What if I had invested $100 a month in the Nasdaq 100
Investing a fixed amount every month, whatever the price: that is dollar-cost averaging. Here is what this strategy would have done in the Nasdaq 100, depending on the year you started.
Prices updated on September 21, 2026
If I had invested $100 every month in the Nasdaq 100 since January 2016, today I would have $41,124
Over the same period
Worst moment: −33.0% between December 2021 and December 2022. To get this result, you had to hold on without selling.
Nasdaq 100 (US) at a glance
The Nasdaq 100 gathers the 100 largest non-financial companies listed on the Nasdaq. Heavily tilted to tech (Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia…), it tends to rise faster than the market in bull runs and fall harder in crashes.
$100 a month in the Nasdaq 100, by start year
One contribution at the start of each month since January of the given year, valued at the latest price. Click a year for the full story.
| Start | Invested | Worth today | Multiple | Annual IRR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $2,100 | $2,665 | ×1.27 | +28.6% |
| 2024 | $3,300 | $4,621 | ×1.4 | +25.4% |
| 2023 | $4,500 | $7,286 | ×1.62 | +26.4% |
| 2022 | $5,700 | $10,126 | ×1.78 | +24.5% |
| 2021 | $6,900 | $12,712 | ×1.84 | +21.2% |
| 2020 | $8,100 | $16,437 | ×2.03 | +20.7% |
| 2019 | $9,300 | $21,345 | ×2.3 | +20.9% |
| 2018 | $10,500 | $26,604 | ×2.53 | +20.4% |
| 2017 | $11,700 | $33,086 | ×2.83 | +20.3% |
| 2016 | $12,900 | $41,124 | ×3.19 | +20.3% |
| 2015 | $14,100 | $49,457 | ×3.51 | +19.9% |
| 2014 | $15,300 | $59,037 | ×3.86 | +19.5% |
| 2013 | $16,500 | $71,340 | ×4.32 | +19.4% |
| 2012 | $17,700 | $85,329 | ×4.82 | +19.3% |
| 2011 | $18,900 | $101,224 | ×5.36 | +19.1% |
| 2010 | $20,100 | $120,560 | ×6 | +19.0% |
| 2009 | $21,300 | $146,370 | ×6.87 | +19.1% |
| 2008 | $22,500 | $167,771 | ×7.46 | +18.7% |
| 2007 | $23,700 | $186,866 | ×7.88 | +18.1% |
| 2006 | $24,900 | $209,062 | ×8.4 | +17.6% |
| 2005 | $26,100 | $232,705 | ×8.92 | +17.2% |
| 2004 | $27,300 | $257,873 | ×9.45 | +16.8% |
Lump sum or DCA in the Nasdaq 100?
Since January 2016, investing in the Nasdaq 100 all at once (lump sum) multiplied the stake by ×6.65, +19.3% a year. Investing every month (DCA) multiplied the total contributions by ×3.19, an annual return (IRR) of +20.3%.
Here DCA did better: spreading the purchases avoided putting all the money in at the wrong time.
Frequently asked questions
How much would I have if I had invested $100 a month in the Nasdaq 100 for 10 years?
Investing $100 every month since January 2016, $12,900 in total, would be worth about $41,124 today: an annual return (IRR) of +20.3% (price only, in the displayed currency).
What if I had started investing $100 a month in the Nasdaq 100 in 2015?
Since January 2015, $14,100 invested in total would be worth about $49,457 today (IRR of +19.9% a year).
What if I had started investing $100 a month in the Nasdaq 100 in 2020?
Since January 2020, $8,100 invested in total would be worth about $16,437 today (IRR of +20.7% a year).
Is investing monthly better than investing all at once?
Historically, investing a lump sum right away returns more in most cases, because markets rise more often than they fall. But monthly investing smooths the purchase price, protects against the worst timing and matches how people actually save: from their paycheck, month after month.
How is the annual return calculated?
With spread-out contributions, the multiple of the amount invested does not tell the whole story: the last dollars had only a few months to grow. The IRR (internal rate of return) is the average annual return that, applied to each contribution from its date, produces the final value.
Compare with
Before you have regrets
What this calculation does not tell you.
Hindsight bias
Picking Nvidia or Bitcoin today means picking known winners. Back then, nothing set them apart from hundreds of assets that went nowhere or vanished.
Holding on was the real test
The result assumes you never sold, including through the drawdowns shown above. Very few investors actually do.
The broad market, no bet required
The MSCI World never makes headlines, but it does not require guessing the winner. It is the fairest yardstick for any pick.
Past performance, computed from monthly closing prices (intra-month lows are smoothed out). Converted at each month’s exchange rate; no fees, no taxes. The MSCI World benchmark is the price index, excluding dividends. Not investment advice. NokxiHub.