# S&P 500 Trailing vs. Forward P/E Multiples

Source: https://historyofmarket.com/sp500/forward-pe/
Language: en
Data through 2026-11-13
License: data CC BY 4.0, text © History of Market — cite "History of Market (historyofmarket.com)" and link the source page. Terms: https://historyofmarket.com/license/
Section: History of Market › S&P 500 › S&P 500 Trailing vs. Forward P/E Multiples

S&P 500 forward P/E (daily): 18.3× as of 2026-11-12.

**Trailing vs Forward P/E** — Historical trailing TTM and forward consensus P/E multiples, evaluating modern valuation levels against historical benchmarks.

Figure: Plate I.15 · Comparing cap-weighted trailing TTM P/E with terminal forward P/E based on blended 12-month analyst consensus. The spread between the two curves reflects aggregate market expectations regarding future corporate earnings momentum. · Data through 2026-11-13

## What this page answers

The S&P 500 currently trades at approximately 25.1× trailing twelve-month earnings and 20.1× consensus forward earnings. A forward multiple below the trailing metric indicates market expectations of corporate profit growth over the coming twelve months; the spread between the two serves as a barometer of macroeconomic growth expectations.

The data is refreshed by the History of Market pipeline and published as a stable JSON endpoint for research, citation, and AI-agent use.

## S&P 500 — trailing vs consensus forward PE multiples (year-end observations)

| Date | TTM PE | Forward PE |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-08-05 | 25.1× | 20.1× |
| 2025-12-26 | 29.3× | 22.3× |
| 2024-12-27 | 28.6× | 21.9× |
| 2023-12-29 | 24.4× | 19.7× |
| 2022-12-30 | 22.7× | 16.8× |
| 2021-12-31 | 23.6× | 21.4× |
| 2020-12-25 | 39.3× | 22.4× |
| 2019-12-27 | 22.8× | 18.5× |
| 2018-12-28 | 19.4× | 14.5× |
| 2017-12-29 | 24.3× | 18.2× |
| 2016-12-30 | 23.8× | 17.2× |
| 2015-12-25 | — | 16.4× |
| 2014-12-26 | — | 16.6× |
| 2013-12-27 | — | 15.3× |
| 2012-12-28 | — | 12.4× |
| 2011-12-30 | — | 11.8× |
| 2010-12-31 | — | 13.1× |
| 2009-12-25 | — | 14.4× |
| 2008-12-26 | — | 11.3× |
| 2007-12-28 | — | 14.5× |
| 2006-12-29 | — | 14.9× |
| 2005-12-30 | — | 14.5× |
| 2004-12-31 | — | 15.8× |
| 2003-12-26 | — | 17.5× |
| 2002-12-27 | — | 15.6× |
| 2001-12-28 | — | 21.3× |
| 2000-12-29 | — | 21.6× |
| 1999-12-31 | — | 25.1× |
| 1998-12-25 | — | 24.2× |
| 1997-12-31 | — | 19.9× |
| 1996-12-31 | — | 16.7× |
| 1995-12-29 | — | 17.0× |
| 1994-12-30 | — | 15.4× |
| 1993-12-31 | — | 17.5× |
| 1992-12-31 | — | 18.2× |
| 1991-12-31 | — | 19.0× |
| 1990-12-31 | — | 13.9× |

Displaying the 37 most recent of 1751 observations — complete series in JSON: https://historyofmarket.com/api/sp500/forward-pe.json

## Data & Source

[GET /api/sp500/forward-pe.json](https://historyofmarket.com/api/sp500/forward-pe.json) — Canonical dataset endpoint.

Exchange closing prices · Company filings · Robert Shiller · FRED · NBER.

## FAQ

### What is the current valuation multiple of the S&P 500?

Approximately 25.1× trailing P/E and 20.1× forward P/E (next-twelve-months consensus), updated as of 2026-11-13.

### Where does this data come from?

History of Market combines public market and macro datasets — exchange closing prices, company filings, Robert Shiller, FRED, NBER, and the UBS Global Investment Returns Yearbook (Dimson–Marsh–Staunton). The exact endpoint for this panel is linked below.

### How often is it updated?

Daily-tier datasets refresh after the U.S. market close, with a broader weekly refresh each weekend. The timestamp shown on this page comes from the JSON payload.

### Can I use the data?

Yes, for research and education with attribution to History of Market. Upstream data sources retain their own terms.

## Related charts and reading

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- [Information Technology Forward P/E Multiple Since 1998](https://historyofmarket.com/xlk/xlk-fwdpe/) — Information Technology
- [Financial Sector Thirty-Year Forward P/E Ratio](https://historyofmarket.com/fin/fin-fwdpe/) — Financials
- [PHLX Semiconductor Forward P/E: The Post-2011 Modern Cycle](https://historyofmarket.com/semi/semi-fwdpe/) — Semiconductors
- [Consumer Discretionary Forward P/E Multiple (S5COND)](https://historyofmarket.com/consumer/xly-fwdpe/) — Consumer
- [Consumer Staples Forward P/E Multiple (S5CONS)](https://historyofmarket.com/consumer/xlp-fwdpe/) — Consumer
- [Shiller PE Ratio (CAPE): Cycle-Smoothed Price-to-Earnings](https://historyofmarket.com/sp500/pe/)
- [S&P 500 Earnings Per Share (TTM)](https://historyofmarket.com/sp500/eps/)
- [S&P 500 Return on Equity: The Anchor of Capital Efficiency](https://historyofmarket.com/sp500/roe/)
- [Shiller PE Today: Is the U.S. Stock Market Overvalued?](https://historyofmarket.com/articles/shiller-pe-current)
- [QQQ vs SPY: 40 Years of Returns, Drawdowns and What You Actually Own](https://historyofmarket.com/articles/qqq-vs-spy)
- [Glossary: valuation, return and risk terms](https://historyofmarket.com/glossary/)

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Data: https://historyofmarket.com/api/sp500/forward-pe.json
Machine index: https://historyofmarket.com/llms.txt