DCA history · S&P 500
S&P 500 DCA since 2004: $100 weekly
Investing $100 every week into S&P 500 since 1 January 2004 (1,191 buys, $119,100 in total) would be worth $487,892 today (+309.65%).
Backtest 1 January 2004 to 22 October 2026 · USD · no fees · live price. Change the amount, dates or fees →
Dollar-cost averaging
$487,892
+309.65% · +10.95%/yr
- Invested
- $119,100.00
- Buys
- 1,191
- Average cost
- $1,874.80
Lump sum, day one
Winner$822,629
+590.70%
- Invested
- $119,100.00
- Bought at
- $1,111.92
- Max drawdown
- 56.78%
Perfect timing (hindsight)
$1,352,043
+1035.22%
- Bought on
- 9 Mar 2009
- At a price of
- $676.53
- 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 12% of days, with the longest unbroken stretch lasting 579 days (to 4 Apr 2010). The worst moment was 9 Mar 2009, when it was down 44.8% on what had been invested. It has been in profit continuously since 28 Nov 2011. The average cost per unit was $1,874.80 against a price today of $7,680.08 (+309.65%). The cheapest buy was $682.55 on 5 Mar 2009 and the priciest $7,798.99 on 13 Aug 2026.
Year by year
| As of | Invested | Worth | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 2004 | $5,300 | $5,682 | +7.21% |
| 31 Dec 2005 | $10,500 | $11,233 | +6.98% |
| 31 Dec 2006 | $15,700 | $18,392 | +17.15% |
| 31 Dec 2007 | $20,900 | $24,217 | +15.87% |
| 31 Dec 2008 | $26,100 | $18,861 | -27.74% |
| 31 Dec 2009 | $31,400 | $29,601 | -5.73% |
| 31 Dec 2010 | $36,600 | $39,131 | +6.92% |
| 31 Dec 2011 | $41,800 | $44,300 | +5.98% |
| 31 Dec 2012 | $47,000 | $55,620 | +18.34% |
| 31 Dec 2013 | $52,200 | $77,961 | +49.35% |
| 31 Dec 2014 | $57,400 | $92,398 | +60.97% |
| 31 Dec 2015 | $62,700 | $96,979 | +54.67% |
| 31 Dec 2016 | $67,900 | $111,796 | +64.65% |
| 31 Dec 2017 | $73,100 | $139,197 | +90.42% |
| 31 Dec 2018 | $78,300 | $135,269 | +72.76% |
| 31 Dec 2019 | $83,500 | $180,120 | +115.71% |
| 31 Dec 2020 | $88,800 | $215,652 | +142.85% |
| 31 Dec 2021 | $94,000 | $279,466 | +197.30% |
| 31 Dec 2022 | $99,200 | $230,028 | +131.88% |
| 31 Dec 2023 | $104,400 | $291,574 | +179.29% |
| 31 Dec 2024 | $109,600 | $365,199 | +233.21% |
| 31 Dec 2025 | $114,800 | $430,816 | +275.28% |
| 22 Oct 2026 | $119,100 | $487,892 | +309.65% |
Try a different start
Weekly $100 into S&P 500, 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 since 2004 be worth today?
- Investing $100 every week into S&P 500 since 1 January 2004 (1,191 buys, $119,100 in total) would be worth $487,892 today (+309.65%).
- Was DCA better than a lump sum for S&P 500 since 2004?
- Investing the same $119,100 in one go on 1 January 2004 would be worth $822,629 today (+590.70%), 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 DCA underwater since 2004?
- The plan was worth less than the money invested on 12% of days, with the longest stretch lasting 579 days (ending 4 Apr 2010).