If you invested $100 in Microsoft stock (MSFT) at the beginning of March 1986, you would have about $636,030.93 by March 2026. This is a return on investment of 635,930.93%, or 24.48% per year.
This investment beats inflation during this period for an inflation-adjusted return of about 209,462.21% cumulatively, or 21.07% per year.
If you used dollar-cost averaging (monthly) instead of a lump-sum investment, you'd have $340,933.27.
The nominal return on investment of $100 is $635,930.93, or 635,930.93%. This means by March 2026 you would have $636,030.93.
However, it is important to take inflation into account when evaluating a long-term investment. You can convert these returns to their real value using an inflation calculation based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index (CPI).
In this case, the CPI in March 1986 was 108.800 and the CPI in March 2026 was 330.213.
Adjusted for inflation, the $636,030.93 nominal end value would have a real return of roughly $209,462.21 in 1986 dollars. This means the inflation-adjusted return is 209,462.21% as opposed to the original 635,930.93%.
The table below shows the full dataset pertaining to a $100 investment over the 481-month period between 1986 and 2026.
Year
Month
Return (%)
Amount ($)
CPI
1986
3
0.00%
100.00
108.80
1986
4
17.18%
117.18
108.60
1986
5
8.65%
127.32
108.90
1986
6
-12.15%
111.86
109.50
1986
7
-7.37%
103.61
109.50
1986
8
0.00%
103.61
109.70
1986
9
-0.83%
102.75
110.20
1986
10
37.12%
140.89
110.30
1986
11
28.41%
180.93
110.40
1986
12
-3.04%
175.43
110.50
1987
1
51.52%
265.81
111.20
1987
2
4.98%
279.04
111.60
1987
3
26.05%
351.72
112.10
1987
4
7.52%
378.18
112.70
1987
5
10.81%
419.07
113.10
1987
6
-11.48%
370.96
113.50
1987
7
-7.87%
341.75
113.80
1987
8
26.34%
431.79
114.40
1987
9
11.58%
481.79
115.00
1987
10
-24.89%
361.86
115.30
1987
11
-10.07%
325.43
115.40
1987
12
21.22%
394.50
115.40
1988
1
2.79%
405.50
115.70
1988
2
6.48%
431.79
116.00
1988
3
-4.85%
410.82
116.50
1988
4
-3.51%
396.39
117.10
1988
5
6.42%
421.82
117.50
1988
6
15.52%
487.29
118.00
1988
7
-11.21%
432.65
118.50
1988
8
-15.97%
363.57
119.00
1988
9
4.49%
379.90
119.80
1988
10
-6.20%
356.36
120.20
1988
11
-3.57%
343.64
120.30
1988
12
12.70%
387.29
120.50
1989
1
11.98%
433.68
121.10
1989
2
-0.24%
432.65
121.60
1989
3
-16.16%
362.71
122.30
1989
4
12.03%
406.36
123.10
1989
5
8.29%
440.03
123.80
1989
6
-12.42%
385.40
124.10
1989
7
3.30%
398.11
124.40
1989
8
7.34%
427.32
124.60
1989
9
16.57%
498.11
125.00
1989
10
19.35%
594.50
125.60
1989
11
6.42%
632.65
125.90
1989
12
0.00%
632.65
126.10
1990
1
6.33%
672.68
127.40
1990
2
6.74%
718.04
128.00
1990
3
12.16%
805.33
128.70
1990
4
4.76%
843.64
128.90
1990
5
25.85%
1,061.68
129.20
1990
6
4.11%
1,105.33
129.90
1990
7
-12.50%
967.18
130.40
1990
8
-7.51%
894.50
131.60
1990
9
2.44%
916.32
132.70
1990
10
1.18%
927.15
133.50
1990
11
13.34%
1,050.86
133.80
1990
12
4.15%
1,094.50
133.80
1991
1
30.39%
1,427.15
134.60
1991
2
5.73%
1,508.93
134.80
1991
3
2.29%
1,543.47
135.00
1991
4
-6.71%
1,439.86
135.20
1991
5
10.86%
1,596.22
135.60
1991
6
-6.89%
1,486.25
136.00
1991
7
7.88%
1,603.44
136.20
1991
8
15.99%
1,859.79
136.60
1991
9
4.40%
1,941.58
137.20
1991
10
5.48%
2,047.94
137.40
1991
11
3.60%
2,121.65
137.80
1991
12
14.40%
2,427.15
137.90
1992
1
8.08%
2,623.37
138.10
1992
2
2.71%
2,694.33
138.60
1992
3
-4.05%
2,585.22
139.30
1992
4
-6.96%
2,405.33
139.50
1992
5
9.75%
2,639.86
139.70
1992
6
-13.23%
2,290.72
140.20
1992
7
3.93%
2,380.76
140.50
1992
8
2.40%
2,437.97
140.90
1992
9
8.06%
2,634.36
141.30
1992
10
10.25%
2,904.30
141.80
1992
11
4.93%
3,047.42
142.00
1992
12
-8.32%
2,793.81
141.90
1993
1
1.32%
2,830.76
142.60
1993
2
-3.62%
2,728.35
143.10
1993
3
10.95%
3,026.98
143.60
1993
4
-7.57%
2,797.94
144.00
1993
5
8.33%
3,031.10
144.20
1993
6
-4.99%
2,879.73
144.40
1993
7
-15.91%
2,421.65
144.40
1993
8
1.52%
2,458.42
144.80
1993
9
9.82%
2,699.83
145.10
1993
10
-2.88%
2,621.99
145.70
1993
11
-0.15%
2,618.04
145.80
1993
12
0.78%
2,638.49
145.80
1994
1
5.58%
2,785.74
146.20
1994
2
-3.08%
2,699.83
146.70
1994
3
2.72%
2,773.37
147.20
1994
4
9.14%
3,026.98
147.40
1994
5
16.22%
3,517.87
147.50
1994
6
-3.95%
3,378.87
148.00
1994
7
-0.24%
3,370.62
148.40
1994
8
12.87%
3,804.30
149.00
1994
9
-3.44%
3,673.37
149.40
1994
10
12.25%
4,123.37
149.50
1994
11
-0.20%
4,115.12
149.70
1994
12
-2.78%
4,000.52
149.70
1995
1
-2.86%
3,886.08
150.30
1995
2
6.11%
4,123.37
150.90
1995
3
12.90%
4,655.15
151.40
1995
4
14.94%
5,350.52
151.90
1995
5
3.59%
5,542.78
152.20
1995
6
6.71%
5,914.95
152.50
1995
7
0.14%
5,923.20
152.50
1995
8
2.21%
6,054.12
152.90
1995
9
-2.16%
5,923.20
153.20
1995
10
10.50%
6,545.02
153.70
1995
11
-12.88%
5,702.23
153.60
1995
12
0.72%
5,743.13
153.50
1996
1
5.42%
6,054.12
154.40
1996
2
6.69%
6,459.11
154.90
1996
3
4.50%
6,749.48
155.70
1996
4
9.82%
7,412.20
156.30
1996
5
4.86%
7,772.16
156.60
1996
6
1.16%
7,862.03
156.70
1996
7
-1.87%
7,714.78
157.00
1996
8
3.92%
8,017.53
157.30
1996
9
7.65%
8,631.10
157.80
1996
10
4.08%
8,982.99
158.30
1996
11
14.30%
10,267.35
158.60
1996
12
5.34%
10,815.46
158.60
1997
1
23.45%
13,351.72
159.10
1997
2
-4.41%
12,762.71
159.60
1997
3
-5.96%
12,001.72
160.00
1997
4
32.52%
15,904.12
160.20
1997
5
2.06%
16,231.44
160.10
1997
6
1.91%
16,542.27
160.30
1997
7
11.87%
18,505.84
160.50
1997
8
-6.50%
17,303.26
160.80
1997
9
0.09%
17,319.59
161.20
1997
10
-1.75%
17,016.84
161.60
1997
11
8.85%
18,522.16
161.50
1997
12
-8.66%
16,918.73
161.30
1998
1
15.43%
19,528.52
161.60
1998
2
13.61%
22,187.29
161.90
1998
3
5.61%
23,430.93
162.20
1998
4
0.70%
23,594.50
162.50
1998
5
-5.89%
22,203.78
162.80
1998
6
27.78%
28,372.34
163.00
1998
7
1.44%
28,781.44
163.20
1998
8
-12.73%
25,116.15
163.40
1998
9
14.72%
28,814.09
163.60
1998
10
-3.80%
27,717.87
164.00
1998
11
15.23%
31,939.35
164.00
1998
12
13.68%
36,308.08
163.90
1999
1
26.18%
45,814.60
164.30
1999
2
-14.21%
39,302.41
164.50
1999
3
19.40%
46,927.15
165.00
1999
4
-9.27%
42,574.91
166.20
1999
5
-0.77%
42,247.59
166.20
1999
6
11.77%
47,221.82
166.20
1999
7
-4.85%
44,931.10
166.70
1999
8
7.87%
48,465.29
167.10
1999
9
-2.16%
47,418.04
167.90
1999
10
2.21%
48,465.29
168.20
1999
11
-1.64%
47,671.65
168.30
1999
12
28.23%
61,129.73
168.30
2000
1
-16.17%
51,246.91
168.80
2000
2
-8.68%
46,796.39
169.80
2000
3
18.88%
55,631.96
171.20
2000
4
-34.35%
36,520.79
171.30
2000
5
-10.30%
32,757.39
171.50
2000
6
27.87%
41,887.63
172.40
2000
7
-12.73%
36,553.44
172.80
2000
8
0.00%
36,553.44
172.80
2000
9
-13.61%
31,579.38
173.70
2000
10
14.20%
36,062.54
174.00
2000
11
-16.70%
30,041.24
174.10
2000
12
-24.40%
22,711.00
174.00
2001
1
40.78%
31,971.99
175.10
2001
2
-3.38%
30,892.10
175.80
2001
3
-7.31%
28,634.19
176.20
2001
4
23.89%
35,473.54
176.90
2001
5
2.11%
36,222.34
177.70
2001
6
5.52%
38,222.51
178.00
2001
7
-9.33%
34,656.70
177.50
2001
8
-13.81%
29,871.13
177.50
2001
9
-10.31%
26,792.44
178.30
2001
10
13.64%
30,447.08
177.70
2001
11
10.42%
33,620.10
177.40
2001
12
3.18%
34,688.14
176.70
2002
1
-3.83%
33,358.25
177.10
2002
2
-8.43%
30,546.56
177.80
2002
3
3.38%
31,578.01
178.80
2002
4
-13.35%
27,363.06
179.80
2002
5
-2.58%
26,656.19
179.80
2002
6
7.44%
28,640.72
179.90
2002
7
-12.29%
25,122.16
180.10
2002
8
2.29%
25,698.11
180.70
2002
9
-10.88%
22,902.06
181.00
2002
10
22.24%
27,996.56
181.30
2002
11
7.87%
30,201.03
181.30
2002
12
-10.37%
27,069.93
180.90
2003
1
-8.20%
24,849.83
181.70
2003
2
-0.13%
24,818.38
183.10
2003
3
2.48%
25,434.02
184.20
2003
4
5.62%
26,862.71
183.80
2003
5
-3.75%
25,854.30
183.50
2003
6
4.18%
26,936.25
183.70
2003
7
3.00%
27,745.19
183.90
2003
8
0.42%
27,860.82
184.60
2003
9
4.83%
29,205.50
185.20
2003
10
-5.97%
27,461.51
185.00
2003
11
-1.09%
27,161.34
184.50
2003
12
6.46%
28,915.12
184.30
2004
1
1.02%
29,210.82
185.20
2004
2
-4.05%
28,027.66
186.20
2004
3
-6.03%
26,337.29
187.40
2004
4
4.81%
27,605.15
188.00
2004
5
0.38%
27,710.65
189.10
2004
6
8.88%
30,172.34
189.70
2004
7
-0.25%
30,098.28
189.40
2004
8
-4.18%
28,841.07
189.50
2004
9
1.58%
29,297.08
189.90
2004
10
1.16%
29,636.08
190.90
2004
11
-4.15%
28,407.04
191.00
2004
12
11.08%
31,554.47
190.30
2005
1
-1.65%
31,034.88
190.70
2005
2
-4.26%
29,712.20
191.80
2005
3
-3.64%
28,631.10
193.30
2005
4
4.68%
29,969.76
194.60
2005
5
1.98%
30,562.03
194.40
2005
6
-3.42%
29,518.21
194.50
2005
7
3.10%
30,433.16
195.40
2005
8
6.91%
32,536.60
196.40
2005
9
-5.75%
30,666.49
198.80
2005
10
-0.12%
30,630.76
199.20
2005
11
7.70%
32,990.55
197.60
2005
12
-5.25%
31,258.42
196.80
2006
1
7.65%
33,649.14
198.30
2006
2
-4.55%
32,119.07
198.70
2006
3
1.61%
32,635.74
199.80
2006
4
-11.25%
28,965.64
201.50
2006
5
-6.21%
27,166.49
202.50
2006
6
3.27%
28,054.98
202.90
2006
7
3.26%
28,970.10
203.50
2006
8
6.82%
30,944.85
203.90
2006
9
6.81%
33,052.75
202.90
2006
10
4.97%
34,696.39
201.80
2006
11
2.26%
35,481.96
201.50
2006
12
2.05%
36,209.62
201.80
2007
1
3.35%
37,422.16
202.42
2007
2
-8.72%
34,160.14
203.50
2007
3
-0.72%
33,913.57
205.35
2007
4
7.43%
36,432.47
206.69
2007
5
2.50%
37,345.02
207.95
2007
6
-3.66%
35,976.63
208.35
2007
7
-1.63%
35,390.72
208.30
2007
8
-0.90%
35,073.37
207.92
2007
9
2.90%
36,090.55
208.49
2007
10
24.95%
45,094.85
208.94
2007
11
-8.72%
41,162.37
210.18
2007
12
6.30%
43,756.70
210.04
2008
1
-8.43%
40,069.24
211.08
2008
2
-16.56%
33,432.13
211.69
2008
3
4.74%
35,018.04
213.53
2008
4
0.49%
35,190.72
214.82
2008
5
-0.70%
34,943.99
216.63
2008
6
-2.50%
34,069.42
218.82
2008
7
-6.51%
31,852.58
219.96
2008
8
6.10%
33,796.91
219.09
2008
9
-1.81%
33,185.74
218.78
2008
10
-16.34%
27,764.60
216.57
2008
11
-9.45%
25,141.07
212.43
2008
12
-3.21%
24,335.05
210.23
2009
1
-12.04%
21,405.84
211.14
2009
2
-5.56%
20,216.67
212.19
2009
3
14.53%
23,153.26
212.71
2009
4
10.29%
25,535.40
213.24
2009
5
3.11%
26,329.38
213.86
2009
6
14.51%
30,149.66
215.69
2009
7
-1.05%
29,832.47
215.35
2009
8
4.80%
31,265.81
215.83
2009
9
4.93%
32,806.36
215.97
2009
10
7.81%
35,370.10
216.18
2009
11
6.06%
37,513.06
216.33
2009
12
4.10%
39,049.66
215.95
2010
1
-7.55%
36,103.09
216.69
2010
2
1.74%
36,730.76
216.74
2010
3
2.64%
37,700.69
217.63
2010
4
4.27%
39,309.62
218.01
2010
5
-15.52%
33,208.42
218.18
2010
6
-10.41%
29,751.03
217.97
2010
7
12.17%
33,371.31
218.01
2010
8
-9.07%
30,345.70
218.31
2010
9
4.90%
31,833.51
218.44
2010
10
8.90%
34,667.18
218.71
2010
11
-5.29%
32,834.36
218.80
2010
12
11.17%
36,501.89
219.18
2011
1
-0.64%
36,266.49
220.22
2011
2
-4.15%
34,762.37
221.31
2011
3
-3.91%
33,402.41
223.47
2011
4
2.09%
34,099.66
224.91
2011
5
-3.51%
32,902.41
225.96
2011
6
4.64%
34,429.04
225.72
2011
7
5.38%
36,282.99
225.92
2011
8
-2.92%
35,223.54
226.55
2011
9
-5.84%
33,167.18
226.89
2011
10
6.99%
35,485.91
226.42
2011
11
-3.94%
34,086.77
226.23
2011
12
2.25%
34,853.61
225.67
2012
1
13.75%
39,646.56
226.67
2012
2
7.48%
42,613.75
227.66
2012
3
2.31%
43,597.08
229.39
2012
4
-0.74%
43,272.68
230.09
2012
5
-8.84%
39,448.11
229.82
2012
6
5.48%
41,611.34
229.48
2012
7
-3.66%
40,087.80
229.10
2012
8
4.58%
41,924.23
230.38
2012
9
-2.80%
40,750.52
231.41
2012
10
-4.10%
39,079.90
231.32
2012
11
-6.73%
36,450.86
230.22
2012
12
1.16%
36,874.74
229.60
2013
1
2.77%
37,896.22
230.28
2013
2
1.28%
38,379.55
232.17
2013
3
3.77%
39,824.74
232.77
2013
4
15.69%
46,074.74
232.53
2013
5
5.44%
48,580.41
232.95
2013
6
-0.34%
48,416.32
233.50
2013
7
-7.82%
44,631.62
233.60
2013
8
4.90%
46,818.38
233.88
2013
9
0.34%
46,978.87
234.15
2013
10
6.40%
49,985.74
233.55
2013
11
7.68%
53,825.26
233.07
2013
12
-1.14%
53,209.45
233.05
2014
1
1.15%
53,820.96
233.92
2014
2
1.24%
54,489.52
234.78
2014
3
7.80%
58,738.49
236.29
2014
4
-1.44%
57,893.13
237.07
2014
5
1.34%
58,666.84
237.90
2014
6
2.57%
60,177.49
238.34
2014
7
3.50%
62,284.54
238.25
2014
8
5.26%
65,560.31
237.85
2014
9
2.68%
67,320.27
238.03
2014
10
1.27%
68,176.98
237.43
2014
11
1.83%
69,425.77
236.15
2014
12
-2.23%
67,876.46
234.81
2015
1
-13.02%
59,035.57
233.71
2015
2
8.54%
64,076.98
234.72
2015
3
-6.61%
59,838.49
236.12
2015
4
19.63%
71,582.30
236.60
2015
5
-3.66%
68,962.89
237.81
2015
6
-5.17%
65,396.91
238.64
2015
7
5.78%
69,174.05
238.65
2015
8
-6.81%
64,463.57
238.32
2015
9
2.37%
65,992.10
237.95
2015
10
18.93%
78,486.77
237.84
2015
11
3.25%
81,036.43
237.34
2015
12
2.77%
83,278.69
236.53
2016
1
-0.70%
82,693.30
236.92
2016
2
-7.64%
76,373.88
237.11
2016
3
9.33%
83,498.80
238.13
2016
4
-9.70%
75,395.36
239.26
2016
5
6.28%
80,127.32
240.23
2016
6
-2.78%
77,901.72
241.02
2016
7
10.77%
86,290.21
240.63
2016
8
1.38%
87,477.66
240.85
2016
9
0.87%
88,237.46
241.43
2016
10
4.03%
91,791.41
241.73
2016
11
0.57%
92,312.20
241.35
2016
12
3.82%
95,835.40
241.43
2017
1
4.04%
99,706.36
242.84
2017
2
-1.04%
98,673.02
243.60
2017
3
3.56%
102,188.32
243.80
2017
4
3.95%
106,222.51
244.52
2017
5
2.02%
108,363.57
244.73
2017
6
-0.74%
107,564.78
244.96
2017
7
5.47%
113,447.77
244.79
2017
8
2.85%
116,678.01
245.52
2017
9
0.16%
116,860.31
246.82
2017
10
11.67%
130,493.30
246.66
2017
11
1.19%
132,046.39
246.67
2017
12
2.14%
134,869.59
246.52
2018
1
11.07%
149,800.86
247.87
2018
2
-1.31%
147,845.70
248.99
2018
3
-2.21%
144,580.07
249.55
2018
4
2.47%
148,144.33
250.55
2018
5
5.69%
156,571.65
251.59
2018
6
0.20%
156,884.36
251.99
2018
7
7.58%
168,768.73
252.01
2018
8
5.89%
178,712.20
252.15
2018
9
2.21%
182,658.08
252.44
2018
10
-6.61%
170,584.02
252.89
2018
11
3.82%
177,100.17
252.04
2018
12
-8.01%
162,916.15
251.23
2019
1
2.82%
167,503.61
251.71
2019
2
7.28%
179,693.81
252.78
2019
3
5.72%
189,981.27
254.20
2019
4
10.73%
210,374.40
255.55
2019
5
-5.30%
199,227.32
256.09
2019
6
8.71%
216,585.57
256.14
2019
7
1.72%
220,320.27
256.57
2019
8
1.17%
222,891.07
256.56
2019
9
1.18%
225,531.27
256.76
2019
10
3.12%
232,571.48
257.35
2019
11
5.59%
245,565.12
257.21
2019
12
4.53%
256,687.63
256.97
2020
1
7.95%
277,082.65
257.97
2020
2
-4.83%
263,703.09
258.68
2020
3
-2.39%
257,405.15
258.12
2020
4
13.63%
292,496.22
256.39
2020
5
2.25%
299,090.03
256.39
2020
6
11.37%
333,082.30
257.80
2020
7
0.74%
335,537.29
259.10
2020
8
10.01%
369,122.16
259.92
2020
9
-6.51%
345,076.63
260.28
2020
10
-3.74%
332,181.27
260.39
2020
11
5.73%
351,212.71
260.23
2020
12
4.17%
365,867.35
260.47
2021
1
4.29%
381,560.14
261.58
2021
2
0.18%
382,251.03
263.01
2021
3
1.69%
388,720.62
264.88
2021
4
6.96%
415,776.12
267.05
2021
5
-0.99%
411,654.47
269.20
2021
6
8.75%
447,671.82
271.70
2021
7
5.17%
470,823.88
273.00
2021
8
5.96%
498,867.18
273.57
2021
9
-6.43%
466,774.57
274.31
2021
10
17.63%
549,062.71
276.59
2021
11
-0.31%
547,357.39
277.95
2021
12
1.92%
557,863.23
278.80
2022
1
-7.53%
515,831.10
281.15
2022
2
-3.92%
495,611.34
283.72
2022
3
3.40%
512,459.79
287.50
2022
4
-9.99%
461,281.96
289.11
2022
5
-2.04%
451,890.72
292.30
2022
6
-5.31%
427,886.25
296.31
2022
7
9.31%
467,720.96
296.28
2022
8
-6.86%
435,616.49
296.17
2022
9
-10.74%
388,841.75
296.81
2022
10
-0.33%
387,556.19
298.01
2022
11
9.91%
425,972.85
297.71
2022
12
-5.74%
401,523.54
296.80
2023
1
3.33%
414,900.86
299.17
2023
2
0.65%
417,596.56
300.84
2023
3
15.88%
483,901.20
301.84
2023
4
6.58%
515,724.74
303.36
2023
5
6.88%
551,190.89
304.13
2023
6
3.93%
572,833.51
305.11
2023
7
-1.36%
565,062.20
305.69
2023
8
-2.43%
551,335.91
307.03
2023
9
-3.46%
532,258.08
307.79
2023
10
7.08%
569,950.17
307.67
2023
11
12.07%
638,726.46
307.05
2023
12
-0.56%
635,175.09
306.75
2024
1
5.73%
671,558.76
308.42
2024
2
4.04%
698,685.91
310.33
2024
3
1.90%
711,958.93
312.33
2024
4
-7.46%
658,839.52
313.55
2024
5
6.63%
702,499.31
314.07
2024
6
7.86%
757,710.65
314.18
2024
7
-6.40%
709,225.26
314.54
2024
8
-0.29%
707,174.05
314.80
2024
9
3.34%
730,798.97
315.30
2024
10
-5.57%
690,123.37
315.66
2024
11
4.21%
719,182.13
315.49
2024
12
-0.26%
717,286.25
315.61
2025
1
-1.53%
706,326.98
317.67
2025
2
-4.35%
675,576.46
319.08
2025
3
-5.25%
640,099.66
319.80
2025
4
5.29%
673,981.10
320.80
2025
5
16.47%
784,986.94
321.47
2025
6
8.25%
849,720.27
322.56
2025
7
7.26%
911,372.51
323.05
2025
8
-5.03%
865,573.20
323.98
2025
9
2.39%
886,263.06
324.80
2025
10
-0.03%
886,023.37
324.80
2025
11
-4.98%
841,877.15
324.12
2025
12
-1.52%
829,069.93
324.05
2026
1
-11.03%
737,646.22
325.25
2026
2
-8.73%
673,274.23
326.79
2026
3
-5.53%
636,030.93
330.21
Click to show 475 more rows
Microsoft dollar-cost averaging
Dollar-cost averaging is an alternative to investing the full lump-sum of $100 up front. Instead, the capital is invested over a period of time.
Consider a strategy in which $100 was invested in Microsoft stock (MSFT) over a period of no more than 24 months beginning in 1986. This would result in a final amount of $340,933.27. In this particular case, dollar-cost average returns are less than the returns of a lump-sum investment (which ends with $636,030.93).
Year
Month
Contribution ($)
Amount ($)
1986
3
4.16
4.16
1986
4
4.16
9.75
1986
5
4.16
15.11
1986
6
4.16
16.93
1986
7
4.16
19.54
1986
8
4.16
23.70
1986
9
4.16
27.63
1986
10
4.16
43.59
1986
11
4.16
61.31
1986
12
4.16
63.48
1987
1
4.16
102.49
1987
2
4.16
111.96
1987
3
4.16
146.37
1987
4
4.16
161.85
1987
5
4.16
183.96
1987
6
4.16
166.52
1987
7
4.16
157.24
1987
8
4.16
203.93
1987
9
4.16
232.18
1987
10
4.16
177.51
1987
11
4.16
163.38
1987
12
4.16
203.10
1988
1
4.16
213.04
1988
2
4.32
231.45
1988
3
-
220.22
1988
4
-
212.48
1988
5
-
226.11
1988
6
-
261.20
1988
7
-
231.91
1988
8
-
194.89
1988
9
-
203.64
1988
10
-
191.02
1988
11
-
184.20
1988
12
-
207.60
1989
1
-
232.46
1989
2
-
231.91
1989
3
-
194.43
1989
4
-
217.82
1989
5
-
235.87
1989
6
-
206.58
1989
7
-
213.40
1989
8
-
229.06
1989
9
-
267.00
1989
10
-
318.67
1989
11
-
339.12
1989
12
-
339.12
1990
1
-
360.58
1990
2
-
384.89
1990
3
-
431.68
1990
4
-
452.22
1990
5
-
569.10
1990
6
-
592.49
1990
7
-
518.44
1990
8
-
479.48
1990
9
-
491.18
1990
10
-
496.98
1990
11
-
563.29
1990
12
-
586.69
1991
1
-
765.00
1991
2
-
808.84
1991
3
-
827.35
1991
4
-
771.81
1991
5
-
855.63
1991
6
-
796.68
1991
7
-
859.49
1991
8
-
996.91
1991
9
-
1,040.75
1991
10
-
1,097.76
1991
11
-
1,137.27
1991
12
-
1,301.03
1992
1
-
1,406.21
1992
2
-
1,444.25
1992
3
-
1,385.76
1992
4
-
1,289.33
1992
5
-
1,415.05
1992
6
-
1,227.90
1992
7
-
1,276.16
1992
8
-
1,306.83
1992
9
-
1,412.10
1992
10
-
1,556.80
1992
11
-
1,633.52
1992
12
-
1,497.58
1993
1
-
1,517.38
1993
2
-
1,462.48
1993
3
-
1,622.56
1993
4
-
1,499.79
1993
5
-
1,624.77
1993
6
-
1,543.63
1993
7
-
1,298.08
1993
8
-
1,317.79
1993
9
-
1,447.20
1993
10
-
1,405.47
1993
11
-
1,403.36
1993
12
-
1,414.32
1994
1
-
1,493.25
1994
2
-
1,447.20
1994
3
-
1,486.62
1994
4
-
1,622.56
1994
5
-
1,885.69
1994
6
-
1,811.18
1994
7
-
1,806.76
1994
8
-
2,039.23
1994
9
-
1,969.04
1994
10
-
2,210.26
1994
11
-
2,205.84
1994
12
-
2,144.41
1995
1
-
2,083.07
1995
2
-
2,210.26
1995
3
-
2,495.31
1995
4
-
2,868.05
1995
5
-
2,971.11
1995
6
-
3,170.60
1995
7
-
3,175.03
1995
8
-
3,245.21
1995
9
-
3,175.03
1995
10
-
3,508.34
1995
11
-
3,056.58
1995
12
-
3,078.50
1996
1
-
3,245.21
1996
2
-
3,462.29
1996
3
-
3,617.94
1996
4
-
3,973.18
1996
5
-
4,166.13
1996
6
-
4,214.30
1996
7
-
4,135.37
1996
8
-
4,297.65
1996
9
-
4,626.55
1996
10
-
4,815.17
1996
11
-
5,503.64
1996
12
-
5,797.44
1997
1
-
7,156.96
1997
2
-
6,841.23
1997
3
-
6,433.31
1997
4
-
8,525.13
1997
5
-
8,700.58
1997
6
-
8,867.19
1997
7
-
9,919.73
1997
8
-
9,275.11
1997
9
-
9,283.86
1997
10
-
9,121.58
1997
11
-
9,928.48
1997
12
-
9,068.99
1998
1
-
10,467.92
1998
2
-
11,893.11
1998
3
-
12,559.74
1998
4
-
12,647.42
1998
5
-
11,901.95
1998
6
-
15,208.50
1998
7
-
15,427.79
1998
8
-
13,463.07
1998
9
-
15,445.29
1998
10
-
14,857.68
1998
11
-
17,120.53
1998
12
-
19,462.31
1999
1
-
24,558.12
1999
2
-
21,067.37
1999
3
-
25,154.48
1999
4
-
22,821.54
1999
5
-
22,646.09
1999
6
-
25,312.43
1999
7
-
24,084.53
1999
8
-
25,978.97
1999
9
-
25,417.61
1999
10
-
25,978.97
1999
11
-
25,553.56
1999
12
-
32,767.52
2000
1
-
27,470.01
2000
2
-
25,084.39
2000
3
-
29,820.54
2000
4
-
19,576.33
2000
5
-
17,559.03
2000
6
-
22,453.13
2000
7
-
19,593.83
2000
8
-
19,593.83
2000
9
-
16,927.58
2000
10
-
19,330.70
2000
11
-
16,103.08
2000
12
-
12,173.83
2001
1
-
17,138.03
2001
2
-
16,559.17
2001
3
-
15,348.86
2001
4
-
19,014.97
2001
5
-
19,416.35
2001
6
-
20,488.51
2001
7
-
18,577.12
2001
8
-
16,011.90
2001
9
-
14,361.62
2001
10
-
16,320.63
2001
11
-
18,021.47
2001
12
-
18,593.97
2002
1
-
17,881.11
2002
2
-
16,373.95
2002
3
-
16,926.84
2002
4
-
14,667.49
2002
5
-
14,288.58
2002
6
-
15,352.36
2002
7
-
13,466.30
2002
8
-
13,775.02
2002
9
-
12,276.25
2002
10
-
15,007.07
2002
11
-
16,188.74
2002
12
-
14,510.36
2003
1
-
13,320.32
2003
2
-
13,303.46
2003
3
-
13,633.46
2003
4
-
14,399.29
2003
5
-
13,858.74
2003
6
-
14,438.71
2003
7
-
14,872.32
2003
8
-
14,934.31
2003
9
-
15,655.10
2003
10
-
14,720.26
2003
11
-
14,559.36
2003
12
-
15,499.45
2004
1
-
15,657.95
2004
2
-
15,023.74
2004
3
-
14,117.64
2004
4
-
14,797.26
2004
5
-
14,853.81
2004
6
-
16,173.35
2004
7
-
16,133.66
2004
8
-
15,459.75
2004
9
-
15,704.19
2004
10
-
15,885.90
2004
11
-
15,227.10
2004
12
-
16,914.22
2005
1
-
16,635.71
2005
2
-
15,926.71
2005
3
-
15,347.20
2005
4
-
16,064.77
2005
5
-
16,382.24
2005
6
-
15,822.72
2005
7
-
16,313.16
2005
8
-
17,440.68
2005
9
-
16,438.24
2005
10
-
16,419.08
2005
11
-
17,684.01
2005
12
-
16,755.53
2006
1
-
18,037.03
2006
2
-
17,216.87
2006
3
-
17,493.82
2006
4
-
15,526.52
2006
5
-
14,562.13
2006
6
-
15,038.38
2006
7
-
15,528.92
2006
8
-
16,587.44
2006
9
-
17,717.35
2006
10
-
18,598.40
2006
11
-
19,019.48
2006
12
-
19,409.54
2007
1
-
20,059.50
2007
2
-
18,310.95
2007
3
-
18,178.78
2007
4
-
19,528.99
2007
5
-
20,018.14
2007
6
-
19,284.65
2007
7
-
18,970.58
2007
8
-
18,800.47
2007
9
-
19,345.71
2007
10
-
24,172.30
2007
11
-
22,064.37
2007
12
-
23,455.02
2008
1
-
21,478.42
2008
2
-
17,920.71
2008
3
-
18,770.81
2008
4
-
18,863.37
2008
5
-
18,731.11
2008
6
-
18,262.32
2008
7
-
17,074.02
2008
8
-
18,116.24
2008
9
-
17,788.64
2008
10
-
14,882.73
2008
11
-
13,476.43
2008
12
-
13,044.38
2009
1
-
11,474.23
2009
2
-
10,836.79
2009
3
-
12,410.90
2009
4
-
13,687.80
2009
5
-
14,113.41
2009
6
-
16,161.20
2009
7
-
15,991.18
2009
8
-
16,759.49
2009
9
-
17,585.28
2009
10
-
18,959.53
2009
11
-
20,108.22
2009
12
-
20,931.89
2010
1
-
19,352.43
2010
2
-
19,688.88
2010
3
-
20,208.80
2010
4
-
21,071.24
2010
5
-
17,800.79
2010
6
-
15,947.52
2010
7
-
17,888.11
2010
8
-
16,266.29
2010
9
-
17,063.79
2010
10
-
18,582.74
2010
11
-
17,600.29
2010
12
-
19,566.20
2011
1
-
19,440.02
2011
2
-
18,633.76
2011
3
-
17,904.78
2011
4
-
18,278.53
2011
5
-
17,636.76
2011
6
-
18,455.08
2011
7
-
19,448.86
2011
8
-
18,880.96
2011
9
-
17,778.69
2011
10
-
19,021.60
2011
11
-
18,271.62
2011
12
-
18,682.67
2012
1
-
21,251.85
2012
2
-
22,842.35
2012
3
-
23,369.45
2012
4
-
23,195.56
2012
5
-
21,145.47
2012
6
-
22,305.03
2012
7
-
21,488.37
2012
8
-
22,472.75
2012
9
-
21,843.60
2012
10
-
20,948.10
2012
11
-
19,538.85
2012
12
-
19,766.06
2013
1
-
20,313.61
2013
2
-
20,572.69
2013
3
-
21,347.36
2013
4
-
24,697.56
2013
5
-
26,040.68
2013
6
-
25,952.72
2013
7
-
23,924.00
2013
8
-
25,096.18
2013
9
-
25,182.20
2013
10
-
26,793.98
2013
11
-
28,852.09
2013
12
-
28,522.00
2014
1
-
28,849.79
2014
2
-
29,208.16
2014
3
-
31,485.74
2014
4
-
31,032.60
2014
5
-
31,447.33
2014
6
-
32,257.09
2014
7
-
33,386.54
2014
8
-
35,142.46
2014
9
-
36,085.86
2014
10
-
36,545.08
2014
11
-
37,214.47
2014
12
-
36,383.99
2015
1
-
31,644.99
2015
2
-
34,347.34
2015
3
-
32,075.38
2015
4
-
38,370.44
2015
5
-
36,966.35
2015
6
-
35,054.87
2015
7
-
37,079.54
2015
8
-
34,554.57
2015
9
-
35,373.91
2015
10
-
42,071.46
2015
11
-
43,438.16
2015
12
-
44,640.09
2016
1
-
44,326.30
2016
2
-
40,938.89
2016
3
-
44,758.07
2016
4
-
40,414.37
2016
5
-
42,950.85
2016
6
-
41,757.86
2016
7
-
46,254.36
2016
8
-
46,890.87
2016
9
-
47,298.15
2016
10
-
49,203.18
2016
11
-
49,482.34
2016
12
-
51,370.89
2017
1
-
53,445.85
2017
2
-
52,891.95
2017
3
-
54,776.26
2017
4
-
56,938.72
2017
5
-
58,086.40
2017
6
-
57,658.22
2017
7
-
60,811.69
2017
8
-
62,543.21
2017
9
-
62,640.93
2017
10
-
69,948.65
2017
11
-
70,781.16
2017
12
-
72,294.49
2018
1
-
80,298.14
2018
2
-
79,250.11
2018
3
-
77,499.62
2018
4
-
79,410.18
2018
5
-
83,927.50
2018
6
-
84,095.12
2018
7
-
90,465.53
2018
8
-
95,795.55
2018
9
-
97,910.67
2018
10
-
91,438.59
2018
11
-
94,931.46
2018
12
-
87,328.36
2019
1
-
89,787.38
2019
2
-
96,321.73
2019
3
-
101,836.14
2019
4
-
112,767.52
2019
5
-
106,792.33
2019
6
-
116,096.91
2019
7
-
118,098.84
2019
8
-
119,476.86
2019
9
-
120,892.10
2019
10
-
124,665.88
2019
11
-
131,630.90
2019
12
-
137,592.92
2020
1
-
148,525.31
2020
2
-
141,353.44
2020
3
-
137,977.54
2020
4
-
156,787.49
2020
5
-
160,321.99
2020
6
-
178,542.95
2020
7
-
179,858.90
2020
8
-
197,861.49
2020
9
-
184,972.30
2020
10
-
178,059.97
2020
11
-
188,261.44
2020
12
-
196,116.81
2021
1
-
204,528.65
2021
2
-
204,898.99
2021
3
-
208,366.90
2021
4
-
222,869.53
2021
5
-
220,660.19
2021
6
-
239,966.66
2021
7
-
252,376.92
2021
8
-
267,409.04
2021
9
-
250,206.36
2021
10
-
294,315.48
2021
11
-
293,401.37
2021
12
-
299,032.84
2022
1
-
276,502.26
2022
2
-
265,663.81
2022
3
-
274,695.13
2022
4
-
247,262.14
2022
5
-
242,228.13
2022
6
-
229,360.96
2022
7
-
250,713.66
2022
8
-
233,504.62
2022
9
-
208,431.83
2022
10
-
207,742.73
2022
11
-
228,335.31
2022
12
-
215,229.68
2023
1
-
222,400.36
2023
2
-
223,845.35
2023
3
-
259,386.79
2023
4
-
276,445.24
2023
5
-
295,456.26
2023
6
-
307,057.40
2023
7
-
302,891.73
2023
8
-
295,533.99
2023
9
-
285,307.65
2023
10
-
305,511.84
2023
11
-
342,378.17
2023
12
-
340,474.52
2024
1
-
359,977.35
2024
2
-
374,518.38
2024
3
-
381,633.16
2024
4
-
353,159.42
2024
5
-
376,562.49
2024
6
-
406,157.57
2024
7
-
380,167.82
2024
8
-
379,068.31
2024
9
-
391,732.03
2024
10
-
369,928.58
2024
11
-
385,505.03
2024
12
-
384,488.77
2025
1
-
378,614.24
2025
2
-
362,130.97
2025
3
-
343,114.25
2025
4
-
361,275.80
2025
5
-
420,778.55
2025
6
-
455,477.72
2025
7
-
488,525.32
2025
8
-
463,975.40
2025
9
-
475,065.84
2025
10
-
474,937.36
2025
11
-
451,273.55
2025
12
-
444,408.46
2026
1
-
395,402.38
2026
2
-
360,896.89
2026
3
-
340,933.27
Click to show 475 more rows
Data Sources
Monthly adjusted close data is from Yahoo Finance via yfinance. Adjusted close reflects stock splits and dividends reported by the source. Inflation data is from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI.
Ian Webster is an engineer and data expert based in San Mateo, California. He has worked for Google, NASA, and consulted for governments around the world on data pipelines and data analysis. Disappointed by the lack of clear resources on the impacts of inflation on economic indicators, Ian believes this website serves as a valuable public tool. Ian earned his degree in Computer Science from Dartmouth College.
