What was Stellar's compound annual growth rate (CAGR) since 2019?

Stellar's CAGR from 2019 to September 2026 was 9.2% 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 Stellar compare to the S&P 500 since 2019?

The same $1,000 invested in an S&P 500 index fund in 2019 would be worth approximately $3,453.01 today. Stellar underperformed the S&P 500 by $1,476.10.

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

Sold today, the $976.91 gain would be a long-term capital gain for US federal tax. At the 15% rate most people pay, you'd keep about $1,830.37. At the top rate of 23.8% (20% plus the 3.8% net investment income tax) you'd keep about $1,744.40, 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 Stellar since 2019?

Adjusted for cumulative US inflation since 2019, the real purchasing-power value of the Stellar position is approximately $1,550.60 in 2019 dollars. Inflation shrinks the gain, but the investment still grew faster than prices.

How did Stellar perform in 2019?

Stellar fell 60% during 2019, from $0.113 at the start of the year to $0.0451 at the start of 2020.

What If You Invested $1,000 in Stellar in 2019?

Try your own numbers

If I had putintoat the start of…

it would be worth today

$1,977

+$976.91 profit1.98x9.2% a year

The same $1,000 in an S&P 500 index fund: $3,453

Aftertax on the gain, you’d keep$1,830

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

$1,976.91

Total Profit

$976.91

Multiplier

1.98x

CAGR

9.2%

Max Drawdown

-86.6%

Inflation-Adjusted

$1,550.60

Benchmark Comparison

How does $1,000.00 invested in 2019 compare across different asset classes?

Asset	Value Today	Return
Stellar	$1,976.91	1.98x
S&P 500	$3,453.01	3.45x
Gold	$3,277.07	3.28x
Savings (2% APY)	$1,165.76	1.17x

Back in 2019

In November 2019, the Stellar Development Foundation burned 55 billion XLM tokens, more than half of the cryptocurrency's total supply. coindesk.com
In 2019, a gallon of gas averaged $2.60, a movie ticket averaged $9.16 and the new iPhone 11 Pro started at $999. eia.gov apple.com hollywoodreporter.com
During 2019 itself, Stellar fell 60%, the worst of the 100 investments we track. The best was Chainlink (+511%). Full 2019 results →

$1,000 in Stellar, year by year

Of the 100 investments we track that were available at the start of 2019, Stellar ranks #78 by growth to today, in the bottom quarter — just behind Procter & Gamble and ahead of Starbucks. See the full 2019 ranking →

Stellar started 2019 69% below its start-of-2018 high, after falling 69% in 2018. It was worth less than the $1,000 put in at the start of 2020 and 2023, and has been above it since the start of 2024. Its best January was 2025, at $2,938. Today it's 33% below that, so selling then would have beaten holding. It rose in 4 of the 7 full years since. It fell behind the same $1,000 in the S&P 500 at the start of 2026 and hasn't caught up. Month by month, the deepest fall ran from Apr 2021 ($4,705) to Dec 2022 ($632.16), a drop of 87%. At its lowest month-end, in Mar 2020, it was worth $362.93.

When	Worth	Change	S&P 500
Start of 2019	$1,000	—	$1,000
Start of 2020	$400	−60%	$1,315
Start of 2021	$1,136	+184%	$1,557
Start of 2022	$2,368	+108%	$2,004
Start of 2023	$630	−73%	$1,641
Start of 2024	$1,142	+81%	$2,072
Start of 2025	$2,938	+157%	$2,591
Start of 2026	$1,778	−39%	$3,054
Today	$1,977	+11%	$3,453

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 2019, Stellar was priced at $0.113. $1,000 would have bought about 8,857 XLM. Stellar is a payments network founded in 2014; its coin is XLM.

Measured from one January to the next, Stellar's best year since then was 2020 (+184%) and its worst was 2022 (−73%). Holding on wasn't easy: between the start of 2022 and the start of 2023, the position fell 73% from its high.

Frequently Asked Questions

A $1,000 investment in Stellar at the start of 2019 would be worth approximately $1,976.91 today — a 1.98x return ($976.91 profit) over 7.7 years.

Methodology & Sources

Price data: Historical prices are the January 1 opening price, from CoinGecko, CoinMarketCap and Yahoo Finance historical data. Current prices come from Yahoo Finance (CoinGecko as a backup) and refresh hourly; if that source is unavailable, the last saved price is used.

Calculation: Assumes a single purchase at the start of 2019 (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 of2019 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.