What if you'd held AAPL?
A $1,000 investment in Apple Inc. (AAPL) at the month-end close of 1984-12 would be worth $3.17M at the close of 2026-08 — +317230.0% total return, dividends reinvested.
Your scenario
Result
If you'd bought $1,000 at the start of each year
Value of $1,000 invested on January 1 of each year, held to 2026-08, dividends included. Click any year for the full story.
Every year, $1,000 from 1984
| Year | Value of $1,000 | Year return |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | $1,000 | — |
| 1985 | $800 | -20.0% |
| 1986 | $1,400 | +75.0% |
| 1987 | $2,900 | +107.1% |
| 1988 | $2,800 | -3.4% |
| 1989 | $2,500 | -10.7% |
| 1990 | $3,000 | +20.0% |
| 1991 | $4,000 | +33.3% |
| 1992 | $4,300 | +7.5% |
| 1993 | $2,100 | -51.2% |
| 1994 | $2,900 | +38.1% |
| 1995 | $2,400 | -17.2% |
| 1996 | $1,600 | -33.3% |
| 1997 | $1,000 | -37.5% |
| 1998 | $3,100 | +210.0% |
| 1999 | $7,700 | +148.4% |
| 2000 | $2,200 | -71.4% |
| 2001 | $3,300 | +50.0% |
| 2002 | $2,100 | -36.4% |
| 2003 | $3,200 | +52.4% |
| 2004 | $9,600 | +200.0% |
| 2005 | $21,500 | +124.0% |
| 2006 | $25,400 | +18.1% |
| 2007 | $59,200 | +133.1% |
| 2008 | $25,500 | -56.9% |
| 2009 | $63,000 | +147.1% |
| 2010 | $96,500 | +53.2% |
| 2011 | $121,100 | +25.5% |
| 2012 | $160,600 | +32.6% |
| 2013 | $173,500 | +8.0% |
| 2014 | $244,000 | +40.6% |
| 2015 | $236,700 | -3.0% |
| 2016 | $266,200 | +12.5% |
| 2017 | $395,200 | +48.5% |
| 2018 | $373,900 | -5.4% |
| 2019 | $706,600 | +89.0% |
| 2020 | $1.29M | +82.3% |
| 2021 | $1.73M | +34.6% |
| 2022 | $1.28M | -26.4% |
| 2023 | $1.9M | +49.0% |
| 2024 | $2.49M | +30.7% |
| 2025 | $2.71M | +9.0% |
| 2026 | $3.17M | +17.0% |
Best and worst month-end to buy
The best single month-end close to have bought AAPL was 1985-07 ($0.05): $1,000 then is $6.35M today. The worst was 2026-08 ($317): $1,000 then is $1,000.
FAQ
What would $1,000 in AAPL be worth today?
A $1,000 investment in Apple Inc. (AAPL) at the start of 1984 would be worth about $3.17M today, a total return of +317230.0%. Dividends are reinvested in these figures.
What is the best year to have bought AAPL?
The best year-start to have invested $1,000 in AAPL was 1998, which turned into $3.17M — a +210.0% total return. The worst year-start was 2000, worth $412,117 today.
Does the calculator include dividends and splits?
Yes where available. Prices are adjusted for both stock splits and reinvested dividends (total return), the same measure brokerages use.
How much would $100 per month in AAPL have grown?
Investing $100 at the end of every month since 1984-12 would have grown to about $36.03M on $50,100 invested.
Did AAPL beat the S&P 500?
There is not enough overlapping history to compare AAPL with the S&P 500 index directly.
Is this investment advice?
No. What If I Held is an entertainment and education tool. Every number is a historical calculation, not a prediction, and past performance never guarantees future results.
Methodology
Apple Inc. (AAPL) historical total-return data from 1984-12 to 2026-08, reduced to month-end closes for the tables above.
Returns use adjusted close prices from Yahoo Finance historical data — adjusted for stock splits and reinvested dividends — the same convention used by major brokerages. A "year" scenario invests $1,000 at the prior December's month-end close and values it at the latest available month-end close.
Month-end resolution means intra-month extremes are not captured in tables; the calculator uses exact trading-day closes where daily data is available. Figures ignore taxes, fees, and the currency effects of non-USD listings. History is not a forecast. What If I Held is entertainment, not investment advice.
What if you'd held…
Data: adjusted close prices via Yahoo Finance. As of 2026-08. Not financial advice.