What investing from 1950 was like
Starting in 1950 caught the whole postwar boom. Of the 80 periods of this length in our data, only one did better. The early years were the best: 1954 returned more than 50%, as profits soared and investors who remembered 1929 finally came back to stocks.
The hard part came in 1973 and 1974, when the market lost 15% and then 27% as inflation surged. In nominal terms it recovered by 1976. After inflation, the year-end peak of 1972 wasn’t regained until 1985, a 13-year wait that the headline returns hide.
All at once, or a little each month?
$10,000 invested on the first day of 1950 grew to $45,711,721 by the end of 2025. The same $10,000 spread evenly over all 912 months, $10.96 a month, grew to $3,762,211. Across every 76-year period in the data, investing it all at once came out ahead every time, because money invested sooner spends longer in a market that rises more often than it falls.
How 1950–2025 ranks
There are 80 periods of 76 calendar years in the data, which starts in 1871. This one ranks 2 of 80, with 11.73% a year. The best was 1924–1999 at 11.76%, the median 9.72%, and the worst 1873–1948 at 6.97%.
Every year since 1950: returns, inflation and the value of $100
| Year | Total return | Inflation | Real return | $100 from 1950 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | +34.3% | +5.9% | +26.8% | $134.28 |
| 1951 | +23.1% | +6.0% | +16.1% | $165.30 |
| 1952 | +18.4% | +0.8% | +17.5% | $195.63 |
| 1953 | −0.8% | +0.7% | −1.5% | $194.07 |
| 1954 | +56.0% | −0.7% | +57.2% | $302.72 |
| 1955 | +28.2% | +0.4% | +27.7% | $388.15 |
| 1956 | +6.4% | +3.0% | +3.3% | $412.92 |
| 1957 | −9.3% | +2.9% | −11.9% | $374.51 |
| 1958 | +43.4% | +1.8% | +40.9% | $537.05 |
| 1959 | +11.6% | +1.7% | +9.7% | $599.30 |
| 1960 | −0.7% | +1.4% | −2.1% | $594.86 |
| 1961 | +28.5% | +0.7% | +27.7% | $764.46 |
| 1962 | −9.2% | +1.3% | −10.4% | $694.13 |
| 1963 | +23.0% | +1.6% | +21.0% | $854.06 |
| 1964 | +16.6% | +1.0% | +15.5% | $995.75 |
| 1965 | +12.5% | +1.9% | +10.3% | $1,120 |
| 1966 | −10.4% | +3.5% | −13.4% | $1,004 |
| 1967 | +24.5% | +3.0% | +20.8% | $1,249 |
| 1968 | +11.0% | +4.7% | +6.0% | $1,387 |
| 1969 | −8.6% | +6.2% | −14.0% | $1,267 |
| 1970 | +3.6% | +5.6% | −1.9% | $1,313 |
| 1971 | +14.5% | +3.3% | +10.9% | $1,504 |
| 1972 | +19.2% | +3.4% | +15.2% | $1,792 |
| 1973 | −15.0% | +8.7% | −21.8% | $1,522 |
| 1974 | −27.0% | +12.3% | −35.0% | $1,112 |
| 1975 | +38.5% | +6.9% | +29.5% | $1,540 |
| 1976 | +24.2% | +4.9% | +18.4% | $1,912 |
| 1977 | −7.8% | +6.7% | −13.6% | $1,764 |
| 1978 | +6.4% | +9.0% | −2.4% | $1,877 |
| 1979 | +18.7% | +13.3% | +4.8% | $2,227 |
| 1980 | +32.8% | +12.5% | +18.0% | $2,957 |
| 1981 | −5.3% | +8.9% | −13.1% | $2,800 |
| 1982 | +21.2% | +3.8% | +16.7% | $3,394 |
| 1983 | +23.1% | +3.8% | +18.6% | $4,179 |
| 1984 | +6.0% | +3.9% | +1.9% | $4,428 |
| 1985 | +32.2% | +3.8% | +27.4% | $5,855 |
| 1986 | +19.1% | +1.1% | +17.8% | $6,971 |
| 1987 | +5.7% | +4.4% | +1.2% | $7,368 |
| 1988 | +16.6% | +4.4% | +11.7% | $8,594 |
| 1989 | +32.0% | +4.6% | +26.1% | $11,344 |
| 1990 | −3.4% | +6.1% | −9.0% | $10,956 |
| 1991 | +31.0% | +3.1% | +27.1% | $14,347 |
| 1992 | +7.6% | +2.9% | +4.6% | $15,437 |
| 1993 | +10.2% | +2.7% | +7.2% | $17,007 |
| 1994 | +1.2% | +2.7% | −1.4% | $17,209 |
| 1995 | +38.0% | +2.5% | +34.6% | $23,752 |
| 1996 | +23.1% | +3.3% | +19.1% | $29,230 |
| 1997 | +33.7% | +1.7% | +31.4% | $39,071 |
| 1998 | +28.7% | +1.6% | +26.7% | $50,296 |
| 1999 | +21.1% | +2.7% | +17.9% | $60,914 |
| 2000 | −9.1% | +3.4% | −12.1% | $55,364 |
| 2001 | −12.0% | +1.6% | −13.3% | $48,732 |
| 2002 | −22.3% | +2.4% | −24.1% | $37,879 |
| 2003 | +28.7% | +1.9% | +26.3% | $48,758 |
| 2004 | +10.8% | +3.3% | +7.3% | $54,034 |
| 2005 | +4.8% | +3.4% | +1.3% | $56,622 |
| 2006 | +15.7% | +2.5% | +12.9% | $65,534 |
| 2007 | +5.5% | +4.1% | +1.3% | $69,112 |
| 2008 | −37.2% | +0.1% | −37.3% | $43,389 |
| 2009 | +27.1% | +2.7% | +23.8% | $55,152 |
| 2010 | +14.9% | +1.5% | +13.1% | $63,353 |
| 2011 | +2.1% | +3.0% | −0.9% | $64,664 |
| 2012 | +15.9% | +1.7% | +13.9% | $74,933 |
| 2013 | +32.4% | +1.5% | +30.5% | $99,233 |
| 2014 | +13.8% | +0.8% | +12.9% | $112,937 |
| 2015 | +1.3% | +0.7% | +0.6% | $114,417 |
| 2016 | +11.9% | +2.1% | +9.7% | $128,067 |
| 2017 | +21.9% | +2.1% | +19.4% | $156,165 |
| 2018 | −4.4% | +1.9% | −6.2% | $149,278 |
| 2019 | +31.7% | +2.3% | +28.8% | $196,659 |
| 2020 | +18.4% | +1.4% | +16.8% | $232,804 |
| 2021 | +28.8% | +7.0% | +20.4% | $299,922 |
| 2022 | −18.1% | +6.5% | −23.1% | $245,606 |
| 2023 | +26.3% | +3.3% | +22.2% | $310,176 |
| 2024 | +25.0% | +2.9% | +21.5% | $387,782 |
| 2025 | +17.9% | +2.7% | +14.8% | $457,117 |
How this is calculated
Returns are calendar-year total returns: the change in the S&P 500 plus dividends, reinvested. Before 1957 the figures are Robert Shiller’s reconstruction of the broad U.S. market, as the index itself didn’t yet have 500 stocks. Shiller works from monthly average prices, so single years before 1957 can differ by a few points from other published tables: 1954 is 56.0% here and about 52.6% in the widely used NYU Stern (Damodaran) series. Real returns subtract December-to-December inflation. The data is yearly, so falls within a year, like the spring of 2020, don’t show; the biggest fall here is measured between year-end values. Fees and taxes are left out.
For what prices did over the same years, see what $100 in 1950 is worth today. Every figure here comes from the same data as the S&P 500 return calculator. The method is on the methodology page.
Sources
- Robert J. Shiller, U.S. stock market data (S&P Composite, dividends and CPI), Yale University.
- S&P Dow Jones Indices, S&P 500 total returns for recent years.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index (CPI-U), December values.