What was Amazon's compound annual growth rate (CAGR) since 2021?

Amazon's CAGR from 2021 to September 2026 was 7.9% per year. For comparison, the S&P 500 has historically averaged around 10% annually. However, this came with substantially higher volatility and drawdown risk.

How does Amazon compare to the S&P 500 since 2021?

The same $1,000 invested in an S&P 500 index fund in 2021 would be worth approximately $2,218.04 today. Amazon underperformed the S&P 500 by $667.11.

How much of the Amazon gain would you keep after taxes?

Sold today, the $550.93 gain would be a long-term capital gain for US federal tax. At the 15% rate most people pay, you'd keep about $1,468.29. At the top rate of 23.8% (20% plus the 3.8% net investment income tax) you'd keep about $1,419.81, and lower incomes pay 0%. State tax is extra, and gains inside a Roth IRA aren't taxed.

What is the inflation-adjusted return on $1,000 in Amazon since 2021?

Adjusted for cumulative US inflation since 2021, the real purchasing-power value of the Amazon position is approximately $1,288.80 in 2021 dollars. Inflation shrinks the gain, but the investment still grew faster than prices.

How did Amazon perform in 2021?

Amazon rose 7.0% during 2021, from $159.33 at the start of the year to $170.41 at the start of 2022.

What If You Invested $1,000 in Amazon in 2021?

Q: Did Amazon pay dividends?

No. Amazon paid no dividends over this period, so the whole return came from its share price.

Try your own numbers

If I had putintoat the start of…

it would be worth today

$1,551

+$550.93 profit1.55x7.9% a year

The same $1,000 in an S&P 500 index fund: $2,218

Aftertax on the gain, you’d keep$1,468

US federal long-term rates: 15% for most people, 0% on lower incomes, 20% + 3.8% on high incomes. No state tax included; none inside a Roth IRA.

Compare with

Growth Over Time

Performance Metrics

Total Invested

$1,000.00

Current Value

$1,550.93

Total Profit

$550.93

Multiplier

1.55x

CAGR

7.9%

Max Drawdown

-52.1%

Inflation-Adjusted

$1,288.80

Benchmark Comparison

How does $1,000.00 invested in 2021 compare across different asset classes?

Asset	Value Today	Return
Amazon	$1,550.93	1.55x
S&P 500	$2,218.04	2.22x
Gold	$2,213.49	2.21x
Savings (2% APY)	$1,120.46	1.12x

Dividends

Amazon paid no dividends over this period, so the whole return came from its share price.

Dividends from Yahoo Finance. Shares today assume every dividend was reinvested.

Back in 2021

In July 2021, Andy Jassy, who had built Amazon Web Services, succeeded founder Jeff Bezos as Amazon's CEO. Bezos stayed on as executive chairman. techcrunch.com
In 2021, a gallon of gas averaged $3.01 and the new iPhone 13 Pro started at $999. eia.gov apple.com
During 2021 itself, Amazon rose 7.0%, #88 of the 111 investments we track. The best was Solana (+11,084%); the worst was Zoom (−49%). Full 2021 results →

$1,000 in Amazon, year by year

Of the 111 investments we track that were available at the start of 2021, Amazon ranks #64 by growth to today — just behind Spotify and ahead of Russell 2000 ETF (IWM). See the full 2021 ranking →

Amazon started 2021 at its highest start-of-year price up to then, after rising 68% in 2020. It was worth less than the $1,000 put in at the start of 2023 and 2024, and has been above it since the start of 2025. Today's $1,551 is more than it was worth at any January since. It rose in 4 of the 5 full years since. It has trailed the same $1,000 in the S&P 500 at every January since, and still does. Month by month, the deepest fall ran from Nov 2021 ($1,101) to Dec 2022 ($527.46), a drop of 52%. At its lowest month-end, in Dec 2022, it was worth $527.46.

When	Worth	Change	S&P 500
Start of 2021	$1,000	—	$1,000
Start of 2022	$1,070	+7.0%	$1,287
Start of 2023	$539	−50%	$1,054
Start of 2024	$941	+75%	$1,331
Start of 2025	$1,382	+47%	$1,664
Start of 2026	$1,422	+2.9%	$1,962
Today	$1,551	+9.1%	$2,218

Values at the start of each year (first trading day for stocks). The S&P 500 column includes reinvested dividends, like the stock values.

Historical Context

At the start of 2021, Amazon was priced at $159.33 (adjusted for later splits and dividends). $1,000 would have bought about 6.28 shares. Amazon runs the world's largest online store and Amazon Web Services (AWS), its cloud-computing business.

Measured from one January to the next, Amazon's best year since then was 2023 (+75%) and its worst was 2022 (−50%). Holding on wasn't easy: between the start of 2022 and the start of 2023, the position fell 50% from its high.

Frequently Asked Questions

A $1,000 investment in Amazon at the start of 2021 would be worth approximately $1,550.93 today — a 1.55x return ($550.93 profit) over 5.7 years.

Methodology & Sources

Price data: Historical prices are the closing price on the first trading day of each year, adjusted for splits and dividends (so returns assume dividends were reinvested), from Yahoo Finance and MacroTrends. Current prices come from Yahoo Finance and refresh hourly; if that source is unavailable, the last saved price is used.

Calculation: Assumes a single purchase at the start of 2021 (or the first trading day, for companies that listed that year), held until today. No transaction fees, taxes, or slippage are included.

Benchmarks: The S&P 500 comparison uses the S&P 500 Total Return index (dividends reinvested, like an index fund) at the start of2021 and today. Gold uses the price per troy ounce. Savings account assumes a 2% APY compounded annually.

Inflation adjustment: Uses U.S. CPI-U annual averages from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 2026 CPI value is estimated.

Educational purposes only. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Not financial advice.