DCA history · S&P 500
S&P 500 DCA since 2015: $100 weekly
Investing $100 every week into S&P 500 since 1 January 2015 (617 buys, $61,700 in total) would be worth $143,230 today (+132.14%).
Backtest 1 January 2015 to 22 October 2026 · USD · no fees · live price. Change the amount, dates or fees →
Dollar-cost averaging
$143,230
+132.14% · +13.54%/yr
- Invested
- $61,700.00
- Buys
- 617
- Average cost
- $3,308.40
Lump sum, day one
Winner$230,152
+273.02%
- Invested
- $61,700.00
- Bought at
- $2,058.90
- Max drawdown
- 33.92%
Perfect timing (hindsight)
$259,071
+319.89%
- Bought on
- 11 Feb 2016
- At a price of
- $1,829.08
- 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 5.8% of days, with the longest unbroken stretch lasting 77 days (to 16 Mar 2016). The worst moment was 11 Feb 2016, when it was down 10.5% on what had been invested. It has been in profit continuously since 24 Mar 2020. The average cost per unit was $3,308.40 against a price today of $7,680.08 (+132.14%). The cheapest buy was $1,829.08 on 11 Feb 2016 and the priciest $7,798.99 on 13 Aug 2026.
Year by year
| As of | Invested | Worth | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31 Dec 2015 | $5,300 | $5,253 | -0.89% |
| 31 Dec 2016 | $10,500 | $11,323 | +7.84% |
| 31 Dec 2017 | $15,700 | $19,213 | +22.37% |
| 31 Dec 2018 | $20,900 | $22,768 | +8.94% |
| 31 Dec 2019 | $26,100 | $35,131 | +34.60% |
| 31 Dec 2020 | $31,400 | $47,089 | +49.96% |
| 31 Dec 2021 | $36,600 | $65,572 | +79.16% |
| 31 Dec 2022 | $41,800 | $57,722 | +38.09% |
| 31 Dec 2023 | $47,000 | $77,516 | +64.93% |
| 31 Dec 2024 | $52,200 | $101,247 | +93.96% |
| 31 Dec 2025 | $57,400 | $123,608 | +115.34% |
| 22 Oct 2026 | $61,700 | $143,230 | +132.14% |
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 2015 be worth today?
- Investing $100 every week into S&P 500 since 1 January 2015 (617 buys, $61,700 in total) would be worth $143,230 today (+132.14%).
- Was DCA better than a lump sum for S&P 500 since 2015?
- Investing the same $61,700 in one go on 1 January 2015 would be worth $230,152 today (+273.02%), 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 2015?
- The plan was worth less than the money invested on 5.8% of days, with the longest stretch lasting 77 days (ending 16 Mar 2016).