Average Return of SPY Since Inception

Stock Market Guides is not a financial advisor. Our content is strictly educational and should not be considered financial advice.

SPY is one of the most popular ticker symbols in the world.

Its performance is considered a reflection of the stock market's overall performance since it is an ETF that correlates with the S&P 500.

This article will show what SPY's average annual return is as well as what it's SPY's annual return by year has been.

 

SPY's Average Return

SPY reached its 30-year anniversary on January 29, 2023.

As of that date, the average return of SPY has been

9.72% per year

That calculation is based on the adjusted close values of SPY. This means that dividends were accounted for in calculating that return.

 

Stock Market Guides

stock market guides logo

Stock Market Guides identifies stock and option trading opportunities that have a historical track record of profitability in backtests.

Average Annualized Return
This takes the average return in backtests of all the stock picks featured in this service and annualizes it.

79.4%

Learn More

How to Calculate the Average Return of SPY?

The way we calculated the average annual return is by taking the price of SPY at the close on February 1, 2023, which was $409.24, and dividing by the adjusted close of SPY on February 1, 1993, which was $25.30.

We then take that number, and raise it to the power of 1/30 (since there are 30 years). That give us the average annual rate of return for SPY.

People who own shares of SPY receive dividends. The adjusted close accounts for those dividends, and therefore the return from the dividends is included in the 9.72% average annual return.

 

SPY's Annual Return by Year

Below is a table that shows the annual return of SPY by year, including dividends.

Year

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

1997

1996

1995

1994

Return

-18.2%

28.7%

18.3%

31.2%

-4.6%

21.7%

12.0%

1.2%

13.5%

32.3%

16.0%

1.9%

15.0%

26.3%

-36.8%

5.1%

15.9%

4.8%

10.7%

28.2%

-21.6%

-11.8%

-9.7%

20.4%

28.7%

33.5%

22.5%

38.0%

0.4%

SPY Adjusted Close

$380.98

$465.60

$361.69

$305.66

$232.93

$244.08

$200.55

$179.07

$176.88

$155.89

$117.83

$101.58

$99.69

$86.65

$68.58

$108.50

$103.19

$89.07

$84.97

$76.76

$59.88

$76.37

$86.54

$95.88

$79.65

$61.89

$46.37

$37.85

$27.42

 

Should You Invest in SPY?

Warren Buffett, who is perhaps the most famous investor in the world, has publicly shared his advice for people about investing.

He says he thinks most people are best served by investing in simple market ETFs for the long haul. So if you think Warren Buffett's knows what he's talking about, you can consider buying shares of SPY as a form of long term investment.

 

How Do You Invest in SPY?

To be able to take advantage of SPY's annual returns, you need to buy shares of SPY. To do that, you need a brokerage account.

We created a guide that shows how to buy stocks. You can follow the steps shown there, and simply look for the ticker symbol SPY.

Join Our Free Email List

Get emails from us about ways to potentially make money in the stock market.

Stock Market Guides

stock market guides logo

You can trade without an edge, but why?

What We Offer

Stock Market Guides identifies stock trading opportunities that have a historical track record of profitability in backtests.

Average Annualized Return
This takes the average return in backtests of all the stock picks featured in this service and annualizes it.

79.4%

Learn More