How Schwab’s Large-Cap Growth ETF Has Performed, Year by Year

SCHG, the Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETF, launched in December 2009 and has returned about 16.1% a year since, including reinvested dividends. That turned $10,000 into roughly $123,800 by early November 2026, more than 12 times the original investment.

Its record has beaten the S&P 500 by a wide margin, but not smoothly. SCHG led the S&P 500 in 11 of its 16 full calendar years and in every rolling five-year period since launch, yet it also lost about 32% in 2022, far more than the market, and has fallen more than 15% eight times since launch.

This guide tells SCHG’s story year by year. It covers how the fund was built, what happened in every calendar year since launch, how far it fell in each major decline and how long it took to recover, how it compared with the S&P 500, VOO and the Nasdaq-100, and what happened when investors paired it with SCHD. It also answers the questions investors ask most, from SCHG’s 10-year and 15-year returns to whether it has beaten QQQ.

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SCHG at a Glance

All return figures in this guide are total returns, meaning they include dividends reinvested, unless stated otherwise. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

SCHG Returns by Year

Over its 16 full calendar years, SCHG finished higher in 13 and lower in three: 2011, 2018 and 2022. Two of those losses were tiny, but the third, in 2022, was severe.

SCHG Returns Over 1, 3, 5, 10 and 15 Years

The 3-, 5-, 10- and 15-year figures use full calendar years, so they will differ slightly from trailing figures quoted on fund pages, which change every day. There is no 20-year return for SCHG yet, because the fund will not reach its 20th birthday until December 2029.

Average Return vs Annualized Return

SCHG’s simple average return across its 16 full calendar years was about 18.4%. Its annualized return over the same years, the rate it actually compounded at, was lower, at about 16.5%.

The gap comes from volatility. A 31.8% loss needs a gain of almost 47% just to get back to even, so big swings pull the compounded return below the simple average. When a website quotes SCHG’s “average return”, it is worth checking which of the two it means.

How Often SCHG Had a Big Year

SCHG gained more than 30% in five of its 16 full years, almost one year in three. The S&P 500 did that only twice over the same period, in 2013 and 2019.

Its middle year, or median, was a gain of about 17.2%. But very few years landed close to the average: SCHG’s returns ranged from a loss of 31.8% to a gain of 50.1%.

The Fund and the Index Behind It

SCHG tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Large-Cap Growth Total Stock Market Index. The index takes the largest US companies and selects those with the strongest growth characteristics, such as fast earnings growth and high valuations relative to earnings and assets.

Holdings are weighted by company size, with no cap on any single stock. That means the largest growth companies dominate, and the fund’s top holdings have grown to enormous weights as those companies have soared.

At the start of November 2026, Apple made up about 12% of SCHG, NVIDIA about 11.9% and Microsoft about 9.1%. The top 10 holdings, including Amazon, Broadcom, Alphabet, Meta, Tesla and Eli Lilly, made up about 60% of the fund, and technology alone was about 54%.

That concentration explains SCHG’s history. When the largest technology companies rise, SCHG rises faster than the market, and when they fall, it falls harder.

The Launch: December 2009

SCHG launched on December 11, 2009, as part of Charles Schwab’s first group of low-cost ETFs. Schwab had entered the ETF market only weeks earlier, aiming to compete with Vanguard and iShares on cost.

The timing was promising. Stocks had bottomed in March 2009 after the financial crisis, and a powerful recovery was underway, led in part by technology companies.

SCHG gained about 2.7% in its first few weeks of trading to the end of 2009. The S&P 500 had already risen more than 60% from its March low by then.

2010: Off to a Strong Start

SCHG returned about 16.9% in 2010, ahead of the S&P 500’s 15.1%. The Federal Reserve kept interest rates near zero, and growth companies benefited from cheap money and a recovering economy.

The year had its scare. The May 2010 flash crash and the start of the European debt crisis sent SCHG’s price down about 16.4% from late April to early July. It regained its April peak by early November.

By the end of 2010, an investor’s $10,000 from launch had grown to about $12,000.

2011: The Debt Crisis Year

2011 brought SCHG’s first calendar-year loss, a small one of about 0.7%, against a gain of about 1.9% for the S&P 500. In August, the United States lost its AAA credit rating for the first time, and fears about Europe’s debt crisis spread.

From early July to early October, SCHG’s price fell about 20.8%. Investors moved towards steady, defensive companies, which SCHG held relatively few of.

The recovery came quickly. SCHG regained its July peak by February 2012, about four months after the low.

2012: Back in Front

SCHG returned about 16.9% in 2012, slightly ahead of the S&P 500’s 16.0%. Apple, by then the world’s most valuable company, was a major driver.

The year ended with worries about the fiscal cliff, a set of tax rises and spending cuts due on January 1, 2013. A last-minute deal calmed markets.

By the end of 2012, the original $10,000 had grown to about $13,900.

2013: A Banner Year

2013 was an outstanding year for almost every US stock fund. SCHG returned about 34.0%, ahead of the S&P 500’s 32.3%, as the Federal Reserve’s bond buying kept interest rates low and investors poured money into stocks.

Growth companies benefited from rising confidence in the economy and strong profit growth. The bull market was now well established.

By the end of 2013, an investor’s $10,000 from launch had grown to about $18,700, almost doubling in four years.

2014: Steady Gains

SCHG returned about 15.8% in 2014, ahead of the S&P 500’s 13.5%. The Federal Reserve wound down its bond buying, and oil prices began to collapse in the second half of the year.

SCHG held very little in energy, so the oil crash barely touched it. Technology and healthcare companies led its gains.

By the end of 2014, the original $10,000 had grown to about $21,600.

2015: Narrow Leadership

SCHG returned about 3.2% in 2015, ahead of the S&P 500’s 1.2%. The broad market was nearly flat, held up by a small group of large internet companies.

In August, China’s surprise currency devaluation triggered a sharp global sell-off. From July 2015 to February 2016, SCHG’s price fell about 17.5%.

Its growth holdings, including Amazon, Alphabet and Facebook, were among the few big winners of the year. That narrow leadership kept SCHG in positive territory.

2016: Value Takes Over

2016 was one of SCHG’s weaker years relative to the market. It returned about 6.8%, against the S&P 500’s 12.0%.

After oil prices hit bottom in February, energy, industrial and financial stocks rebounded. The surprise result of the US presidential election in November sparked a rally in banks and value stocks, areas where SCHG held little.

SCHG regained its July 2015 peak by August 2016, about six months after the low. FRC’s guide to growth stocks vs value stocks explains why the two styles take turns leading.

2017: Calm and Strong

2017 was one of the calmest years in market history, with steady gains and very few pullbacks. SCHG returned about 28.1%, well ahead of the S&P 500’s 21.7%.

Large technology companies such as Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet led the market. The corporate tax cuts passed in December 2017 added to optimism about company profits.

By the end of 2017, an investor’s $10,000 from launch had passed $30,000.

2018: A Late-Year Sell-Off

2018 started strong, but a larger decline came in the fourth quarter, driven by rising interest rates, trade tensions with China and fears of a slowing economy. From October 1 to Christmas Eve, SCHG’s price fell about 21.8%.

Even so, SCHG finished the year down only about 1.4%, a smaller loss than the S&P 500’s 4.6%, thanks to its strong gains earlier in the year. It regained its October peak by late April 2019.

2019: A Powerful Rebound

When the Federal Reserve paused its rate rises in early 2019 and then cut rates three times, markets rebounded strongly. SCHG returned about 36.0%, ahead of the S&P 500’s 31.2%.

Lower interest rates make the future profits of fast-growing companies more valuable today, which tends to favor growth stocks. Apple and Microsoft both had exceptional years.

By the end of 2019, the original $10,000 had grown to about $40,900, four times the starting value in 10 years.

2020: The COVID Crash and a Record Rally

In early 2020, the spread of COVID-19 triggered the fastest market crash in history. From February 19 to March 23, SCHG’s price fell about 32.4%.

The recovery was remarkable. As people worked, shopped and streamed from home, technology companies thrived, and SCHG regained its February peak by June 10, less than three months after the low.

SCHG returned about 39.1% for 2020, more than double the S&P 500’s 18.3%. It was one of the widest leads over the market in its history.

2021: Neck and Neck

2021 was a strong year for almost everything. SCHG returned about 28.1%, almost level with the S&P 500’s 28.7%, as economies reopened and value stocks joined the rally.

By the end of 2021, an investor’s $10,000 from launch had grown to about $73,000. However, inflation was rising fast, and SCHG’s price had peaked on November 19.

2022: SCHG’s Worst Year

As inflation hit 40-year highs in 2022, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates at the fastest pace in decades. Rising rates hit growth stocks hardest, because they reduce the value of profits expected far in the future.

SCHG lost about 31.8% for the year, against 18.2% for the S&P 500. From its November 2021 peak to its low on January 5, 2023, its price fell about 35%, its deepest decline to date.

The original $10,000 fell from about $73,000 to about $49,800. SCHG’s price did not regain its 2021 peak until January 2024, more than two years after the decline began.

2023: SCHG’s Best Year

2023 was dominated by artificial intelligence. Excitement about AI drove huge gains in a small group of giant technology companies, and SCHG held large stakes in almost all of them.

SCHG returned about 50.1%, its best calendar year, almost double the S&P 500’s 26.2%. NVIDIA, Microsoft, Apple, Meta and Amazon led the way.

By the end of 2023, an investor’s $10,000 from launch had recovered to about $74,700, back above its 2021 level.

2024: The Split and Another Strong Year

SCHG returned about 35.0% in 2024, well ahead of the S&P 500’s 24.9%. The AI rally continued, and NVIDIA became one of SCHG’s largest holdings.

In October 2024, SCHG carried out a 4-for-1 share split, turning each share into four. The split did not change the value of anyone’s investment, but it made individual shares cheaper to buy.

By the end of 2024, the original $10,000 had passed $100,000, ten times its starting value in 15 years.

2025: The Tariff Shock

In early 2025, worries about AI spending and sweeping US tariff announcements triggered a sharp sell-off. From mid-December 2024 to April 8, 2025, SCHG’s price fell about 23.5%.

The recovery was quick. SCHG regained its December peak by the end of June 2025, less than three months after the low, as tariff fears eased and technology company profits held up.

SCHG returned about 17.5% for 2025, almost level with the S&P 500’s 17.7%. By the end of the year, the original $10,000 had grown to about $118,500.

2026: A Rotation Away From Growth

2026 has been a difficult year for SCHG relative to the market. At the start of March, war between the United States and Iran sent oil prices above $100 a barrel, and investors moved towards energy, healthcare and defensive companies.

From its October 2025 peak to the end of March 2026, SCHG’s price fell about 16.6%. It recovered to a new high in early October 2026, but then slipped again.

By early November, SCHG was up only about 4.5% for 2026, against about 11.2% for the S&P 500, and about 8% below its October peak. Dividend funds such as SCHD, up about 34%, led the market instead.

Every Major Fall at a Glance

These figures are measured on share price alone. Including reinvested dividends, the declines were slightly smaller and the recoveries came slightly sooner, though SCHG’s small dividend makes less difference than for most funds.

SCHG has fallen more than 15% eight times since 2010, about once every two years on average. In every case so far, it eventually recovered and went on to new highs.

Calendar Returns Hide the Falls Inside Each Year

A calendar-year table makes 2018 look like a quiet year, with a loss of only 1.4%. In fact, SCHG’s price fell almost 22% in under three months that autumn, and investors who checked their accounts on Christmas Eve saw a very different picture.

2020 is the clearest example. SCHG lost about a third of its value in five weeks and still finished the year up 39%, one of its best years.

How SCHG Compared With the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq-100

From 2010 to 2025, $10,000 grew to about $115,400 in SCHG, against about $81,600 in the S&P 500 and about $154,400 in QQQ. SCHG sat between the two, beating the broad market comfortably but trailing the more technology-focused Nasdaq-100 over the full period.

Over the five years from 2021 to 2025, which included the 2022 crash, SCHG edged ahead of QQQ. Over the three years from 2023 to 2025, it also finished slightly ahead, at about 33.5% a year against 33.0%.

FRC’s QQQ performance history tells QQQ’s story year by year, back to its 1999 launch.

Rolling Five-Year Returns Against the S&P 500

SCHG beat the S&P 500 in all 12 rolling five-year periods from 2010 to 2025, including those shown above. Even periods that contained the 2022 crash finished ahead, a sign of how much its strong years outweighed its weak ones.

Rolling 10-Year Returns

SCHG beat the S&P 500 in all seven rolling 10-year periods since launch. Its weakest 10-year stretch, 2013 to 2022, still returned about 13.6% a year, because that window ended in the middle of the 2022 crash.

Its best 10-year stretch, 2012 to 2021, returned about 19.9% a year and turned $10,000 into roughly $61,000. QQQ finished ahead of SCHG in every one of the seven periods.

Is SCHG Better Than QQQ?

On returns alone, QQQ has the stronger record. SCHG finished ahead of QQQ in only three of its 16 full calendar years: 2021, 2022 and 2024.

SCHG also beat QQQ in only one of the 12 rolling five-year periods from 2010 to 2025, the most recent one. In 2026, QQQ is again ahead, up about 11.3% to November 2 against SCHG’s 4.5%.

There are two points in SCHG’s favor. It costs 0.04% a year against QQQ’s 0.20%, and it has been slightly less volatile, with year-to-year swings of about 20 percentage points on average against about 21 for QQQ. In 2022, contrary to what many investors assume, SCHG lost slightly less than QQQ.

The difference comes down to what each fund owns. QQQ holds the 100 largest non-financial companies on the Nasdaq, while SCHG picks growth companies from across the whole US market, including financial companies such as Visa and Mastercard and companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange such as Eli Lilly, none of which QQQ can hold.

SCHG vs VOO: Growth Against the Whole S&P 500

VOO tracks the S&P 500 and charges 0.03% a year, almost exactly the same as SCHG’s 0.04%. Its returns have been almost identical to SPY’s, the S&P 500 figures used throughout this guide.

$10,000 invested in an S&P 500 fund such as VOO at the start of 2016 grew to about $39,500 by the end of 2025, about 14.7% a year. The same $10,000 in SCHG grew to about $53,100, about 18.2% a year.

The cost of that extra return was a bumpier ride. SCHG’s year-to-year swings averaged about 20 percentage points, against about 14 for the S&P 500, and its worst year was −31.8% against −18.2%. FRC’s VOO performance history covers VOO’s own record.

How SCHG Behaved in Up and Down Markets

This is SCHG’s trade-off in numbers. In the S&P 500’s strong years, SCHG gained about 8 percentage points more on average, but in its down years, SCHG lost about 5 points more, almost entirely because of 2022. In 2018, it actually lost less than the market.

Because strong years have been far more common than down years since 2010, that trade-off has paid off. But investors who held SCHG had to sit through bigger losses, especially in 2022.

SCHG and SCHD: What Happened When Investors Held Both

Many investors pair SCHG with SCHD, Schwab’s dividend fund, to balance growth with income and value. Their histories show why the combination appeals.

The 50/50 split gave up some of SCHG’s growth, but its worst year was roughly half as bad as SCHG’s. In 2026, the two funds have moved in opposite directions, with SCHD up about 34% and SCHG up about 4.5%, a clear example of why some investors hold both.

FRC’s SCHD performance history tells SCHD’s side of the story, year by year.

What the Declines Taught SCHG Investors

The first lesson is that higher returns came with bigger falls. SCHG fell about 35% from 2021 to 2023 and more than 20% in four other declines, and in 2022 it lost almost twice as much as the S&P 500.

The second is that concentration cuts both ways. With Apple, NVIDIA and Microsoft making up about a third of the fund, SCHG’s fortunes depend heavily on a handful of companies.

The third is that patience was rewarded. Investors who held through 2022 saw SCHG return about 50% in 2023 and 35% in 2024, while those who sold near the bottom missed the recovery.

Costs, Dividends and Taxes

SCHG charges an expense ratio of 0.04%, or $4 a year for every $10,000 invested. That makes it one of the cheapest growth ETFs available.

Its dividend yield is very low, about 0.4%, which is easy to confuse with its 0.04% expense ratio. That yield is low because growth companies tend to reinvest their profits rather than pay them out. Almost all of SCHG’s return comes from rising share prices, an example of compound interest working through growth rather than income.

That low yield makes SCHG tax-efficient in a regular brokerage account, because most of the return is not taxed until shares are sold. FRC’s guides to how to choose tax-efficient ETFs and how to minimize capital gains tax explain the details.

What SCHG’s History Does Not Tell You

SCHG’s 17-year record covers one of the strongest periods ever for large technology companies, helped for much of that time by very low interest rates. Future returns may look very different.

Its concentration has also grown. The SCHG of 2026, with about 60% of its money in 10 companies, carries more single-company risk than the SCHG of 2010.

SCHG has also never been tested by a crash on the scale of 2000 to 2002, when growth and technology stocks lost most of their value. FRC’s QQQ history shows how badly growth stocks can fall in such a period.

SCHG Questions Investors Ask

What is SCHG’s average 10-year return? Over the 10 calendar years from 2016 to 2025, SCHG returned about 18.2% a year, turning $10,000 into about $53,100. Its weakest rolling 10-year period since launch returned about 13.6% a year.

What is SCHG’s 15-year return? From 2011 to 2025, SCHG returned about 16.5% a year, turning $10,000 into about $98,700, a gain of almost 890%.

How has SCHG performed in the past year? In the 12 months to November 2, 2026, SCHG returned about 2.2%, and it was up about 4.5% for 2026 so far. In the same period, SCHD returned close to 39%, as investors moved away from technology and towards dividend and energy companies.

Is SCHG overvalued? FRC does not make that call, and no one can time a growth fund reliably. What history shows is that SCHG’s largest falls, such as 2022’s, came after strong runs for its biggest holdings, and that every one of those falls has so far been followed by new highs.

Does SCHG pay a dividend? Yes, quarterly, but the yield is only about 0.4%, so $10,000 in SCHG pays roughly $40 a year. SCHG is built for growth rather than income.

Is Your Money Safe in SCHG?

SCHG is a regulated investment company overseen by the SEC, with its holdings kept by an independent custodian and separate from Schwab’s own assets. FRC’s guide to Is Charles Schwab Safe? explains how Schwab is structured and regulated.

When you hold SCHG at a SIPC member brokerage, your account is protected up to $500,000, including $250,000 in cash, if the brokerage fails and assets are missing. This protection does not cover market losses, such as SCHG’s fall of about 35% from 2021 to 2023.

Keep Learning

SCHG’s first 17 years show that a growth fund can beat the market by a wide margin over long periods, while falling harder in bear markets and depending heavily on a few giant companies. The investors who did best were usually those who understood what the fund owned and held it through every cycle.

The FRC dictionary is more than a dictionary. It is a library of explainer videos, written explanations and on-page quizzes, so you can open any term, such as diversification or the S&P 500, and go deeper whenever something is unclear.

FRC’s programs and memberships are open to everyone. FRC’s Investing for Beginners guide and its guide to dollar-cost averaging vs lump sum are natural next steps.

Your Next Step

Since December 2009, SCHG has returned about 16.1% a year and turned $10,000 into about $123,800. It beat the S&P 500 in 11 of 16 full years and every rolling five-year and 10-year period, trailed QQQ in most years, fell about 35% in its worst decline, and has lagged in 2026 as the market rotated away from technology.

Use that history to set realistic expectations. A growth fund can deliver exceptional long-term returns, but it can also fall a third or more in a bad year, so choose it for what it owns and hold it with a long-term view.