Return and risk come together
If you want more return, you have to sit through more swings. The S&P 500 with dividends reinvested grew by 11.12 % a year from 1971 to 2025. That comes from the year-end values 92.15 (end of 1970) and 30,391.80 (end of 2025), as (30,391.80 / 92.15)^(1 / 55) − 1.
But 11 of the 55 years ended below zero. The worst year was 2008 at -36.55 %, the best was 1995 at +37.20 %. So in a single year €10,000 could have become €6,345 or €13,720. Even over 20 years the yearly growth ranged from 5.57 % (1998 to 2018) to 17.70 % (1979 to 1999), depending on the start year.
Higher returns came with larger swings. The average says nothing about how a single year turns out.
The S&P 500 grew by 11.12 % a year from 1971 to 2025, and 11 of the 55 years still ended below zero.
S&P 500 · 1971 to 2025
Questions people ask
Why does more return come with more risk?
Because the investments that grew most over long periods are the ones whose value moves most from year to year. Nobody is paid for the extra growth without the swing.
How often did the S&P 500 end a year below zero?
In 11 of the 55 years from 1971 to 2025, counted with dividends reinvested. The worst of them was 2008.
Does a long period remove the risk?
It narrows the spread but does not remove it. Over 20 years the yearly growth still ranged from 5.57 % to 17.70 %, depending on the start year.
Source: Annual values of the comparison series, as of 2025, retrieved 2026-11-09 · European Central Bank, MFI interest rate statistics (MIR), overnight deposits from households, new business, as of September 2026
Every year of a long share series as one bar, the bad ones beside the good ones.
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