The S&P 500 figure assumes dividends were reinvested; the Nasdaq comparison uses the commonly quoted price index. The annualized return summarizes the full holding period and does not describe the path taken to reach the ending value.
Historical index returns are not live quotes and do not include investor taxes, fund expenses or trading costs. An index cannot be purchased directly, and past performance does not set a future expected return.
See what a past S&P 500 or Nasdaq investment was worth at the end of 2025
Explore a historical lump-sum investment through the end of 2025. The S&P 500 series reinvests dividends, while the Nasdaq Composite series uses price returns. Compare the selected holding period, annualized growth and CPI-adjusted value without treating the two series as identical return definitions.
The S&P 500 figure assumes dividends were reinvested; the Nasdaq comparison uses the commonly quoted price index. The annualized return summarizes the full holding period and does not describe the path taken to reach the ending value.
Historical index returns are not live quotes and do not include investor taxes, fund expenses or trading costs. An index cannot be purchased directly, and past performance does not set a future expected return.
UNDERSTAND THE NUMBERS
Fixed educational example · independent of your inputs above. $ means US dollars; these are not current rate quotes or return forecasts.
This synthetic two-year example is not S&P 500 history. Start with $10,000, lose 20% in the first year and gain 20% in the second, with no deposits or withdrawals. It explains how to read the historical calculator.
| Point in time | Balance | Change that year |
|---|---|---|
| Start | $10,000 | — |
| Year 1 | $8,000 | −20% |
| Year 2 | $9,600 | +20% |
The arithmetic average of −20% and +20% is zero, yet the ending loss is 4%. Growth compounds on the remaining balance: a 20% fall requires a 25% rise to recover. Read annualized compound return alongside the ending value, not a simple average of yearly percentages.
The historical tool compares S&P 500 total returns with Nasdaq Composite price returns through 2025. Those dividend treatments differ, so the chart is not a like-for-like fund performance contest. It excludes fund fees, personal taxes, intrayear drawdowns and currency movements.
Compare nearby start years while keeping the investment amount fixed. A large outcome change shows sensitivity to the chosen window, not a reliable way to select the next entry date.
Test contributions and fees as separate assumptions →Prepared by EconoPi · examples and explanations reviewed September 19, 2026. Tables are our calculations under stated assumptions, not forecasts or recommendations by the referenced organizations.
An average depends on the start and end dates and whether dividends and inflation are included. This tool shows the compounded annualized return for the selected start year through 2025.
Set the starting investment to $1,000 and the start year to 2000 to see the modeled end-of-2025 value. This is a historical period result before fees and personal taxes, not a current account quote.
The result depends on the selected window. EconoPi also uses different dividend definitions for these series, so the gap is not a like-for-like comparison of two investable funds.
The S&P 500 series is total return (dividends reinvested). The Nasdaq Composite series is the price index, which is how it is usually quoted.
All math runs in your browser and your inputs are never sent to a server. Settings are saved locally and share links encode the state in the URL. For information only — not investment or tax advice.