DCA history · S&P 500 (Total Return)
S&P 500 (Total Return) DCA since 2005: $100 weekly
Investing $100 every week into S&P 500 (Total Return) since 1 January 2005 (1,141 buys, $114,100 in total) would be worth $579,872 today (+408.21%).
Backtest 1 January 2005 to 12 November 2026 · USD · no fees · live price. Change the amount, dates or fees →
Dollar-cost averaging
$579,872
+408.21% · +13.04%/yr
- Invested
- $114,100.00
- Buys
- 1,141
- Average cost
- $3,357.16
Lump sum, day one
Winner$1,081,783
+848.10%
- Invested
- $114,100.00
- Bought at
- $1,799.55
- Max drawdown
- 55.25%
Perfect timing (hindsight)
$1,777,764
+1458.08%
- Bought on
- 9 Mar 2009
- At a price of
- $1,095.04
- Not a plan you could follow
How it would have felt
Over this period the plan was worth less than the money you’d put in on 9.9% of days, with the longest unbroken stretch lasting 487 days (to 3 Jan 2010). The worst moment was 9 Mar 2009, when it was down 43.4% on what had been invested. It has been in profit continuously since 4 Oct 2011. The average cost per unit was $3,357.16 against a price today of $17,061.55 (+408.21%). The cheapest buy was $1,106.00 on 7 Mar 2009 and the priciest $17,525.23 on 10 Oct 2026.
Year by year
| As of | Invested | Worth | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 2005 | $5,300 | $5,533 | +4.40% |
| 31 Dec 2006 | $10,500 | $12,094 | +15.18% |
| 31 Dec 2007 | $15,700 | $17,981 | +14.53% |
| 31 Dec 2008 | $20,900 | $15,340 | -26.60% |
| 31 Dec 2009 | $26,100 | $25,691 | -1.57% |
| 31 Dec 2010 | $31,300 | $35,389 | +13.06% |
| 31 Dec 2011 | $36,600 | $41,464 | +13.29% |
| 31 Dec 2012 | $41,800 | $53,543 | +28.09% |
| 31 Dec 2013 | $47,000 | $76,811 | +63.43% |
| 31 Dec 2014 | $52,200 | $92,938 | +78.04% |
| 31 Dec 2015 | $57,400 | $99,441 | +73.24% |
| 31 Dec 2016 | $62,700 | $117,077 | +86.73% |
| 31 Dec 2017 | $67,900 | $148,377 | +118.52% |
| 31 Dec 2018 | $73,100 | $146,677 | +100.65% |
| 31 Dec 2019 | $78,300 | $198,693 | +153.76% |
| 31 Dec 2020 | $83,500 | $241,453 | +189.16% |
| 31 Dec 2021 | $88,700 | $316,645 | +256.98% |
| 31 Dec 2022 | $94,000 | $264,324 | +181.20% |
| 31 Dec 2023 | $99,200 | $339,652 | +242.39% |
| 31 Dec 2024 | $104,400 | $430,327 | +312.19% |
| 31 Dec 2025 | $109,600 | $513,077 | +368.14% |
| 12 Nov 2026 | $114,100 | $579,872 | +408.21% |
Try a different start
Weekly $100 into S&P 500 (Total Return), by start year:
Does the start year really matter? Best and worst time to start DCA or DCA vs lump sum, tested on every start month.
Frequently asked questions
- How much would $100 every week in S&P 500 (Total Return) since 2005 be worth today?
- Investing $100 every week into S&P 500 (Total Return) since 1 January 2005 (1,141 buys, $114,100 in total) would be worth $579,872 today (+408.21%).
- Was DCA better than a lump sum for S&P 500 (Total Return) since 2005?
- Investing the same $114,100 in one go on 1 January 2005 would be worth $1,081,783 today (+848.10%), so putting it all in on day one came out ahead over this particular period. Which wins depends heavily on the start date.
- How long was S&P 500 (Total Return) DCA underwater since 2005?
- The plan was worth less than the money invested on 9.9% of days, with the longest stretch lasting 487 days (ending 3 Jan 2010).