Index data, historical performance of major stock indexes

See the historical performance of the S&P 500, NASDAQ 100 and MSCI World

See the historical performance of the S&P 500, NASDAQ 100 and MSCI World over any period you choose, with total return, average annual return and CAGR.

Here you can see the historical performance of three well-known stock indexes: the US S&P 500 and NASDAQ 100, and the global MSCI World. Pick a period and get the chart together with key figures such as total return, average annual return and CAGR.

How to use the page

Pick an index and then a period: one month, six months, year to date, one year, five years or the full history available. You can also set your own start and end dates, for example to see how an index did through the financial crisis or during a particular decade.

The Value view shows the actual price levels, while Index rescales the prices so they start at 100. That makes the performance in percent easy to read and compare between periods.

The three indexes

• S&P 500 covers the roughly 500 largest listed companies in the United States and is the most widely followed stock index in the world. Data goes all the way back to 1927, so you can see almost a hundred years of market history, through the Great Depression, the dot-com bubble and the financial crisis.
• NASDAQ 100 is made up of the 100 largest non-financial companies on the NASDAQ exchange and is heavily weighted toward technology. Data from 1985.
• MSCI World covers large and mid-sized companies in 23 developed countries and is often used as the benchmark for a global stock portfolio. Here the index is tracked through an ETF that follows it, with data from 2012.

The key figures

Below the chart, three numbers are calculated for the period you pick:

• Total return: the percentage change from the first to the last price in the period.
• Average annual return: the total return divided by the length of the period in years, in other words a simple average.
• CAGR: the compound annual growth rate that takes you exactly from the starting price to the ending price.

CAGR is always the lower of the two annual figures and the fairest one to use when you compare returns across different periods. If an index grows 100% in ten years, for example, the simple average is 10% a year, while the CAGR is 7.18%. You can read more about the difference, and run your own numbers, in the CAGR calculator.

Use the numbers correctly

The charts show price performance without dividends, so the total return with reinvested dividends has historically been higher. All three indexes are also shown in US dollars, which means that if you invest in euros or another currency, your return also depends on the exchange rate. And as always, past returns are no guarantee of future returns.

If you want to see what a historical return would have done to regular monthly savings, enter the CAGR figure in the compound interest calculator. And if you want to know what the return is worth in purchasing power, compare it with inflation.

Sources

The charts are based on official daily closing prices from the exchanges, updated after each trading day. You can read more about each index from the index providers:

• S&P 500: calculated by S&P Dow Jones Indices.
• NASDAQ 100: Nasdaq.
• MSCI World: MSCI, tracked here through an ETF that follows the index.

Frequently asked questions

Which stock indexes can I see data for?

You can see the S&P 500, the 500 largest US companies, with data going back to 1927, the NASDAQ 100, the largest non-financial companies on the NASDAQ exchange, with data from 1985, and MSCI World, a global index of stocks in developed countries, which is tracked through an ETF with data from 2012.

Are dividends included in the return?

No. The charts show price performance, and dividends are not reinvested in the figures. The total return for an investor who reinvests dividends has historically been roughly 1 to 3 percentage points higher per year than the price performance alone, depending on the index and the period.

What is the difference between average annual return and CAGR?

The average annual return is the total return for the period divided by the number of years, while CAGR is the compound annual growth rate that takes you exactly from the starting price to the ending price. CAGR is lower than the simple average and is the fairest number to use when you compare returns across different periods.

Learn more in the CAGR calculator

Which currency are the prices shown in?

Prices are shown in each index's own currency, which for the S&P 500, NASDAQ 100 and MSCI World is US dollars. If you invest in another currency, such as euros, your actual return also depends on the exchange rate, which is not included in the figures here.

What does the Index view mean, compared with Value?

In the Index view, prices are rescaled so they start at 100 on the first day of the period you pick. That makes it easy to compare performance in percent, whether the index trades in the thousands or the hundreds. In the Value view you see the actual price levels.

How often are the prices updated?

The page uses daily closing prices that are updated after each trading day. It is meant as a tool for looking at performance over months and years, not for following the market during the day.