Latest videos
One question per episode, answered with the data.
The first episodes are in production. Each one has a page here where you can rerun its numbers with your own amount and years.
Gold Bought in 1981 Took 30 Years to Break Even
$1,000 of gold bought at the start of 1981 was back above $1,000, after inflation, only at the end of 2011.
Run the numbers →Houses vs Stocks Since 1928
$1,000 in 1928, after inflation: $614,448 in the S&P 500, $2,988 in home prices (price only, no rent).
Run the numbers →1929: How Long Did the Recovery Really Take?
$1,000 from the start of 1929 was $352 by the end of 1932. With dividends, after inflation, it was back above $1,000 at the end of 1936.
Run the numbers →The 1970s: When Prices More Than Doubled
Prices rose 2.5× from 1970 to 1981. $1,000 in the S&P 500 was worth $894 in 1970 dollars; in gold, $3,858.
Run the numbers →Cash vs Inflation: 100 Years of the Dollar
$1,000 rolled in T-bills since 1928 became $25,783. Prices rose 18.8×, so in 1928 dollars it is $1,369.
Run the numbers →The calculators
Ask history your own question.
Most calculators assume a fixed return. Ours replay what actually happened in every year since 1928, the bad years included.
What would $1,000 have become?
Pick an asset and the years. See the result before and after inflation, the worst year and the longest wait.
Open → CompareStocks, gold, homes, bonds, cash
Several assets on one chart over the same years, nominal or after inflation, linear or log.
Open → Compound interestStart early or start late
Pure maths, not history: a start amount, a monthly sum and a rate you choose.
Open →Data you can check
Named sources. Shown method. Losses included.
Every figure on this site is computed from Aswath Damodaran's annual returns (NYU Stern Business School), 1928 to 2025: the S&P 500 with dividends, small caps, Treasuries, corporate bonds, US home prices, gold, cash and US inflation.