What If You Invested $1,000 in Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD) in 2021?

Worth Today

$1,905.22

+$905.22 profit1.91x

Invested

$1,000.00

CAGR

11.9%

Time Period

5.7 years

Return

+90.52%

A $1,000 investment in Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD) at the start of 2021 would be worth approximately $1,905.22 today — a 1.9x return representing a 11.9% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over 5.7 years.

Try your own numbers

If I had putintoat the start of…

it would be worth today

$1,905

+$905.22 profit1.91x11.9% a year

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

Its shares paid about $61.16 in dividends over the last 12 months.

Aftertax on the gain, you’d keep$1,769

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.

Growth Over Time

Performance Metrics

Total Invested

$1,000.00

Current Value

$1,905.22

Total Profit

$905.22

Multiplier

1.91x

CAGR

11.9%

Max Drawdown

-15.7%

Inflation-Adjusted

$1,583.20

Benchmark Comparison

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

AssetValue TodayReturn
Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD)$1,905.221.91x
S&P 500$2,218.042.22x
Gold$2,213.492.21x
Savings (2% APY)$1,120.461.12x

Dividends

Over the last 12 months, the 57.97 shares you'd own now paid about $61.16 in dividends (about $5.10 a month). That's 6.1% of the $1,000 put in.

Price growth alone turned $1,000 into $1,559; reinvested dividends added the other $346.37, 38% of the gain.

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

Back in 2021

  • In 2021, a gallon of gas averaged $3.01 and the new iPhone 13 Pro started at $999. eia.govapple.com
  • During 2021 itself, Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD) rose 32%, #50 of the 111 investments we track. The best was Solana (+11,084%); the worst was Zoom (−49%). Full 2021 results →

$1,000 in Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD), year by year

Of the 111 investments we track that were available at the start of 2021, Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD) ranks #58 by growth to today — just behind Booking Holdings and ahead of Dow Jones ETF (DIA). See the full 2021 ranking →

Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD) started 2021 at its highest start-of-year price up to then, after rising 13% in 2020. It has been worth more than the $1,000 put in at every January since, and still is today. Today's $1,905 is more than it was worth at any January since. It rose in 4 of the 5 full years since. It fell behind the same $1,000 in the S&P 500 at the start of 2025 and hasn't caught up.

WhenWorthChangeS&P 500
Start of 2021$1,000—$1,000
Start of 2022$1,317+32%$1,287
Start of 2023$1,272−3.3%$1,054
Start of 2024$1,342+5.5%$1,331
Start of 2025$1,484+11%$1,664
Start of 2026$1,569+5.7%$1,962
Today$1,905+21%$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, Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD) was priced at $17.25 (adjusted for later splits and dividends). $1,000 would have bought about 57.97 shares. SCHD holds US companies with a record of paying dividends. It launched in October 2011.

Measured from one January to the next, Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD)'s best year since then was 2021 (+32%) and its worst was 2022 (−3.3%).

Frequently Asked Questions

A $1,000 investment in Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD) at the start of 2021 would be worth approximately $1,905.22 today — a 1.91x return ($905.22 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.

Other investments from 2021

See how every stock and crypto ranked since 2021 →

$1,000 in Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD), by year

$1,000 in Schwab Dividend ETF (SCHD):1 year ago5 years ago10 years ago