oct 1970 681.55 83.25
Sep 1970 693.67 84.3
Aug 1970 674.24 81.52
Jul 1970 645.54 78.05
Jun 1970 604.55 72.72
May 1970 639.69 76.55
Apr 1970 682.99 81.52
Mar 1970 756.84 89.63
Feb 1970 759.72 89.5
Jan 1970 725.51 85.02
Dec 1969 787.66 92.06
Nov 1969 806.92 93.81
Oct 1969 839.87 97.12
Sep 1969 809.62 93.12
Aug 1969 832.64 95.51
Jul 1969 804.91 91.83
Jun 1969 861.13 97.71
May 1969 916.82 103.46
Apr 1969 921.39 103.69
Mar 1969 907.01 101.51
Feb 1969 884.16 98.13
Jan 1969 933.34 103.01
Dec 1968 943.7 103.86
Nov 1968 987.46 108.37
Oct 1968 944.93 103.41
Sep 1968 943.51 102.67
Aug 1968 911.1 98.86
Jul 1968 903.36 97.74
Jun 1968 925.67 99.58
May 1968 922.62 98.68
Apr 1968 913.86 97.46
Mar 1968 848.25 90.2
Feb 1968 842.81 89.36
Jan 1968 872.52 92.24
Dec 1967 917.92 96.47
Nov 1967 897.06 94
Oct 1967 893.02 93.3
Sep 1967 928.42 96.71
Aug 1967 901.63 93.64
Jul 1967 915.05 94.75
Jun 1967 877.99 90.64
May 1967 865.47 89.08
Apr 1967 916.13 94.01
Mar 1967 881.67 90.2
Feb 1967 850.82 86.78
Jan 1967 849.15 86.61
Dec 1966 787.58 80.33
Nov 1966 788.75 80.45
Oct 1966 786.3 80.2
Sep 1966 755.21 76.56
Aug 1966 760.53 77.1
Jul 1966 829.73 83.6
Jun 1966 843.64 84.74
May 1966 860.13 86.13
Apr 1966 909.36 91.06
Mar 1966 896.64 89.23
Feb 1966 919.5 91.22
Jan 1966 942.12 92.88
Dec 1965 937.56 92.43
Nov 1965 932.17 91.61
Oct 1965 940.41 92.42
Sep 1965 918.28 89.96
Aug 1965 889.8 87.17
Jul 1965 870.2 85.25
Jun 1965 858.67 84.12
May 1965 908.31 88.42
Apr 1965 915.4 89.11
Mar 1965 887.92 86.16
Feb 1965 903.89 87.43
Jan 1965 905.24 87.56
Dec 1964 876.19 84.75
Nov 1964 872.78 84.42
Oct 1964 880.15 84.86
Sep 1964 873.09 84.18
Aug 1964 851.46 81.83
Jul 1964 862.72 83.18
Jun 1964 850 81.69
May 1964 838.97 80.37
Apr 1964 829.47 79.46
Mar 1964 824.46 78.98
Feb 1964 812.14 77.8
Jan 1964 804.21 77.04
Dec 1963 783.12 75.02
Nov 1963 766.92 73.23
Oct 1963 775.09 74.01
Sep 1963 753.34 71.7
Aug 1963 761.75 72.5
Jul 1963 726.34 69.13
Jun 1963 731.24 69.37
May 1963 748.76 70.8
Apr 1963 738.19 69.8
Mar 1963 704.03 66.57
Feb 1963 682.15 64.29
Jan 1963 702.42 66.2
Dec 1962 669.53 63.1
Nov 1962 660.61 62.26
Oct 1962 599.71 56.52
Sep 1962 597.06 56.27
Aug 1962 629.37 59.12
Jul 1962 619.89 58.23
Jun 1962 584.78 54.75
May 1962 636.9 59.63
Apr 1962 696.82 65.24
Mar 1962 745.32 69.55
Feb 1962 749.71 69.96
Jan 1962 740.17 68.84
Dec 1961 769.31 71.55
Nov 1961 766.84 71.32
Oct 1961 737.8 68.62
Sep 1961 717.48 66.73
Aug 1961 734.34 68.07
Jul 1961 717.81 66.76
Jun 1961 699.68 64.64
May 1961 720.46 66.56
Apr 1961 706.93 65.31
Mar 1961 704.22 65.06
Feb 1961 686.69 63.44
Jan 1961 668.72 61.78
Dec 1960 628.99 58.11
Nov 1960 601.18 55.54
Oct 1960 577.9 53.39
Sep 1960 583.23 53.52
Aug 1960 620.71 56.96
Jul 1960 604.91 55.51
Jun 1960 620.28 56.92
May 1960 610.46 55.83
Apr 1960 594.5 54.37
Mar 1960 607.16 55.34
Feb 1960 615.72 56.12
Jan 1960 612.21 55.61
Dec 1959 657.08 59.89
Nov 1959 639.42 58.28
Oct 1959 631.08 57.52
Sep 1959 626.19 56.88
Aug 1959 658.38 59.6
Jul 1959 668.43 60.51
Jun 1959 648.11 58.47
May 1959 652.69 58.68
Apr 1959 640.56 57.59
Mar 1959 618.78 55.44
Feb 1959 618.45 55.41
Jan 1959 616.76 55.45
Dec 1958 616.21 55.21
Nov 1958 583.72 52.48
Oct 1958 572.91 51.33
Sep 1958 558.73 50.06
Aug 1958 532.95 47.75
Jul 1958 524.88 47.19
Jun 1958 504.94 45.24
May 1958 492.1 44.09
Apr 1958 484.85 43.44
Mar 1958 471.52 42.1
Feb 1958 460.61 40.84
Jan 1958 470.31 41.7
Dec 1957 454.2 39.99
Nov 1957 473.85 41.72
Oct 1957 468 41.06
Sep 1957 483.5 42.42
Aug 1957 515.41 45.22
Jul 1957 546.07 47.91
Jun 1957 543.76 47.37
May 1957 546.4 47.43
Apr 1957 528.82 45.74
Mar 1957 511.8 44.11
Feb 1957 503.75 43.26
Jan 1957 522.64 44.72
Dec 1956 545.43 46.67
Nov 1956 528.77 45.08
Oct 1956 534.63 45.58
Sep 1956 533.87 45.35
Aug 1956 561.35 47.51
Jul 1956 581.43 49.39
Jun 1956 557.01 46.97
May 1956 539.99 45.2
Apr 1956 580.13 48.38
Mar 1956 583.5 48.48
Feb 1956 545.71 45.34
Jan 1956 527.41 43.82
Dec 1955 547.39 45.48
Nov 1955 545.72 45.51
Oct 1955 507.7 42.34
Sep 1955 523.65 43.67
Aug 1955 519.71 43.18
Jul 1955 523.8 43.52
Jun 1955 495.68 41.03
May 1955 457.99 37.91
Apr 1955 458.59 37.96
Mar 1955 441.92 36.58
Feb 1955 444.1 36.76
Jan 1955 442.52 36.63
Dec 1954 434.67 35.98
Nov 1954 412.11 34.24
Oct 1954 381.3 31.68
Sep 1954 388.88 32.31
Aug 1954 357.69 29.83
Jul 1954 370.29 30.88
Jun 1954 350.26 29.21
May 1954 350.02 29.19
Apr 1954 340.13 28.26
Mar 1954 323.04 26.94
Feb 1954 313.57 26.15
Jan 1954 312.73 26.08
Dec 1953 297.5 24.81
Nov 1953 296.9 24.76
Oct 1953 293.17 24.54
Sep 1953 279.99 23.35
Aug 1953 279.63 23.32
Jul 1953 297.89 24.75
Jun 1953 290.55 24.14
May 1953 296.47 24.54
Apr 1953 298.55 24.62
Mar 1953 306.68 25.29
Feb 1953 315.26 25.9
Jan 1953 319.89 26.38
Dec 1952 320.99 26.57
Nov 1952 310 25.66
Oct 1952 296.22 24.52
Sep 1952 296.47 24.54
Aug 1952 302.39 25.03
Jul 1952 306.86 25.4
Jun 1952 303.82 24.96
May 1952 291.53 23.86
Apr 1952 284.93 23.32
Mar 1952 298.89 24.37
Feb 1952 285.28 23.26
Jan 1952 293.83 24.14
Dec 1951 289.33 23.77
Nov 1951 279.55 22.88
Oct 1951 282.43 22.94
Sep 1951 287.46 23.26
Aug 1951 289.93 23.28
Jul 1951 278.97 22.4
Jun 1951 261.04 20.96
May 1951 268.01 21.52
Apr 1951 280.43 22.43
Mar 1951 268.55 21.48
Feb 1951 273.61 21.8
Jan 1951 275.07 21.66
Dec 1950 263.6 20.43
Nov 1950 254.78 19.51
Oct 1950 256.08 19.53
Sep 1950 257.12 19.45
Aug 1950 244.51 18.42
Jul 1950 238.78 17.84
Jun 1950 239.75 17.69
May 1950 255.6 18.78
Apr 1950 245.47 17.96
Mar 1950 236.32 17.29
Feb 1950 236.36 17.22
Jan 1950 234.03 17.05
Dec 1949 229.48 16.79
Nov 1949 217.66 16.06
Oct 1949 218.31 16.04
Sep 1949 210.27 15.58
Aug 1949 206.28 15.22
Jul 1949 204.7 15.04
Jun 1949 191.11 14.16
May 1949 192.32 14.19
Apr 1949 198.53 14.71
Mar 1949 204.11 15.06
Feb 1949 198.14 14.62
Jan 1949 204.56 15.22
Dec 1948 203.44 15.2
Nov 1948 196.6 14.75
Oct 1948 218.13 16.5
Sep 1948 203.94 15.49
Aug 1948 210.26 15.97
Jul 1948 209.53 15.85
Jun 1948 224.05 16.74
May 1948 225.25 16.69
Apr 1948 209.8 15.48
Mar 1948 207.87 15.08
Feb 1948 191.2 13.93
Jan 1948 199.8 14.68
Dec 1947 210.91 15.3
Nov 1947 209.18 14.98
Oct 1947 216.4 15.43
Sep 1947 211.91 15.11
Aug 1947 219.63 15.32
Jul 1947 228.99 15.76
Jun 1947 223.01 15.21
May 1947 212.83 14.45
Apr 1947 214.75 14.58
Mar 1947 223.44 15.17
Feb 1947 231.49 15.43
Jan 1947 234.94 15.66
Dec 1946 229.54 15.3
Nov 1946 222.31 14.68
Oct 1946 230.13 14.84
Sep 1946 236.54 14.96
Aug 1946 265.87 16.65
Jul 1946 292.59 17.96
Jun 1946 317.9 18.43
May 1946 334.42 19.18
Apr 1946 328.87 18.76
Mar 1946 317.98 18.04
Feb 1946 307.95 17.28
Jan 1946 329.12 18.57
Dec 1945 307.67 17.36
Nov 1945 306.34 17.19
Oct 1945 296.72 16.65
Sep 1945 286.03 16.05
Aug 1945 276.4 15.51
Jul 1945 261.26 14.66
Jun 1945 265 14.87
May 1945 270.48 15.01
Apr 1945 268.92 14.84
Mar 1945 246.63 13.61
Feb 1945 259.14 14.3
Jan 1945 244.1 13.47
Dec 1944 240.65 13.28
Nov 1944 233.81 12.83
Oct 1944 232.9 12.78
Sep 1944 232.17 12.74
Aug 1944 233.63 12.82
Jul 1944 231.62 12.71
Jun 1944 237.89 12.98
May 1944 227.64 12.35
Apr 1944 218.79 11.87
Mar 1944 222.83 12.02
Feb 1944 219.12 11.82
Jan 1944 219.68 11.85
Dec 1943 216.34 11.67
Nov 1943 204.29 11.02
Oct 1943 220.79 11.91
Sep 1943 223.94 12.08
Aug 1943 220.01 11.8
Jul 1943 219.68 11.85
Jun 1943 227.64 12.35
May 1943 222.11 12.05
Apr 1943 214.86 11.59
Mar 1943 217.17 11.58
Feb 1943 209.38 10.97
Jan 1943 199.26 10.44
Dec 1942 186.47 9.77
Nov 1942 178.37 9.29
Oct 1942 180.79 9.36
Sep 1942 173.01 8.85
Aug 1942 168.51 8.62
Jul 1942 168.36 8.56
Jun 1942 164.25 8.3
May 1942 161.28 8.15
Apr 1942 153.47 7.66
Mar 1942 161.48 8.01
Feb 1942 175.37 8.59
Jan 1942 181.83 8.85
Dec 1941 180.84 8.69
Nov 1941 191.02 9.12
Oct 1941 200.28 9.5
Sep 1941 217.89 10.2
Aug 1941 222.55 10.28
Jul 1941 227.99 10.39
Jun 1941 216.14 9.85
May 1941 210.11 9.38
Apr 1941 210 9.31
Mar 1941 226.25 9.96
Feb 1941 226.94 9.92
Jan 1941 230.37 10.07
Dec 1940 242.04 10.58
Nov 1940 243.53 10.57
Oct 1940 255.28 11.08
Sep 1940 245.61 10.66
Aug 1940 241.92 10.5
Jul 1940 237.08 10.29
Jun 1940 228.31 9.98
May 1940 213.58 9.27
Apr 1940 280.86 12.19
Mar 1940 280.63 12.18
Feb 1940 279.48 12.13
Jan 1940 279.63 12.05
Dec 1939 287.08 12.46
Nov 1939 281.09 12.2
Oct 1939 295.6 12.83
Sep 1939 292.59 12.79
Aug 1939 261.32 11.18
Jul 1939 281.42 12.04
Jun 1939 253.84 10.86
May 1939 271.14 11.6
Apr 1939 255.48 10.93
Mar 1939 254.8 10.98
Feb 1939 294.71 12.7
Jan 1939 283.39 12.3
Dec 1938 302.75 13.14
Nov 1938 293.3 12.73
Oct 1938 303.44 13.17
Sep 1938 280.01 12.24
Aug 1938 275.89 12.06
Jul 1938 282.07 12.33
Jun 1938 264.45 11.56
May 1938 212.07 9.27
Apr 1938 222.16 9.78
Mar 1938 194.45 8.5
Feb 1938 259.42 11.34
Jan 1938 242.83 10.69
Dec 1937 236.32 10.55
Nov 1937 247.15 11.11
Oct 1937 272.85 12.35
Sep 1937 304 13.76
Aug 1937 356.82 16.04
Jul 1937 373.06 16.77
Jun 1937 344.96 15.4
May 1937 364.23 16.26
Apr 1937 370.61 16.43
Mar 1937 407.06 17.92
Feb 1937 413.15 18.06
Jan 1937 406.52 17.77
Dec 1936 395.83 17.18
Nov 1936 398.13 17.28
Oct 1936 396.98 17.23
Sep 1936 368.87 16.01
Aug 1936 368.41 15.99
Jul 1936 367.81 15.85
Jun 1936 346.87 14.84
May 1936 339.04 14.4
Apr 1936 324.21 13.77
Mar 1936 351.29 14.92
Feb 1936 341.26 14.6
Jan 1936 334.48 14.31
Dec 1935 313.91 13.43
Nov 1935 302.46 12.94
Oct 1935 293.37 12.46
Sep 1935 272.88 11.59
Aug 1935 264.64 11.24
Jul 1935 260.87 11.08
Jun 1935 241.1 10.24
May 1935 223.92 9.58
Apr 1935 216.91 9.28
Mar 1935 198.95 8.45
Feb 1935 205.78 8.74
Jan 1935 215.83 9.1
Dec 1934 228.68 9.5
Nov 1934 227.94 9.54
Oct 1934 210.5 8.81
Sep 1934 215.36 9.08
Aug 1934 220.26 9.15
Jul 1934 208.94 8.68
Jun 1934 236.14 9.81
May 1934 233.07 9.61
Apr 1934 253.68 10.46
Mar 1934 257.56 10.62
Feb 1934 260.96 10.76
Jan 1934 272.96 11.17
Dec 1933 243.63 9.97
Nov 1933 241.43 9.88
Oct 1933 218.95 8.96
Sep 1933 237.52 9.72
Aug 1933 271 11.09
Jul 1933 245 9.95
Jun 1933 277.1 10.91
May 1933 246.78 9.64
Apr 1933 200.45 7.83
Mar 1933 149.76 5.85
Feb 1933 143.76 5.66
Jan 1933 173.53 6.94
Dec 1932 170.39 6.92
Nov 1932 160.06 6.55
Oct 1932 168.8 6.96
Sep 1932 194.5 8.08
Aug 1932 200.47 8.39
Jul 1932 143.02 6.03
Jun 1932 105.07 4.43
May 1932 105.24 4.47
Apr 1932 135.29 5.83
Mar 1932 168.42 7.31
Feb 1932 189.65 8.29
Jan 1932 179.1 7.94
Dec 1931 179.4 8.12
Nov 1931 208.46 9.5
Oct 1931 225.79 10.43
Sep 1931 208.8 9.71
Aug 1931 296.07 13.86
Jul 1931 293.3 13.73
Jun 1931 316.79 14.83
May 1931 274.49 13.02
Apr 1931 314.03 15.09
Mar 1931 345.1 16.69
Feb 1931 370.43 18.03
Jan 1931 328.44 16.19
Dec 1930 307.33 15.34
Nov 1930 322.17 16.38
Oct 1930 331.16 16.94
Sep 1930 361.23 18.59
Aug 1930 417.77 21.37
Jul 1930 412.14 21.21
Jun 1930 392.83 20.46
May 1930 467.43 24.49
Apr 1930 472.46 24.9
Mar 1930 460.94 24.15
Feb 1930 441.72 23.28
Jan 1930 429.89 22.79
Dec 1929 402.26 21.45
Nov 1929 390.06 20.92
Oct 1929 450.28 24.15
Sep 1929 562.34 30.16
Aug 1929 591.24 31.71
Jul 1929 538.47 28.88
Jun 1929 517.04 27.41
May 1929 471.13 24.83
Apr 1929 495.1 25.94
Mar 1929 484.41 25.53
Feb 1929 482.71 25.59
Jan 1929 485.54 25.74
Dec 1928 459.32 24.35
Nov 1928 455.34 24.28
Oct 1928 406.58 21.68
Sep 1928 394.16 21.14
Aug 1928 393.68 20.87
Jul 1928 366.51 19.43
Jun 1928 361.04 19.14
May 1928 375.07 20
Apr 1928 372.55 19.75
Mar 1928 363.68 19.28
Feb 1928 325.58 17.26
Jan 1928 327.6 17.57
Dec 1927 329.27 17.66

Returns from Investing in the S&P 500 index

How much did an investment in the S&P 500 really grow each year after accounting for inflation? The following chart contains the inflation-adjusted real annual percentage returns.

Note that the S&P 500 index does not include the impact of reinvested dividends or management fees. As an alternative, explore the Inflation-Adjusted S&P 500 ETF (SPY), which might provide a more accurate view for investors.

Detailed Annual Returns (Adjusted vs. Nominal)

The table below shows the returns for the S&P 500 index by year, both inflation-adjusted and nominal. You can sort any column by clicking on the header.

Observe how inflation erodes nominal gains, sometimes resulting in a negative real return even when the index nominally increased, as in 2007.

Year Inflation-Adjusted Return Nominal Return
2024 19.85% 23.31%
2023 20.2% 24.23%
2022 -24.33% -19.44%
2021 18.55% 26.89%
2020 14.7% 16.26%
2019 26% 28.88%
2018 -7.99% -6.24%
2017 16.95% 19.42%
2016 7.31% 9.54%
2015 -1.45% -0.73%
2014 10.55% 11.39%
2013 27.68% 29.6%
2012 11.47% 13.41%
2011 -2.88% 0%
2010 11.12% 12.78%
2009 20.18% 23.45%
2008 -38.54% -38.49%
2007 -0.53% 3.53%
2006 10.8% 13.62%
2005 -0.4% 3%
2004 5.56% 8.99%
2003 24.05% 26.38%
2002 -25.15% -23.37%
2001 -14.37% -13.04%
2000 -13.08% -10.14%
1999 16.4% 19.53%
1998 24.66% 26.67%
1997 28.82% 31.01%
1996 16.4% 20.26%
1995 30.79% 34.11%
1994 -4.1% -1.54%
1993 4.19% 7.06%
1992 1.52% 4.46%
1991 22.55% 26.31%
1990 -11.94% -6.56%
1989 21.6% 27.25%
1988 7.64% 12.4%
1987 -2.3% 2.03%
1986 13.38% 14.62%
1985 21.71% 26.33%
1984 -2.45% 1.4%
1983 12.99% 17.27%
1982 10.53% 14.76%
1981 -17.12% -9.73%
1980 11.78% 25.77%
1979 -0.87% 12.31%
1978 -7.3% 1.06%
1977 -17.06% -11.5%
1976 13.62% 19.15%
1975 23.02% 31.55%
1974 -37.44% -29.72%
1973 -23.98% -17.37%
1972 11.82% 15.63%
1971 7.28% 10.79%
1970 -5.18% 0.1%
1969 -16.53% -11.36%
1968 2.81% 7.66%
1967 16.55% 20.09%
1966 -16% -13.09%
1965 7% 9.06%
1964 11.88% 12.97%
1963 16.97% 18.89%
1962 -12.97% -11.81%
1961 22.31% 23.13%
1960 -4.27% -2.97%
1959 6.63% 8.48%
1958 35.67% 38.06%
1957 -16.73% -14.31%
1956 -0.36% 2.62%
1955 25.93% 26.4%
1954 46.11% 45.02%
1953 -7.32% -6.62%
1952 10.94% 11.78%
1951 9.76% 16.35%
1950 14.87% 21.68%
1949 12.8% 10.46%
1948 -3.54% -0.65%
1947 -8.12% 0%
1946 -25.39% -11.87%
1945 27.85% 30.72%
1944 11.24% 13.8%
1943 16.01% 19.45%
1942 3.11% 12.43%
1941 -25.28% -17.86%
1940 -15.69% -15.09%
1939 -5.18% -5.18%
1938 28.11% 24.55%
1937 -40.3% -38.59%
1936 26.1% 27.92%
1935 37.27% 41.37%
1934 -6.14% -4.71%
1933 42.98% 44.08%
1932 -5.02% -14.78%
1931 -41.63% -47.07%
1930 -23.6% -28.48%
1929 -12.42% -11.91%
1928 39.49% 37.88%

S&P 500 Index: Average Annualized Returns

Annualized returns show the average rate of growth per year, making it easier to compare performance across different time periods. While nominal returns indicate the headline growth, adjusting for inflation reveals the actual change in purchasing power.

This table presents both nominal and inflation-adjusted average annual returns for the S&P 500 over various trailing periods ending June 30, 2025, offering a clearer view of long-term, real investment performance.

Period Avg. Annual Return (Inflation-Adjusted) Avg. Annual Return (Nominal)
Last 1 year 10.68% 13.63%
Last 3 years 14.62% 17.91%
Last 5 years 9.85% 14.89%
Last 10 years 8.33% 11.64%
Last 20 years 5.89% 8.6%
Last 30 years 5.77% 8.45%
Last 40 years 6.13% 9.08%
Last 50 years 4.88% 8.71%
Last 75 years 4.43% 8.13%

Real Returns of Investing in the S&P 500

The chart and table below show the nominal and inflation-adjusted value of a hypothetical $100 investment over various long-term historical periods, ending in June 2025.

The inflation-adjusted line, in green, represents the real increase in purchasing power for the initial investment. Observe the gap between both lines, which illustrates the cumulative effect of inflation over time.

Even over just five years, inflation takes a noticeable bite out of investments. Investing $100 in the S&P 500 five years ago yielded an 110.04% nominal gain, but the real return (the actual increase in buying power) was 68.44%.

As investment periods get longer, the difference between reported nominal returns and the inflation-adjusted gains usually becomes much greater due to the compounding effect of inflation over time.

Investment Period What $100 Grew To (Nominal) Total Nominal Return (%) Total Inflation-Adjusted Return (%)
Last 5 years Feb 2020 - Jun 2025 $210.04 110.04% 68.44%
Last 10 years Feb 2015 - Jun 2025 $294.84 194.84% 114.55%
Last 25 years Feb 2000 - Jun 2025 $454.1 354.1% 139.05%
Last 50 years Feb 1975 - Jun 2025 $7,605.04 7,505% 1,138%

About the S&P 500 index

The Standard & Poor's 500 (S&P 500®) is a widely followed stock market index that measures the performance of 500 of the largest publicly traded companies in the United States, selected by S&P Dow Jones Indices. It is a market-capitalization weighted index, meaning companies with larger market values have a proportionally larger impact on the index's movement.

Launched in its current form in 1957, the S&P 500 is considered a primary benchmark for the overall health and performance of the U.S. stock market and, by extension, the broader U.S. economy. It represents approximately 80% of the total available U.S. equity market capitalization. Investors commonly use it to gauge market trends and benchmark the performance of their own portfolios.

Last Close
Jul 15, 2025
6,243.76
Highest
Jul 10, 2025
6,280.46
Highest, Inflation-Adjusted
Jul 10, 2025
6,280.46
Annualized return
Since Dec 30, 1927
6.2%
Annualized return, Inflation-Adjusted
Since Dec 30, 1927
3.06%