DCA history · S&P 500
S&P 500 DCA since 2005: $100 weekly
Investing $100 every week into S&P 500 since 1 January 2005 (1,138 buys, $113,800 in total) would be worth $452,349 today (+297.49%).
Backtest 1 January 2005 to 22 October 2026 · USD · no fees · live price. Change the amount, dates or fees →
Dollar-cost averaging
$452,349
+297.49% · +11.25%/yr
- Invested
- $113,800.00
- Buys
- 1,138
- Average cost
- $1,932.12
Lump sum, day one
Winner$721,164
+533.71%
- Invested
- $113,800.00
- Bought at
- $1,211.92
- Max drawdown
- 56.78%
Perfect timing (hindsight)
$1,291,876
+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 13% of days, with the longest unbroken stretch lasting 658 days (to 8 Apr 2010). The worst moment was 9 Mar 2009, when it was down 45.9% on what had been invested. It has been in profit continuously since 29 Nov 2011. The average cost per unit was $1,932.12 against a price today of $7,680.08 (+297.49%). The cheapest buy was $683.38 on 7 Mar 2009 and the priciest $7,811.54 on 10 Oct 2026.
Year by year
| As of | Invested | Worth | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 2005 | $5,300 | $5,481 | +3.42% |
| 31 Dec 2006 | $10,500 | $11,860 | +12.95% |
| 31 Dec 2007 | $15,700 | $17,452 | +11.16% |
| 31 Dec 2008 | $20,900 | $14,699 | -29.67% |
| 31 Dec 2009 | $26,100 | $24,364 | -6.65% |
| 31 Dec 2010 | $31,300 | $33,245 | +6.22% |
| 31 Dec 2011 | $36,600 | $38,515 | +5.23% |
| 31 Dec 2012 | $41,800 | $49,058 | +17.36% |
| 31 Dec 2013 | $47,000 | $69,442 | +47.75% |
| 31 Dec 2014 | $52,200 | $82,905 | +58.82% |
| 31 Dec 2015 | $57,400 | $87,464 | +52.38% |
| 31 Dec 2016 | $62,700 | $101,484 | +61.86% |
| 31 Dec 2017 | $67,900 | $126,874 | +86.85% |
| 31 Dec 2018 | $73,100 | $123,719 | +69.25% |
| 31 Dec 2019 | $78,300 | $165,221 | +111.01% |
| 31 Dec 2020 | $83,500 | $198,231 | +137.40% |
| 31 Dec 2021 | $88,700 | $257,380 | +190.17% |
| 31 Dec 2022 | $94,000 | $212,323 | +125.88% |
| 31 Dec 2023 | $99,200 | $269,566 | +171.74% |
| 31 Dec 2024 | $104,400 | $338,053 | +223.81% |
| 31 Dec 2025 | $109,600 | $399,224 | +264.26% |
| 22 Oct 2026 | $113,800 | $452,349 | +297.49% |
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 2005 be worth today?
- Investing $100 every week into S&P 500 since 1 January 2005 (1,138 buys, $113,800 in total) would be worth $452,349 today (+297.49%).
- Was DCA better than a lump sum for S&P 500 since 2005?
- Investing the same $113,800 in one go on 1 January 2005 would be worth $721,164 today (+533.71%), 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 2005?
- The plan was worth less than the money invested on 13% of days, with the longest stretch lasting 658 days (ending 8 Apr 2010).