DCA calculator
Gold (COMEX front-month, USD/oz) DCA calculator
Backtest a recurring gold buy against real historical prices.
Gold is the classic inflation and currency-debasement hedge: a physical commodity with no yield of its own, priced here from COMEX front-month futures (which track spot gold within a small basis).
Its day-to-day moves are far smaller than crypto's, but it still has real multi-year cycles of its own, including a strong 2000s–2011 run and a long, flatter stretch afterward.
Dollar cost averaging
$51,438.09
$31,238.09 · +154.64%- Invested
- $20,200.00
- Annualised (XIRR)
- +10.26%
- Avg cost / unit
- $1,575.14
- Units held
- 12.8243
- Max drawdown
- -24.35%
Lump sum on day one
$73,925.36
$53,725.36 · +265.97%- Invested
- $20,200.00
- Annualised (XIRR)
- +8.02%
- Avg cost / unit
- $1,096.00
- Units held
- 18.4307
- Max drawdown
- -44.94%
Perfect timing
HindsightYour whole $20,200.00 put in on the single cheapest day of the period.
$77,090.58
+$25,652.49 vs your DCA- Bought everything on
- 2015-12-17
- At a price of
- $1,051.00
- Return
- +281.64%
Nobody can pick the exact bottom. This is the best case, not a plan you could follow.
Does your start date matter? Best and worst time to start DCA or DCA vs lump sum, tested on every start month.
Value over time · 385 daily points
| Date | Invested | Units | Value | P/L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-01-01 | $100.00 | 0.0912409 | $100.00 | $0.00 |
| 2010-09-30 | $900.00 | 0.774642 | $1,012.46 | $112.46 |
| 2011-06-29 | $1,800.00 | 1.41164 | $2,118.88 | $318.88 |
| 2012-03-27 | $2,700.00 | 1.94847 | $3,275.38 | $575.38 |
| 2012-12-24 | $3,600.00 | 2.4875 | $4,121.79 | $521.79 |
| 2013-09-22 | $4,500.00 | 3.10387 | $4,115.73 | -$384.27 |
| 2014-06-21 | $5,400.00 | 3.81235 | $5,013.24 | -$386.76 |
| 2015-03-20 | $6,300.00 | 4.53793 | $5,363.84 | -$936.16 |
| 2015-12-17 | $7,200.00 | 5.32545 | $5,597.05 | -$1,602.95 |
| 2016-09-14 | $8,100.00 | 6.0556 | $8,011.55 | -$88.45 |
| 2017-06-13 | $9,000.00 | 6.78241 | $8,586.53 | -$413.47 |
| 2018-03-12 | $9,900.00 | 7.47887 | $9,894.54 | -$5.46 |
| 2018-12-09 | $10,800.00 | 8.20072 | $10,234.49 | -$565.51 |
| 2019-09-07 | $11,700.00 | 8.87198 | $13,370.08 | $1,670.08 |
| 2020-06-05 | $12,600.00 | 9.44703 | $15,835.11 | $3,235.11 |
| 2021-03-04 | $13,500.00 | 9.93059 | $16,883.99 | $3,383.99 |
| 2021-12-01 | $14,400.00 | 10.433 | $18,587.48 | $4,187.48 |
| 2022-08-30 | $15,200.00 | 10.8656 | $18,723.65 | $3,523.65 |
| 2023-05-29 | $16,100.00 | 11.3635 | $22,091.75 | $5,991.75 |
| 2024-02-25 | $17,000.00 | 11.8193 | $24,094.83 | $7,094.83 |
| 2024-11-23 | $17,900.00 | 12.1966 | $33,051.56 | $15,151.56 |
| 2025-08-22 | $18,800.00 | 12.4965 | $42,168.31 | $23,368.31 |
| 2026-05-21 | $19,700.00 | 12.7058 | $57,681.96 | $37,981.96 |
| 2026-10-23 | $20,200.00 | 12.8243 | $51,438.09 | $31,238.09 |
Why DCA into Gold (COMEX front-month, USD/oz)?
Gold's lower volatility means the gap between a lump sum and a recurring buy is usually smaller than it would be for crypto, but the comparison is still worth running, especially over a window that includes one of its bigger multi-year moves.
Frequently asked questions
- What is dollar-cost averaging into gold?
- Dollar-cost averaging (DCA) means investing a fixed amount into gold on a regular schedule (weekly, biweekly or monthly), regardless of the price that day, rather than trying to time a single entry point. Some buys land at a local high, some at a local low, and the average cost per unit smooths out over the whole period.
- How far back does the gold price history go?
- Back to 2010-01-01. Note this asset excludes dividends by nature (gold has none). It's priced from COMEX front-month gold futures throughout.
- Does this include exchange fees?
- By default no. It's a 0% baseline so you can see the raw price effect first. Use the Exchange fee dropdown to add a percentage (a few common presets, or your own) and/or a flat fee per buy under Advanced options, and the DCA total updates to include them.
More on Gold
- How often has Gold closed above today’s price?
- What if you had invested weekly in Gold since 2024?
- What if you had invested weekly in Gold since 2021?
- What if you had invested weekly in Gold since 2016?
- DCA vs lump sum: what the data says
- Best and worst time to start DCA
- All “what if” backtests by start year