If I'd invested in gold since 1972
$1,000 put into gold at the end of 1972 would be worth about $64,651 today — a 64.7× return, or roughly 8.1% a year. Change the amount below to run your own number.
You'd have
$64,651
from $1,000 invested — up 6365%.
The story behind the number
Gold since 1972 has been a remarkably smooth ride. $1,000 put in at the end of 1972 grew to $64,651 — a 64.7× return, or about 8.1% a year.
The ride mattered as much as the destination. The strongest single year was 1973, up 29%; the worst was 1978, down 20%.
Holding on took nerve: the position fell as much as 63% from its 1980 peak to its 1999 low, before climbing back above that high by 2006.
Common questions
- How much would I have if I'd invested $1,000 in gold in 1972?
- $1,000 invested in gold at the end of 1972 would be worth about $64,651 today — a 64.7× return, or roughly 8.1% per year.
- What were the best and worst years for gold since 1972?
- The best year was 1973, up about 29%. The toughest was 1978, when it fell about 20%. Across the window, 318 of 642 years finished lower than they started.
- What was the biggest drop along the way?
- The steepest decline was about 63%, from a peak in 1980 to a low in 1999, with the value recovering above its prior high by 2006.
The chart above shows the whole journey, not just the destination. Try switching to a bit each year to see how spreading your buying would have changed the outcome — or skip the latte to find out what a small daily habit could have grown into instead.