S&P 500 · Year Paths — This Year Against Every Year Since 1928
The plate
Latest Snapshot
- Latest close
- 7,592.42026-11-12
- Observations
- 24,835
- Sample
- 1927-12-30 – 2026-11-12
Every calendar year of the S&P 500 since 1928 drawn as one line from the previous year's last close, on a single calendar from January to December; the year in progress runs to the latest close. Price return, dividends excluded.
What this page answers
As of 2026-11-12, the S&P 500 is +10.9% for 2026 on price alone (dividends excluded), measured from the last close of 2025. At the same calendar date, 58 of the 98 complete years from 1928 to 2025 stood lower and 40 stood level or higher; the median stood at +8.1%. Those years ended between -47.1% (1931) and +45.0% (1954), with a median full-year return of +11.6%. The year whose path has run closest to 2026's so far is 1944, which ended at +13.8%.
Every calendar year of the S&P 500 since 1928 drawn as one line from the previous year's last close, on a single calendar from January to December; the year in progress runs to the latest close. Price return, dividends excluded. 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 — return from the prior year-end close to Nov 12 and for the full year, 1928–2026 (price return)
| Year | To Nov 12 | Full year |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | +10.9% | in progress |
| 2025 | +16.5% | +16.4% |
| 2024 | +25.5% | +23.3% |
| 2023 | +15.0% | +24.2% |
| 2022 | -16.2% | -19.4% |
| 2021 | +24.7% | +26.9% |
| 2020 | +9.5% | +16.3% |
| 2019 | +23.3% | +28.9% |
| 2018 | +2.0% | -6.2% |
| 2017 | +15.3% | +19.4% |
| 2016 | +5.9% | +9.5% |
| 2015 | -0.6% | -0.7% |
| 2014 | +10.3% | +11.4% |
| 2013 | +23.9% | +29.6% |
| 2012 | +9.7% | +13.4% |
| 2011 | +0.5% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | +7.5% | +12.8% |
| 2009 | +20.4% | +23.5% |
| 2008 | -42.0% | -38.5% |
| 2007 | +1.5% | +3.5% |
| 2006 | +10.6% | +13.6% |
| 2005 | +1.9% | +3.0% |
| 2004 | +6.5% | +9.0% |
| 2003 | +20.3% | +26.4% |
| 2002 | -23.1% | -23.4% |
| 2001 | -15.3% | -13.0% |
| 2000 | -7.0% | -10.1% |
| 1999 | +13.6% | +19.5% |
| 1998 | +15.2% | +26.7% |
| 1997 | +22.3% | +31.0% |
| 1996 | +18.4% | +20.3% |
| 1995 | +29.1% | +34.1% |
| 1994 | -0.9% | -1.5% |
| 1993 | +6.8% | +7.1% |
| 1992 | +1.4% | +4.5% |
| 1991 | +20.1% | +26.3% |
| 1990 | -9.6% | -6.6% |
| 1989 | +22.1% | +27.3% |
| 1988 | +8.4% | +12.4% |
| 1987 | +2.6% | +2.0% |
| 1986 | +16.7% | +14.6% |
| 1985 | +18.4% | +26.3% |
| 1984 | +1.5% | +1.4% |
| 1983 | +18.2% | +17.3% |
| 1982 | +13.9% | +14.8% |
| 1981 | -9.3% | -9.7% |
| 1980 | +24.7% | +25.8% |
| 1979 | +7.7% | +12.3% |
| 1978 | -0.3% | +1.1% |
| 1977 | -10.7% | -11.5% |
| 1976 | +10.0% | +19.1% |
| 1975 | +33.0% | +31.5% |
| 1974 | -24.5% | -29.7% |
| 1973 | -11.5% | -17.4% |
| 1972 | +11.4% | +15.6% |
| 1971 | -0.0% | +10.8% |
| 1970 | -8.6% | +0.1% |
| 1969 | -5.7% | -11.4% |
| 1968 | +8.4% | +7.7% |
| 1967 | +14.8% | +20.1% |
| 1966 | -11.3% | -13.1% |
| 1965 | +9.2% | +9.1% |
| 1964 | +13.6% | +13.0% |
| 1963 | +16.1% | +18.9% |
| 1962 | -16.7% | -11.8% |
| 1961 | +22.3% | +23.1% |
| 1960 | -6.7% | -3.0% |
| 1959 | +3.6% | +8.5% |
| 1958 | +32.7% | +38.1% |
| 1957 | -15.1% | -14.3% |
| 1956 | +2.2% | +2.6% |
| 1955 | +25.7% | +26.4% |
| 1954 | +35.2% | +45.0% |
| 1953 | -7.9% | -6.6% |
| 1952 | +3.7% | +11.8% |
| 1951 | +11.4% | +16.3% |
| 1950 | +18.8% | +21.7% |
| 1949 | +6.2% | +10.5% |
| 1948 | -1.7% | -0.7% |
| 1947 | +0.1% | 0.0% |
| 1946 | -13.9% | -11.9% |
| 1945 | +28.8% | +30.7% |
| 1944 | +11.2% | +13.8% |
| 1943 | +15.6% | +19.4% |
| 1942 | +10.8% | +12.4% |
| 1941 | -12.5% | -17.9% |
| 1940 | -8.8% | -15.1% |
| 1939 | -3.8% | -5.2% |
| 1938 | +29.9% | +24.5% |
| 1937 | -30.7% | -38.6% |
| 1936 | +29.8% | +27.9% |
| 1935 | +34.8% | +41.4% |
| 1934 | -6.7% | -4.7% |
| 1933 | +40.5% | +44.1% |
| 1932 | -5.4% | -14.8% |
| 1931 | -27.8% | -47.1% |
| 1930 | -24.8% | -28.5% |
| 1929 | -23.1% | -11.9% |
| 1928 | +29.3% | +37.9% |
99 rows, one per year. "To Nov 12" is the last close on or before that date divided by the previous year's last close, minus one; dividends are not included. Raw dataset: https://historyofmarket.com/api/sp500/price.json
Data & Source
GET /api/sp500/price.json — Canonical dataset endpoint.
Exchange closing prices · Company filings · Robert Shiller · FRED · NBER.
FAQ
How does the S&P 500's return so far this year compare with past years?
As of 2026-11-12, the S&P 500 is +10.9% for 2026 on price alone (dividends excluded), measured from the last close of 2025. At the same calendar date, 58 of the 98 complete years from 1928 to 2025 stood lower and 40 stood level or higher; the median stood at +8.1%.
Which past year has the S&P 500 tracked most closely this year?
1944. Of the 98 complete years since 1928, its daily path from January 1 to November 12 sits closest to 2026's (the smallest root-mean-square gap between the two lines, date by date). 1944 ended the year at +13.8%.
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.