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, the same data used to calculate US inflation rates, 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: March 2026 (latest available CPI).

The current value of the S&P 500 index is 7,135.95 (as of the close of Apr 29, 2026), 0.53% lower than the all-time high of 7,173.91 (Apr 27, 2026).

Since December 30, 1927, the inflation-adjusted total return for the index has been 2,017%, which is equivalent to an annual growth rate of 3.15%.

In nominal values, the total return since this date has been 40,307%, or an annualized rate of 6.29%.

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 same present-value method used by the US Inflation Calculator to compare dollar amounts across different years. 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
Apr 2026 7,135.95 7,135.95
Mar 2026 6,528.52 6,528.52
Feb 2026 6,951.04 6,878.88
Jan 2026 7,044.87 6,939.03
Dec 2025 6,975.61 6,845.5
Nov 2025 6,977.8 6,849.09
Oct 2025 6,840.2 6,840.2
Sep 2025 6,799.93 6,688.46
Aug 2025 6,584.63 6,460.26
Jul 2025 6,479.99 6,339.39
Jun 2025 6,352.15 6,204.95
May 2025 6,072.56 5,911.69
Apr 2025 5,732.56 5,569.06
Mar 2025 5,794.6 5,611.85
Feb 2025 6,162.22 5,954.5
Jan 2025 6,279.02 6,040.53
Dec 2024 6,153.87 5,881.63
Nov 2024 6,313.83 6,032.38
Oct 2024 5,968.42 5,705.45
Sep 2024 6,035.01 5,762.48
Aug 2024 5,925.03 5,648.4
Jul 2024 5,797.47 5,522.3
Jun 2024 5,739.23 5,460.48
May 2024 5,548.79 5,277.51
Apr 2024 5,303.34 5,035.69
Mar 2024 5,555.16 5,254.35
Feb 2024 5,422.86 5,096.27
Jan 2024 5,188.09 4,845.65
Dec 2023 5,134.74 4,769.83
Nov 2023 4,912.37 4,567.8
Oct 2023 4,501.07 4,193.8
Sep 2023 4,600.46 4,288.05
Aug 2023 4,848.08 4,507.66
Jul 2023 4,957.08 4,588.96
Jun 2023 4,816.55 4,450.38
May 2023 4,538.35 4,179.83
Apr 2023 4,538.51 4,169.48
Mar 2023 4,495.65 4,109.31
Feb 2023 4,357.78 3,970.15
Jan 2023 4,499.6 4,076.6
Dec 2022 4,271.78 3,839.5
Nov 2022 4,525.55 4,080.11
Oct 2022 4,290.36 3,871.98
Sep 2022 3,989.17 3,585.62
Aug 2022 4,409.59 3,955
Jul 2022 4,603.39 4,130.29
Jun 2022 4,218.48 3,785.38
May 2022 4,668.18 4,132.15
Apr 2022 4,719.39 4,131.93
Mar 2022 5,203.41 4,530.41
Feb 2022 5,090.77 4,373.94
Jan 2022 5,303.59 4,515.55
Dec 2021 5,645.06 4,766.18
Nov 2021 5,425.77 4,567
Oct 2021 5,498.25 4,605.38
Sep 2021 5,185.4 4,307.54
Aug 2021 5,459.17 4,522.68
Jul 2021 5,316.32 4,395.26
Jun 2021 5,223.08 4,297.5
May 2021 5,157.05 4,204.11
Apr 2021 5,170.03 4,181.17
Mar 2021 4,952.86 3,972.89
Feb 2021 4,784.88 3,811.15
Jan 2021 4,688.74 3,714.24
Dec 2020 4,761.72 3,756.07
Nov 2020 4,595.6 3,621.63
Oct 2020 4,146.82 3,269.96
Sep 2020 4,266.58 3,363
Aug 2020 4,446.97 3,500.31
Jul 2020 4,168.9 3,271.12
Jun 2020 3,971.17 3,100.29
May 2020 3,920.8 3,044.31
Apr 2020 3,751.03 2,912.43
Mar 2020 3,306.53 2,584.59
Feb 2020 3,771.18 2,954.22
Jan 2020 4,128.79 3,225.52
Dec 2019 4,151.57 3,230.78
Nov 2019 4,032.5 3,140.98
Oct 2019 3,897.64 3,037.56
Sep 2019 3,828.33 2,976.74
Aug 2019 3,766.61 2,926.46
Jul 2019 3,835.82 2,980.38
Jun 2019 3,792.44 2,941.76
May 2019 3,548.59 2,752.06
Apr 2019 3,806.53 2,945.83
Mar 2019 3,681.94 2,834.4
Feb 2019 3,637.51 2,784.49
Jan 2019 3,547.42 2,704.1
Dec 2018 3,294.93 2,506.85
Nov 2018 3,616.3 2,760.17
Oct 2018 3,540.94 2,711.74
Sep 2018 3,811.75 2,913.98
Aug 2018 3,799.86 2,901.52
Jul 2018 3,690.29 2,816.29
Jun 2018 3,562.22 2,718.37
May 2018 3,550.71 2,705.27
Apr 2018 3,490.06 2,648.05
Mar 2018 3,494.43 2,640.87
Feb 2018 3,599.09 2,713.83
Jan 2018 3,761.93 2,823.81
Dec 2017 3,581.24 2,673.61
Nov 2017 3,544.29 2,647.58
Oct 2017 3,447.56 2,575.26
Sep 2017 3,370.59 2,519.36
Aug 2017 3,324.27 2,471.65
Jul 2017 3,332.4 2,470.3
Jun 2017 3,266.89 2,423.41
May 2017 3,254.19 2,411.8
Apr 2017 3,219.7 2,384.2
Mar 2017 3,200.15 2,362.72
Feb 2017 3,204 2,363.64
Jan 2017 3,098.81 2,278.87
Dec 2016 3,062.11 2,238.83
Nov 2016 3,008.36 2,198.81
Oct 2016 2,904.42 2,126.15
Sep 2016 2,965.65 2,168.27
Aug 2016 2,976.45 2,170.95
Jul 2016 2,982.82 2,173.6
Jun 2016 2,875.6 2,098.86
May 2016 2,882.43 2,096.96
Apr 2016 2,850.4 2,065.3
Mar 2016 2,856.2 2,059.74
Feb 2016 2,690.92 1,932.23
Jan 2016 2,704.3 1,940.24
Dec 2015 2,853.55 2,043.94
Nov 2015 2,894.54 2,080.41
Oct 2015 2,886.97 2,079.36
Sep 2015 2,664.56 1,920.03
Aug 2015 2,732.67 1,972.18
Jul 2015 2,910.97 2,103.84
Jun 2015 2,854.81 2,063.11
May 2015 2,926.29 2,107.39
Apr 2015 2,910.67 2,085.51
Mar 2015 2,891.95 2,067.89
Feb 2015 2,960.67 2,104.5
Jan 2015 2,818.79 1,994.99
Dec 2014 2,895.4 2,058.9
Nov 2014 2,891.1 2,067.56
Oct 2014 2,806.63 2,018.05
Sep 2014 2,736.1 1,972.29
Aug 2014 2,781.3 2,003.37
Jul 2014 2,675.9 1,930.67
Jun 2014 2,715.81 1,960.23
May 2014 2,669.98 1,923.57
Apr 2014 2,624.12 1,883.95
Mar 2014 2,616.54 1,872.34
Feb 2014 2,615.27 1,859.45
Jan 2014 2,516.43 1,782.59
Dec 2013 2,618.99 1,848.36
Nov 2013 2,558.48 1,805.81
Oct 2013 2,483.59 1,756.54
Sep 2013 2,371.44 1,681.55
Aug 2013 2,305.6 1,632.97
Jul 2013 2,382.96 1,685.73
Jun 2013 2,271.54 1,606.28
May 2013 2,311.67 1,630.74
Apr 2013 2,268.68 1,597.57
Mar 2013 2,226.06 1,569.19
Feb 2013 2,154.35 1,514.68
Jan 2013 2,148.23 1,498.11
Dec 2012 2,051.15 1,426.19
Nov 2012 2,031.27 1,416.18
Oct 2012 2,015.91 1,412.16
Sep 2012 2,055.81 1,440.67
Aug 2012 2,016.12 1,406.58
Jul 2012 1,988.05 1,379.32
Jun 2012 1,960.11 1,362.16
May 2012 1,882.77 1,310.33
Apr 2012 2,006.25 1,397.91
Mar 2012 2,027.51 1,408.47
Feb 2012 1,980.85 1,365.68
Jan 2012 1,911.96 1,312.41
Dec 2011 1,840.17 1,257.6
Nov 2011 1,820.11 1,246.96
Oct 2011 1,827.82 1,253.3
Sep 2011 1,646.66 1,131.42
Aug 2011 1,776.66 1,218.89
Jul 2011 1,888.83 1,292.28
Jun 2011 1,931.99 1,320.64
May 2011 1,965.81 1,345.2
Apr 2011 2,002.09 1,363.61
Mar 2011 1,959.15 1,325.83
Feb 2011 1,980.33 1,327.22
Jan 2011 1,928.47 1,286.12
Dec 2010 1,894.75 1,257.64
Nov 2010 1,781.66 1,180.55
Oct 2010 1,786.5 1,183.26
Sep 2010 1,725.15 1,141.2
Aug 2010 1,587.19 1,049.33
Jul 2010 1,668.55 1,101.6
Jun 2010 1,561.51 1,030.71
May 2010 1,648.83 1,089.41
Apr 2010 1,797.45 1,186.69
Mar 2010 1,774.38 1,169.43
Feb 2010 1,682.73 1,104.49
Jan 2010 1,636.49 1,073.87
Dec 2009 1,705.13 1,115.1
Nov 2009 1,672.4 1,095.63
Oct 2009 1,582.79 1,036.19
Sep 2009 1,616.26 1,057.08
Aug 2009 1,561.49 1,020.62
Jul 2009 1,514.17 987.48
Jun 2009 1,407.42 919.32
May 2009 1,419.24 919.14
Apr 2009 1,351.59 872.81
Mar 2009 1,238.63 797.87
Feb 2009 1,143.94 735.09
Jan 2009 1,291.62 825.88
Dec 2008 1,418.77 903.25
Nov 2008 1,393.2 896.24
Oct 2008 1,477.07 968.75
Sep 2008 1,760.41 1,166.36
Aug 2008 1,933.52 1,282.83
Jul 2008 1,902.61 1,267.38
Jun 2008 1,931.64 1,280
May 2008 2,134.6 1,400.38
Apr 2008 2,129.85 1,385.59
Mar 2008 2,045.51 1,322.7
Feb 2008 2,075.61 1,330.63
Jan 2008 2,156.6 1,378.55
Dec 2007 2,308.52 1,468.36
Nov 2007 2,327.05 1,481.14
Oct 2007 2,448.72 1,549.38
Sep 2007 2,418.11 1,526.75
Aug 2007 2,340.99 1,473.99
Jul 2007 2,307.02 1,455.27
Jun 2007 2,382.63 1,503.35
May 2007 2,430.55 1,530.62
Apr 2007 2,368.32 1,482.37
Mar 2007 2,284.79 1,420.86
Feb 2007 2,282.81 1,406.82
Jan 2007 2,346.28 1,438.24
Dec 2006 2,320.82 1,418.3
Nov 2006 2,295.32 1,400.63
Oct 2006 2,254.78 1,377.94
Sep 2006 2,174.05 1,335.85
Aug 2006 2,111.52 1,303.82
Jul 2006 2,071.6 1,276.66
Jun 2006 2,067.21 1,270.2
May 2006 2,071.11 1,270.09
Apr 2006 2,147.79 1,310.61
Mar 2006 2,140.05 1,294.87
Feb 2006 2,128.29 1,280.66
Jan 2006 2,131.61 1,280.08
Dec 2005 2,094.52 1,248.29
Nov 2005 2,088.03 1,249.48
Oct 2005 2,000.86 1,207.01
Sep 2005 2,041.09 1,228.81
Aug 2005 2,051.78 1,220.33
Jul 2005 2,085.68 1,234.18
Jun 2005 2,022.58 1,191.33
May 2005 2,023.91 1,191.5
Apr 2005 1,963.04 1,156.85
Mar 2005 2,016.79 1,180.59
Feb 2005 2,072.18 1,203.6
Jan 2005 2,045.47 1,181.27
Dec 2004 2,102.95 1,211.92
Nov 2004 2,029.37 1,173.82
Oct 2004 1,954.99 1,130.2
Sep 2004 1,938.12 1,114.58
Aug 2004 1,924.19 1,104.24
Jul 2004 1,920.81 1,101.72
Jun 2004 1,985.87 1,140.84
May 2004 1,956.97 1,120.68
Apr 2004 1,944.92 1,107.3
Mar 2004 1,984.47 1,126.21
Feb 2004 2,030.47 1,144.94
Jan 2004 2,016.81 1,131.13
Dec 2003 1,992.24 1,111.92
Nov 2003 1,893.94 1,058.2
Oct 2003 1,875.45 1,050.71
Sep 2003 1,775.82 995.97
Aug 2003 1,803.13 1,008.01
Jul 2003 1,778.21 990.31
Jun 2003 1,751.73 974.5
May 2003 1,734.01 963.59
Apr 2003 1,647.33 916.92
Mar 2003 1,520.52 848.18
Feb 2003 1,516.98 841.15
Jan 2003 1,555.11 855.7
Dec 2002 1,606.01 879.82
Nov 2002 1,705.36 936.31
Oct 2002 1,613.29 885.76
Sep 2002 1,487.38 815.28
Aug 2002 1,674.04 916.07
Jul 2002 1,671.45 911.62
Jun 2002 1,816.85 989.82
May 2002 1,959.86 1,067.14
Apr 2002 1,977.83 1,076.92
Mar 2002 2,119.03 1,147.39
Feb 2002 2,055.44 1,106.73
Jan 2002 2,107.32 1,130.2
Dec 2001 2,145.51 1,148.08
Nov 2001 2,120.98 1,139.45
Oct 2001 1,969.35 1,059.78
Sep 2001 1,927.83 1,040.94
Aug 2001 2,108.86 1,133.58
Jul 2001 2,253.32 1,211.23
Jun 2001 2,271.38 1,224.38
May 2001 2,333.64 1,255.82
Apr 2001 2,332.32 1,249.46
Mar 2001 2,174.55 1,160.33
Feb 2001 2,329.03 1,239.94
Jan 2001 2,576.1 1,366.01
Dec 2000 2,505.6 1,320.28
Nov 2000 2,494.05 1,314.95
Oct 2000 2,712.68 1,429.4
Sep 2000 2,730.88 1,436.51
Aug 2000 2,900.22 1,517.68
Jul 2000 2,734.25 1,430.83
Jun 2000 2,786.12 1,454.6
May 2000 2,735.28 1,420.6
Apr 2000 2,799.83 1,452.43
Mar 2000 2,890.48 1,498.58
Feb 2000 2,657.3 1,366.42
Jan 2000 2,727.9 1,394.46
Dec 1999 2,882.74 1,469.25
Nov 1999 2,725.11 1,388.91
Oct 1999 2,675.73 1,362.93
Sep 1999 2,522.74 1,282.71
Aug 1999 2,609.32 1,320.41
Jul 1999 2,632.04 1,328.72
Jun 1999 2,727.36 1,372.71
May 1999 2,586.55 1,301.84
Apr 1999 2,652.79 1,335.18
Mar 1999 2,574.4 1,286.37
Feb 1999 2,485.79 1,238.33
Jan 1999 2,571.84 1,279.64
Dec 1998 2,476.56 1,229.23
Nov 1998 2,342.96 1,163.63
Oct 1998 2,212.17 1,098.67
Sep 1998 2,052.75 1,017.01
Aug 1998 1,934.56 957.28
Jul 1998 2,267.52 1,120.67
Jun 1998 2,296.99 1,133.84
May 1998 2,212.55 1,090.82
Apr 1998 2,259.16 1,111.75
Mar 1998 2,242.99 1,101.75
Feb 1998 2,140.25 1,049.34
Jan 1998 2,003.1 980.28
Dec 1997 1,986.66 970.43
Nov 1997 1,953.47 955.4
Oct 1997 1,868.93 914.62
Sep 1997 1,940.47 947.28
Aug 1997 1,847.12 899.47
Jul 1997 1,963.4 954.31
Jun 1997 1,823.36 885.14
May 1997 1,749.61 848.28
Apr 1997 1,651.77 801.34
Mar 1997 1,562.57 757.12
Feb 1997 1,636.21 790.82
Jan 1997 1,631.68 786.16
Dec 1996 1,542.26 740.74
Nov 1996 1,576.15 757.02
Oct 1996 1,471.19 705.27
Sep 1996 1,438.31 687.33
Aug 1996 1,368.69 651.99
Jul 1996 1,345.99 639.95
Jun 1996 1,413.21 670.63
May 1996 1,410.93 669.12
Apr 1996 1,382.06 654.17
Mar 1996 1,368.99 645.5
Feb 1996 1,365.26 640.43
Jan 1996 1,360.25 636.02
Dec 1995 1,325 615.93
Nov 1995 1,301.44 605.37
Oct 1995 1,249.31 581.5
Sep 1995 1,259.66 584.41
Aug 1995 1,213.47 561.88
Jul 1995 1,217.05 562.06
Jun 1995 1,179.56 544.75
May 1995 1,157.26 533.4
Apr 1995 1,118.92 514.71
Mar 1995 1,092.08 500.71
Feb 1995 1,066.55 487.39
Jan 1995 1,033.52 470.42
Dec 1994 1,013.07 459.27
Nov 1994 1,000.76 453.69
Oct 1994 1,043.32 472.35
Sep 1994 1,022.71 462.71
Aug 1994 1,053.78 475.49
Jul 1994 1,019.7 458.26
Jun 1994 991.24 444.27
May 1994 1,021.98 456.5
Apr 1994 1,010.15 450.91
Mar 1994 999.99 445.77
Feb 1994 1,051.5 467.14
Jan 1994 1,087.78 481.61
Dec 1993 1,056.43 466.45
Nov 1993 1,045.88 461.79
Oct 1993 1,060.29 467.83
Sep 1993 1,044.42 458.93
Aug 1993 1,057.14 463.56
Jul 1993 1,024.78 448.13
Jun 1993 1,030.27 450.53
May 1993 1,030.92 450.19
Apr 1993 1,009.42 440.19
Mar 1993 1,038.63 451.67
Feb 1993 1,023.13 443.38
Jan 1993 1,016.06 438.78
Dec 1992 1,013.93 435.71
Nov 1992 1,003.08 431.35
Oct 1992 974.99 418.68
Sep 1992 976.38 417.8
Aug 1992 970.32 414.03
Jul 1992 997.01 424.21
Jun 1992 961.29 408.14
May 1992 981.78 415.35
Apr 1992 982.24 414.95
Mar 1992 956.95 403.69
Feb 1992 983.25 412.7
Jan 1992 977.44 408.78
Dec 1991 998.76 417.09
Nov 1991 899.15 375.22
Oct 1991 943.17 392.45
Sep 1991 933.5 387.86
Aug 1991 955.9 395.43
Jul 1991 940.23 387.81
Jun 1991 901.19 371.16
May 1991 949.31 389.83
Apr 1991 916.73 375.34
Mar 1991 917.8 375.22
Feb 1991 899.19 367.07
Jan 1991 843.76 343.93
Dec 1990 814.97 330.22
Nov 1990 795.23 322.22
Oct 1990 751.95 304
Sep 1990 761.58 306.05
Aug 1990 809.37 322.56
Jul 1990 901.88 356.15
Jun 1990 910.11 358.02
May 1990 923.24 361.23
Apr 1990 847.44 330.8
Mar 1990 872.2 339.94
Feb 1990 856.21 331.89
Jan 1990 852.96 329.08
Dec 1989 925.43 353.4
Nov 1989 907.47 345.99
Oct 1989 894.84 340.36
Sep 1989 922.35 349.15
Aug 1989 931.41 351.45
Jul 1989 918.65 346.08
Jun 1989 846.1 317.98
May 1989 854.93 320.52
Apr 1989 830.6 309.64
Mar 1989 796.16 294.87
Feb 1989 784.42 288.86
Jan 1989 811.14 297.47
Dec 1988 761.05 277.72
Nov 1988 751.28 273.7
Oct 1988 766.39 278.97
Sep 1988 749.48 271.91
Aug 1988 725.69 261.52
Jul 1988 758.01 272.02
Jun 1988 765.37 273.5
May 1988 736.75 262.16
Apr 1988 736.93 261.33
Mar 1988 733.81 258.89
Feb 1988 762.39 267.82
Jan 1988 733.69 257.07
Dec 1987 707.01 247.08
Nov 1987 659 230.3
Oct 1987 721.11 251.79
Sep 1987 924.11 321.83
Aug 1987 951.96 329.8
Jul 1987 924.65 318.66
Jun 1987 884.45 304
May 1987 846.99 290.1
Apr 1987 844.9 288.36
Mar 1987 859.26 291.7
Feb 1987 840.92 284.2
Jan 1987 813.89 274.08
Dec 1986 723.69 242.17
Nov 1986 745.43 249.22
Oct 1986 730.42 243.98
Sep 1986 693.15 231.32
Aug 1986 761.36 252.93
Jul 1986 712.05 236.12
Jun 1986 756.44 250.84
May 1986 750.03 247.35
Apr 1986 716.13 235.52
Mar 1986 725.07 238.9
Feb 1986 685.56 226.92
Jan 1986 638.07 211.78
Dec 1985 638.31 211.28
Nov 1985 612.47 202.17
Oct 1985 576.64 189.82
Sep 1985 555.17 182.08
Aug 1985 576.74 188.63
Jul 1985 584.83 190.92
Jun 1985 588.77 191.85
May 1985 583.34 189.55
Apr 1985 555.49 179.83
Mar 1985 560.68 180.66
Feb 1985 564.41 181.18
Jan 1985 562.24 179.63
Dec 1984 524.45 167.24
Nov 1984 512.97 163.58
Oct 1984 520.85 166.09
Sep 1984 522.37 166.1
Aug 1984 526.7 166.68
Jul 1984 477.9 150.66
Jun 1984 487.77 153.18
May 1984 480.79 150.55
Apr 1984 512.61 160.05
Mar 1984 512.31 159.18
Feb 1984 506.48 157.06
Jan 1984 529.54 163.41
Dec 1983 537.63 164.93
Nov 1983 542.96 166.4
Oct 1983 534.72 163.55
Sep 1983 544.57 166.07
Aug 1983 541.79 164.4
Jul 1983 537.33 162.56
Jun 1983 556.35 167.64
May 1983 540.56 162.39
Apr 1983 550.68 164.43
Mar 1983 515.93 152.96
Feb 1983 499.4 148.06
Jan 1983 490.59 145.3
Dec 1982 475.83 140.64
Nov 1982 466.78 138.53
Oct 1982 449.65 133.72
Sep 1982 406.17 120.42
Aug 1982 403.93 119.51
Jul 1982 362.69 107.09
Jun 1982 373.14 109.61
May 1982 385.64 111.88
Apr 1982 405.16 116.44
Mar 1982 391.22 111.96
Feb 1982 394.82 113.11
Jan 1982 421.61 120.4
Dec 1981 430.51 122.55
Nov 1981 445.28 126.35
Oct 1981 430.94 121.89
Sep 1981 411.63 116.18
Aug 1981 439.29 122.79
Jul 1981 471.96 130.92
Jun 1981 478.23 131.21
May 1981 487.56 132.59
Apr 1981 492.21 132.81
Mar 1981 507.45 136
Feb 1981 493.14 131.27
Jan 1981 491.71 129.55
Dec 1980 519.46 135.76
Nov 1980 542.71 140.52
Oct 1980 496.37 127.47
Sep 1980 493.2 125.46
Aug 1980 485.13 122.38
Jul 1980 485.82 121.67
Jun 1980 456.15 114.24
May 1980 449.06 111.24
Apr 1980 433.31 106.29
Mar 1980 420.87 102.09
Feb 1980 475.69 113.66
Jan 1980 484.54 114.16
Dec 1979 464.71 107.94
Nov 1979 461.86 106.16
Oct 1979 447.1 101.82
Sep 1979 483.9 109.32
Aug 1979 489.14 109.32
Jul 1979 468.94 103.81
Jun 1979 470.02 102.91
May 1979 457.59 99.08
Apr 1979 475.96 101.76
Mar 1979 480.61 101.59
Feb 1979 460.1 96.28
Jan 1979 483.14 99.93
Dec 1978 468.79 96.11
Nov 1978 463.96 94.7
Oct 1978 458.41 93.15
Sep 1978 509.17 102.54
Aug 1978 516.78 103.29
Jul 1978 506.03 100.68
Jun 1978 483.82 95.53
May 1978 497.83 97.24
Apr 1978 500.38 96.83
Mar 1978 464.64 89.21
Feb 1978 456.94 87.04
Jan 1978 471.54 89.25
Dec 1977 505.69 95.1
Nov 1977 505.88 94.83
Oct 1977 495 92.34
Sep 1977 519.14 96.53
Aug 1977 522.14 96.77
Jul 1977 535.11 98.85
Jun 1977 546.62 100.48
May 1977 526.37 96.12
Apr 1977 541.77 98.44
Mar 1977 546.21 98.42
Feb 1977 557.73 99.82
Jan 1977 575.93 102.03
Dec 1976 609.7 107.46
Nov 1976 581.29 102.1
Oct 1976 586.86 102.9
Sep 1976 603.33 105.24
Aug 1976 592.02 102.91
Jul 1976 598.2 103.44
Jun 1976 606.24 104.28
May 1976 585.5 100.18
Apr 1976 598.27 101.64
Mar 1976 607.08 102.77
Feb 1976 590.06 99.71
Jan 1976 599.02 100.86
Dec 1975 536.61 90.19
Nov 1975 544.82 91.24
Oct 1975 535.56 89.04
Sep 1975 507.23 83.87
Aug 1975 528.34 86.88
Jul 1975 540.71 88.75
Jun 1975 586.44 95.19
May 1975 565.77 91.15
Apr 1975 544.95 87.3
Mar 1975 522.33 83.36
Feb 1975 513.18 81.59
Jan 1975 487.9 76.98
Dec 1974 436.21 68.56
Nov 1974 448.64 69.97
Oct 1974 477.55 73.9
Sep 1974 414.66 63.54
Aug 1974 476.5 72.15
Jul 1974 530.15 79.31
Jun 1974 579.56 86
May 1974 593.02 87.28
Apr 1974 621.28 90.31
Mar 1974 649.23 93.98
Feb 1974 673.16 96.22
Jan 1974 684.31 96.57
Dec 1973 697.24 97.55
Nov 1973 690.35 95.96
Oct 1973 784.18 108.29
Sep 1973 792.15 108.43
Aug 1973 763.3 104.25
Jul 1973 806.67 108.22
Jun 1973 778.91 104.26
May 1973 789.43 104.95
Apr 1973 810.16 106.97
Mar 1973 850.47 111.52
Feb 1973 859.63 111.68
Jan 1973 899.4 116.03
Dec 1972 917.22 118.05
Nov 1972 908.63 116.67
Oct 1972 871.04 111.58
Sep 1972 867.1 110.55
Aug 1972 873.41 111.09
Jul 1972 846.34 107.39
Jun 1972 848.42 107.14
May 1972 869.43 109.53
Apr 1972 856.72 107.67
Mar 1972 855.04 107.2
Feb 1972 852.08 106.57
Jan 1972 835.09 103.94
Dec 1971 820.23 102.09
Nov 1971 758.84 93.99
Oct 1971 760.78 94.23
Sep 1971 795.91 98.34
Aug 1971 801.49 99.03
Jul 1971 775.47 95.58
Jun 1971 802.76 98.7
May 1971 816.36 99.63
Apr 1971 856 103.95
Mar 1971 828.09 100.31
Feb 1971 800.7 96.75
Jan 1971 795.5 95.88
Dec 1970 764.55 92.15
Nov 1970 727.14 87.2
Oct 1970 697.72 83.25
Sep 1970 710.13 84.3
Aug 1970 690.23 81.52
Jul 1970 660.85 78.05
Jun 1970 618.89 72.72
May 1970 654.87 76.55
Apr 1970 699.19 81.52
Mar 1970 774.79 89.63
Feb 1970 777.74 89.5
Jan 1970 742.72 85.02
Dec 1969 806.35 92.06
Nov 1969 826.06 93.81
Oct 1969 859.79 97.12
Sep 1969 828.83 93.12
Aug 1969 852.4 95.51
Jul 1969 824.01 91.83
Jun 1969 881.56 97.71
May 1969 938.57 103.46
Apr 1969 943.24 103.69
Mar 1969 928.53 101.51
Feb 1969 905.13 98.13
Jan 1969 955.48 103.01
Dec 1968 966.08 103.86
Nov 1968 1,010.88 108.37
Oct 1968 967.35 103.41
Sep 1968 965.9 102.67
Aug 1968 932.71 98.86
Jul 1968 924.79 97.74
Jun 1968 947.63 99.58
May 1968 944.5 98.68
Apr 1968 935.54 97.46
Mar 1968 868.37 90.2
Feb 1968 862.8 89.36
Jan 1968 893.22 92.24
Dec 1967 939.69 96.47
Nov 1967 918.34 94
Oct 1967 914.21 93.3
Sep 1967 950.44 96.71
Aug 1967 923.02 93.64
Jul 1967 936.76 94.75
Jun 1967 898.81 90.64
May 1967 886.01 89.08
Apr 1967 937.86 94.01
Mar 1967 902.58 90.2
Feb 1967 871 86.78
Jan 1967 869.29 86.61
Dec 1966 806.26 80.33
Nov 1966 807.47 80.45
Oct 1966 804.96 80.2
Sep 1966 773.12 76.56
Aug 1966 778.58 77.1
Jul 1966 849.41 83.6
Jun 1966 863.65 84.74
May 1966 880.53 86.13
Apr 1966 930.93 91.06
Mar 1966 917.91 89.23
Feb 1966 941.31 91.22
Jan 1966 964.47 92.88
Dec 1965 959.8 92.43
Nov 1965 954.28 91.61
Oct 1965 962.72 92.42
Sep 1965 940.06 89.96
Aug 1965 910.91 87.17
Jul 1965 890.84 85.25
Jun 1965 879.04 84.12
May 1965 929.85 88.42
Apr 1965 937.11 89.11
Mar 1965 908.98 86.16
Feb 1965 925.34 87.43
Jan 1965 926.71 87.56
Dec 1964 896.97 84.75
Nov 1964 893.48 84.42
Oct 1964 901.02 84.86
Sep 1964 893.8 84.18
Aug 1964 871.66 81.83
Jul 1964 883.19 83.18
Jun 1964 870.16 81.69
May 1964 858.87 80.37
Apr 1964 849.15 79.46
Mar 1964 844.02 78.98
Feb 1964 831.41 77.8
Jan 1964 823.29 77.04
Dec 1963 801.7 75.02
Nov 1963 785.11 73.23
Oct 1963 793.48 74.01
Sep 1963 771.21 71.7
Aug 1963 779.82 72.5
Jul 1963 743.57 69.13
Jun 1963 748.59 69.37
May 1963 766.53 70.8
Apr 1963 755.7 69.8
Mar 1963 720.73 66.57
Feb 1963 698.34 64.29
Jan 1963 719.08 66.2
Dec 1962 685.41 63.1
Nov 1962 676.28 62.26
Oct 1962 613.94 56.52
Sep 1962 611.22 56.27
Aug 1962 644.3 59.12
Jul 1962 634.6 58.23
Jun 1962 598.65 54.75
May 1962 652.01 59.63
Apr 1962 713.35 65.24
Mar 1962 763 69.55
Feb 1962 767.5 69.96
Jan 1962 757.73 68.84
Dec 1961 787.56 71.55
Nov 1961 785.03 71.32
Oct 1961 755.31 68.62
Sep 1961 734.5 66.73
Aug 1961 751.76 68.07
Jul 1961 734.83 66.76
Jun 1961 716.27 64.64
May 1961 737.55 66.56
Apr 1961 723.7 65.31
Mar 1961 720.93 65.06
Feb 1961 702.98 63.44
Jan 1961 684.58 61.78
Dec 1960 643.92 58.11
Nov 1960 615.44 55.54
Oct 1960 591.61 53.39
Sep 1960 597.06 53.52
Aug 1960 635.44 56.96
Jul 1960 619.26 55.51
Jun 1960 634.99 56.92
May 1960 624.94 55.83
Apr 1960 608.6 54.37
Mar 1960 621.56 55.34
Feb 1960 630.32 56.12
Jan 1960 626.73 55.61
Dec 1959 672.67 59.89
Nov 1959 654.59 58.28
Oct 1959 646.05 57.52
Sep 1959 641.04 56.88
Aug 1959 674 59.6
Jul 1959 684.29 60.51
Jun 1959 663.49 58.47
May 1959 668.17 58.68
Apr 1959 655.76 57.59
Mar 1959 633.46 55.44
Feb 1959 633.12 55.41
Jan 1959 631.39 55.45
Dec 1958 630.83 55.21
Nov 1958 597.57 52.48
Oct 1958 586.5 51.33
Sep 1958 571.99 50.06
Aug 1958 545.59 47.75
Jul 1958 537.34 47.19
Jun 1958 516.91 45.24
May 1958 503.77 44.09
Apr 1958 496.35 43.44
Mar 1958 482.71 42.1
Feb 1958 471.53 40.84
Jan 1958 481.46 41.7
Dec 1957 464.97 39.99
Nov 1957 485.09 41.72
Oct 1957 479.1 41.06
Sep 1957 494.97 42.42
Aug 1957 527.64 45.22
Jul 1957 559.03 47.91
Jun 1957 556.66 47.37
May 1957 559.36 47.43
Apr 1957 541.36 45.74
Mar 1957 523.95 44.11
Feb 1957 515.7 43.26
Jan 1957 535.04 44.72
Dec 1956 558.37 46.67
Nov 1956 541.31 45.08
Oct 1956 547.31 45.58
Sep 1956 546.54 45.35
Aug 1956 574.67 47.51
Jul 1956 595.23 49.39
Jun 1956 570.22 46.97
May 1956 552.8 45.2
Apr 1956 593.89 48.38
Mar 1956 597.34 48.48
Feb 1956 558.65 45.34
Jan 1956 539.92 43.82
Dec 1955 560.38 45.48
Nov 1955 558.66 45.51
Oct 1955 519.75 42.34
Sep 1955 536.07 43.67
Aug 1955 532.04 43.18
Jul 1955 536.23 43.52
Jun 1955 507.44 41.03
May 1955 468.85 37.91
Apr 1955 469.47 37.96
Mar 1955 452.4 36.58
Feb 1955 454.63 36.76
Jan 1955 453.02 36.63
Dec 1954 444.98 35.98
Nov 1954 421.88 34.24
Oct 1954 390.34 31.68
Sep 1954 398.1 32.31
Aug 1954 366.18 29.83
Jul 1954 379.07 30.88
Jun 1954 358.57 29.21
May 1954 358.32 29.19
Apr 1954 348.2 28.26
Mar 1954 330.7 26.94
Feb 1954 321.01 26.15
Jan 1954 320.15 26.08
Dec 1953 304.56 24.81
Nov 1953 303.94 24.76
Oct 1953 300.13 24.54
Sep 1953 286.63 23.35
Aug 1953 286.27 23.32
Jul 1953 304.95 24.75
Jun 1953 297.44 24.14
May 1953 303.5 24.54
Apr 1953 305.63 24.62
Mar 1953 313.95 25.29
Feb 1953 322.74 25.9
Jan 1953 327.48 26.38
Dec 1952 328.61 26.57
Nov 1952 317.35 25.66
Oct 1952 303.25 24.52
Sep 1952 303.5 24.54
Aug 1952 309.56 25.03
Jul 1952 314.14 25.4
Jun 1952 311.02 24.96
May 1952 298.44 23.86
Apr 1952 291.69 23.32
Mar 1952 305.98 24.37
Feb 1952 292.04 23.26
Jan 1952 300.81 24.14
Dec 1951 296.19 23.77
Nov 1951 286.18 22.88
Oct 1951 289.13 22.94
Sep 1951 294.28 23.26
Aug 1951 296.81 23.28
Jul 1951 285.59 22.4
Jun 1951 267.23 20.96
May 1951 274.37 21.52
Apr 1951 287.08 22.43
Mar 1951 274.92 21.48
Feb 1951 280.1 21.8
Jan 1951 281.59 21.66
Dec 1950 269.85 20.43
Nov 1950 260.83 19.51
Oct 1950 262.16 19.53
Sep 1950 263.22 19.45
Aug 1950 250.31 18.42
Jul 1950 244.44 17.84
Jun 1950 245.44 17.69
May 1950 261.66 18.78
Apr 1950 251.3 17.96
Mar 1950 241.92 17.29
Feb 1950 241.97 17.22
Jan 1950 239.58 17.05
Dec 1949 234.93 16.79
Nov 1949 222.82 16.06
Oct 1949 223.49 16.04
Sep 1949 215.26 15.58
Aug 1949 211.17 15.22
Jul 1949 209.55 15.04
Jun 1949 195.64 14.16
May 1949 196.88 14.19
Apr 1949 203.24 14.71
Mar 1949 208.95 15.06
Feb 1949 202.85 14.62
Jan 1949 209.41 15.22
Dec 1948 208.27 15.2
Nov 1948 201.27 14.75
Oct 1948 223.3 16.5
Sep 1948 208.78 15.49
Aug 1948 215.24 15.97
Jul 1948 214.5 15.85
Jun 1948 229.37 16.74
May 1948 230.6 16.69
Apr 1948 214.78 15.48
Mar 1948 212.8 15.08
Feb 1948 195.74 13.93
Jan 1948 204.54 14.68
Dec 1947 215.91 15.3
Nov 1947 214.14 14.98
Oct 1947 221.53 15.43
Sep 1947 216.94 15.11
Aug 1947 224.84 15.32
Jul 1947 234.42 15.76
Jun 1947 228.3 15.21
May 1947 217.88 14.45
Apr 1947 219.84 14.58
Mar 1947 228.74 15.17
Feb 1947 236.99 15.43
Jan 1947 240.52 15.66
Dec 1946 234.99 15.3
Nov 1946 227.58 14.68
Oct 1946 235.59 14.84
Sep 1946 242.16 14.96
Aug 1946 272.18 16.65
Jul 1946 299.53 17.96
Jun 1946 325.45 18.43
May 1946 342.35 19.18
Apr 1946 336.67 18.76
Mar 1946 325.52 18.04
Feb 1946 315.25 17.28
Jan 1946 336.93 18.57
Dec 1945 314.97 17.36
Nov 1945 313.61 17.19
Oct 1945 303.76 16.65
Sep 1945 292.81 16.05
Aug 1945 282.96 15.51
Jul 1945 267.45 14.66
Jun 1945 271.29 14.87
May 1945 276.9 15.01
Apr 1945 275.3 14.84
Mar 1945 252.48 13.61
Feb 1945 265.28 14.3
Jan 1945 249.89 13.47
Dec 1944 246.36 13.28
Nov 1944 239.36 12.83
Oct 1944 238.42 12.78
Sep 1944 237.68 12.74
Aug 1944 239.17 12.82
Jul 1944 237.12 12.71
Jun 1944 243.53 12.98
May 1944 233.04 12.35
Apr 1944 223.98 11.87
Mar 1944 228.11 12.02
Feb 1944 224.32 11.82
Jan 1944 224.89 11.85
Dec 1943 221.47 11.67
Nov 1943 209.13 11.02
Oct 1943 226.03 11.91
Sep 1943 229.25 12.08
Aug 1943 225.23 11.8
Jul 1943 224.89 11.85
Jun 1943 233.04 12.35
May 1943 227.38 12.05
Apr 1943 219.95 11.59
Mar 1943 222.32 11.58
Feb 1943 214.35 10.97
Jan 1943 203.99 10.44
Dec 1942 190.9 9.77
Nov 1942 182.6 9.29
Oct 1942 185.08 9.36
Sep 1942 177.11 8.85
Aug 1942 172.51 8.62
Jul 1942 172.36 8.56
Jun 1942 168.15 8.3
May 1942 165.11 8.15
Apr 1942 157.11 7.66
Mar 1942 165.31 8.01
Feb 1942 179.53 8.59
Jan 1942 186.14 8.85
Dec 1941 185.13 8.69
Nov 1941 195.55 9.12
Oct 1941 205.03 9.5
Sep 1941 223.06 10.2
Aug 1941 227.82 10.28
Jul 1941 233.4 10.39
Jun 1941 221.27 9.85
May 1941 215.1 9.38
Apr 1941 214.98 9.31
Mar 1941 231.61 9.96
Feb 1941 232.32 9.92
Jan 1941 235.83 10.07
Dec 1940 247.78 10.58
Nov 1940 249.31 10.57
Oct 1940 261.34 11.08
Sep 1940 251.43 10.66
Aug 1940 247.66 10.5
Jul 1940 242.71 10.29
Jun 1940 233.73 9.98
May 1940 218.65 9.27
Apr 1940 287.52 12.19
Mar 1940 287.29 12.18
Feb 1940 286.11 12.13
Jan 1940 286.26 12.05
Dec 1939 293.89 12.46
Nov 1939 287.76 12.2
Oct 1939 302.62 12.83
Sep 1939 299.53 12.79
Aug 1939 267.52 11.18
Jul 1939 288.1 12.04
Jun 1939 259.86 10.86
May 1939 277.57 11.6
Apr 1939 261.54 10.93
Mar 1939 260.84 10.98
Feb 1939 301.71 12.7
Jan 1939 290.12 12.3
Dec 1938 309.93 13.14
Nov 1938 300.26 12.73
Oct 1938 310.64 13.17
Sep 1938 286.65 12.24
Aug 1938 282.44 12.06
Jul 1938 288.76 12.33
Jun 1938 270.73 11.56
May 1938 217.1 9.27
Apr 1938 227.43 9.78
Mar 1938 199.06 8.5
Feb 1938 265.58 11.34
Jan 1938 248.59 10.69
Dec 1937 241.93 10.55
Nov 1937 253.01 11.11
Oct 1937 279.32 12.35
Sep 1937 311.21 13.76
Aug 1937 365.28 16.04
Jul 1937 381.91 16.77
Jun 1937 353.14 15.4
May 1937 372.87 16.26
Apr 1937 379.4 16.43
Mar 1937 416.72 17.92
Feb 1937 422.95 18.06
Jan 1937 416.16 17.77
Dec 1936 405.22 17.18
Nov 1936 407.58 17.28
Oct 1936 406.4 17.23
Sep 1936 377.62 16.01
Aug 1936 377.15 15.99
Jul 1936 376.54 15.85
Jun 1936 355.1 14.84
May 1936 347.09 14.4
Apr 1936 331.9 13.77
Mar 1936 359.62 14.92
Feb 1936 349.36 14.6
Jan 1936 342.42 14.31
Dec 1935 321.36 13.43
Nov 1935 309.63 12.94
Oct 1935 300.33 12.46
Sep 1935 279.36 11.59
Aug 1935 270.92 11.24
Jul 1935 267.06 11.08
Jun 1935 246.82 10.24
May 1935 229.23 9.58
Apr 1935 222.06 9.28
Mar 1935 203.67 8.45
Feb 1935 210.66 8.74
Jan 1935 220.95 9.1
Dec 1934 234.11 9.5
Nov 1934 233.35 9.54
Oct 1934 215.49 8.81
Sep 1934 220.47 9.08
Aug 1934 225.48 9.15
Jul 1934 213.9 8.68
Jun 1934 241.75 9.81
May 1934 238.6 9.61
Apr 1934 259.7 10.46
Mar 1934 263.67 10.62
Feb 1934 267.15 10.76
Jan 1934 279.43 11.17
Dec 1933 249.41 9.97
Nov 1933 247.16 9.88
Oct 1933 224.14 8.96
Sep 1933 243.16 9.72
Aug 1933 277.43 11.09
Jul 1933 250.81 9.95
Jun 1933 283.67 10.91
May 1933 252.64 9.64
Apr 1933 205.2 7.83
Mar 1933 153.31 5.85
Feb 1933 147.17 5.66
Jan 1933 177.65 6.94
Dec 1932 174.43 6.92
Nov 1932 163.86 6.55
Oct 1932 172.8 6.96
Sep 1932 199.11 8.08
Aug 1932 205.22 8.39
Jul 1932 146.41 6.03
Jun 1932 107.56 4.43
May 1932 107.74 4.47
Apr 1932 138.5 5.83
Mar 1932 172.42 7.31
Feb 1932 194.15 8.29
Jan 1932 183.35 7.94
Dec 1931 183.65 8.12
Nov 1931 213.4 9.5
Oct 1931 231.15 10.43
Sep 1931 213.76 9.71
Aug 1931 303.1 13.86
Jul 1931 300.25 13.73
Jun 1931 324.31 14.83
May 1931 281 13.02
Apr 1931 321.48 15.09
Mar 1931 353.29 16.69
Feb 1931 379.22 18.03
Jan 1931 336.24 16.19
Dec 1930 314.63 15.34
Nov 1930 329.81 16.38
Oct 1930 339.02 16.94
Sep 1930 369.8 18.59
Aug 1930 427.68 21.37
Jul 1930 421.92 21.21
Jun 1930 402.15 20.46
May 1930 478.52 24.49
Apr 1930 483.66 24.9
Mar 1930 471.87 24.15
Feb 1930 452.2 23.28
Jan 1930 440.09 22.79
Dec 1929 411.81 21.45
Nov 1929 399.31 20.92
Oct 1929 460.96 24.15
Sep 1929 575.68 30.16
Aug 1929 605.26 31.71
Jul 1929 551.25 28.88
Jun 1929 529.31 27.41
May 1929 482.31 24.83
Apr 1929 506.85 25.94
Mar 1929 495.9 25.53
Feb 1929 494.16 25.59
Jan 1929 497.06 25.74
Dec 1928 470.22 24.35
Nov 1928 466.14 24.28
Oct 1928 416.22 21.68
Sep 1928 403.51 21.14
Aug 1928 403.01 20.87
Jul 1928 375.21 19.43
Jun 1928 369.61 19.14
May 1928 383.97 20
Apr 1928 381.39 19.75
Mar 1928 372.31 19.28
Feb 1928 333.3 17.26
Jan 1928 335.37 17.57
Dec 1927 337.08 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 March 31, 2026, offering a clearer view of long-term, real investment performance.

Period Avg. Annual Return (Inflation-Adjusted) Avg. Annual Return (Nominal)
Last 1 year 12.67% 16.33%
Last 3 years 13.24% 16.69%
Last 5 years 5.68% 10.44%
Last 10 years 8.62% 12.23%
Last 20 years 5.74% 8.42%
Last 30 years 5.34% 8.02%
Last 40 years 5.65% 8.62%
Last 50 years 4.87% 8.66%
Last 75 years 4.31% 7.92%

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 September 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 75.5% nominal gain, but the real return (the actual increase in buying power) was 42.11%.

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 2021 - Sep 2025 $175.5 75.5% 42.11%
Last 10 years Feb 2016 - Sep 2025 $346.15 246.15% 152.7%
Last 25 years Feb 2001 - Sep 2025 $539.42 439.42% 191.96%
Last 50 years Feb 1976 - Sep 2025 $6,707.91 6,608% 1,052%

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
Apr 29, 2026
7,135.95
Highest
Apr 27, 2026
7,173.91
Highest, Inflation-Adjusted
Apr 27, 2026
7,173.91
Annualized return
Since Dec 30, 1927
6.29%
Annualized return, Inflation-Adjusted
Since Dec 30, 1927
3.15%