VOO Returns by Year: 16 Years of Crashes, Recoveries and Record Highs

VOO, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, began trading in September 2010 and has since become the largest exchange-traded fund in the world. Including reinvested dividends, it returned about 14.7% a year from its first trading day to early November 2026, turning $10,000 into roughly $91,300.

Those headline numbers hide a much more eventful story. In its first 16 years, VOO lived through a US credit downgrade, a European debt crisis, an oil crash, a pandemic crash that took the market down a third in a month, a full bear market driven by inflation and interest rates, and a tariff shock that nearly became another. It also lived through some of the strongest bull markets in history.

This guide tells that story year by year. It explains where VOO came from, what happened in every calendar year since launch, how far the fund fell in each major correction and how long it took to recover, and what all of it means for anyone holding VOO today.

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VOO at a Glance

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

VOO Returns by Year

Over its 15 full calendar years, VOO finished higher in 13 and lower in two, 2018 and 2022. That record sits alongside several sharp falls within years that still ended positive, which the rest of this guide explains.

Before VOO: The Fund Behind the Fund

VOO’s story starts in 1976, when Vanguard founder John Bogle launched the First Index Investment Trust, later renamed the Vanguard 500 Index Fund. It was the first index fund offered to ordinary investors, and it was widely mocked at the time as a fund that settled for average.

The idea was simple. Rather than paying managers to pick stocks, the fund would own every company in the S&P 500 in proportion to its size and charge as little as possible. Over the following decades, that approach became one of the most successful in investing history.

When Vanguard launched VOO, it did not create a new portfolio. VOO was added as an ETF share class of the existing Vanguard 500 Index Fund, sharing the same pool of stocks. That structure, which Vanguard held a patent on until 2023, is one reason VOO could charge so little from the start.

The Launch: September 2010

VOO began trading in September 2010, two years after the financial crisis and 17 years after SPY had become the first US-listed ETF. Vanguard launched it alongside a set of other S&P-based funds covering value, growth, mid-sized and small companies.

At launch, VOO charged 0.06% a year, which Vanguard described as the lowest cost of any ETF tracking the S&P 500. SPY, the established leader, charged more and had a huge head start in assets and trading volume.

The timing was uncertain. The economy was still recovering from the Great Recession, unemployment was high and the Federal Reserve was buying bonds to support markets. VOO’s first months were nonetheless strong, and it gained about 14.8% from its first trading day to the end of 2010.

2011: A Debut Year Tested by Two Crises

VOO’s first full year turned into a test of nerves. From late April to early October 2011, the S&P 500 fell about 19%, just short of the 20% drop that defines a bear market.

Two crises drove the fall. In Europe, fears that Greece and other countries could default on their debts spread through the banking system. In the US, a political standoff over the debt ceiling ended with S&P downgrading the US government’s credit rating in August 2011 for the first time in history.

Markets swung violently through August and September. Yet the index recovered in the final quarter, and VOO finished 2011 up about 1.9% including dividends. Investors who held on through the worst weeks ended the year slightly ahead.

2012–2013: Recovery and the Best Year in VOO’s History

2012 brought steadier gains as the European crisis eased and the US economy slowly improved. VOO returned about 16.0%, despite worries about the so-called fiscal cliff of tax rises and spending cuts scheduled for the end of the year.

2013 was exceptional. With the Federal Reserve continuing its bond-buying program and company profits rising, VOO returned about 32.4%, its best calendar year to date. An investor’s $10,000 from launch had grown to nearly $18,000.

The rally was not without scares. In mid-2013, the Fed’s suggestion that it might slow its bond buying triggered a brief sell-off known as the taper tantrum. The dip proved short-lived, and markets went on to finish the year near record highs.

2014: Steady Gains as the Bull Market Matured

2014 delivered a solid return of about 13.6% as the bull market that began in 2009 continued. The Federal Reserve wound down its bond-buying program over the year without derailing the market.

Underneath the calm, a major shift was beginning. Oil prices, which had been above $100 a barrel for much of the year, started to collapse in the second half as supply surged and demand weakened.

For VOO investors, the energy decline was offset by gains elsewhere, especially in technology and healthcare. The index’s broad spread across sectors cushioned the damage, an early example of how diversification works in practice.

2015–2016: The Oil Crash and China Scare

2015 was one of VOO’s flattest years, returning about 1.3%. In August, China unexpectedly devalued its currency, sparking fears about its economy, and on August 24 US markets suffered a sudden flash crash at the open.

The pressure returned in early 2016 as oil prices fell below $30 a barrel and recession fears grew. From its May 2015 peak to its low in February 2016, the S&P 500 fell about 15%.

The recovery was strong. VOO returned about 12.2% in 2016, despite the shock of the UK’s vote to leave the European Union in June and the surprise result of the US presidential election in November. Both events caused brief sell-offs that reversed within days.

2017: The Calmest Year in Memory

2017 was remarkable for how little the market moved day to day. The S&P 500 rose steadily through the year with very few pullbacks, and VOO returned about 21.8%.

Strong global growth, rising company profits and the prospect of corporate tax cuts, passed in December 2017, all supported the rally. Market volatility fell to some of the lowest levels ever recorded.

That calm encouraged complacency. Some investors bet heavily that volatility would stay low, and those bets were about to unwind.

2018: Volatility Returns and VOO’s First Losing Year

In early February 2018, a sudden spike in volatility triggered a sharp sell-off, and the S&P 500 fell about 10% in under two weeks. Several products that had bet on low volatility collapsed.

The market recovered and hit new highs in September, but the final quarter was brutal. Rising interest rates, a trade dispute between the US and China and fears that the Federal Reserve was tightening too far drove the S&P 500 down about 19.8% from its September peak to Christmas Eve.

VOO finished 2018 down about 4.5%, its first calendar-year loss. The decline came after nearly a decade of gains and reminded investors that steady markets do not last forever.

2019: A Rebound Few Expected

Early in 2019, the Federal Reserve signaled it would pause its rate rises, and later in the year it cut rates three times. Markets responded strongly.

VOO returned about 31.4% in 2019, its second-best year, recovering all of the late-2018 losses within months. Investors who had sold in the December panic missed one of the sharpest recoveries of the decade.

By the end of 2019, the bull market that began in 2009 had become the longest in US history. An investor’s $10,000 from VOO’s launch had grown to about $35,400.

2020: The Fastest Crash and the Fastest Recovery

In February 2020, the S&P 500 hit a record high. Within weeks, the spread of COVID-19 forced lockdowns around the world, and the index fell about 33.9% from February 19 to March 23, the fastest fall of that size in its history.

Trading was halted market-wide several times in March as circuit breakers were triggered. The Federal Reserve cut interest rates to near zero, and the government launched trillions of dollars of support.

The recovery was just as dramatic. The S&P 500 regained its February peak by August 2020, about five months after the low. VOO finished the year up about 18.3%, an extraordinary result for a year that included one of the worst crashes on record.

2021: Record After Record

2021 was a year of strong, steady gains as economies reopened, company profits surged and interest rates stayed near zero. VOO returned about 28.8%.

The S&P 500 set dozens of record closing highs during the year. Large technology companies led much of the advance, increasing their share of the index.

Beneath the surface, inflation was rising rapidly. By late 2021, it had reached levels not seen in decades, setting the stage for what came next.

2022: The Bear Market

2022 was VOO’s worst calendar year. With inflation running at its highest level in about 40 years, the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark federal funds rate at the fastest pace in decades.

Rising rates hit stock valuations hard, especially for large technology companies. From January 3 to October 12, 2022, the S&P 500 fell about 25.4%, a full bear market.

VOO finished the year down about 18.2%. Unlike the COVID crash, this decline was slow and grinding, and the S&P 500 did not regain its January 2022 peak until January 2024, about two years later.

2023: The Rebound and the AI Rally

2023 began with fresh worries. In March, Silicon Valley Bank collapsed, followed by other regional banks, raising fears of a wider banking crisis.

Swift action by regulators contained the damage, and the market’s attention turned to artificial intelligence. A small group of large technology companies, often called the Magnificent Seven, drove much of the index’s gains.

VOO returned about 26.3% in 2023. By year end, it had recovered most of its 2022 losses, although the S&P 500 did not set a new closing high until the following January.

2024: Another Strong Year

2024 continued the rally, with VOO returning about 25.0%. The Federal Reserve began cutting interest rates in September as inflation cooled.

Enthusiasm for artificial intelligence kept large technology stocks at the front of the market. That left the S&P 500 more concentrated in its biggest companies than at any time in decades.

Two consecutive years of 25% or better returns lifted an investor’s original $10,000 from launch to about $69,700. Concentration in a few giant companies became one of the most discussed risks for S&P 500 investors.

2025: The Tariff Shock and a Milestone

In February 2025, VOO overtook SPY to become the largest ETF in the world by assets, 15 years after launching as the challenger. Its low cost and its popularity with long-term investors had steadily closed the gap.

Weeks later, the market was hit by a sharp sell-off. Sweeping new US tariffs announced in early April triggered one of the steepest short-term declines in years, and from its February peak to its April low the S&P 500 fell close to 19%, just short of a bear market.

The recovery was swift. After tariff plans were paused and partly reversed, the index regained its previous high by late June, about four months after the peak. VOO finished 2025 up about 17.8%.

2026 So Far

2026 brought a new kind of shock. War between the United States and Iran broke out at the start of March, and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz sent oil prices above $100 a barrel.

By late March, the S&P 500 was about 9% below the record high it had set in January, its sharpest fall since the 2025 tariff shock. Even so, the index stopped short of a full 10% correction and recovered as the year went on.

VOO was up about 11.2% for 2026 by early November, taking an investor’s original $10,000 from launch to about $91,300. Full-year 2026 figures will be added to this guide once the year is complete.

Every Major Fall at a Glance

VOO tracked each of these falls closely, since it holds the same stocks as the index. In every case so far, the market eventually recovered and went on to new highs, although the time it took varied widely.

What $10,000 Went Through

An investor who put $10,000 into VOO at launch and never sold would have about $91,300 by early November 2026. However, the path was far from smooth.

If that same investor had bought at the February 2020 peak, their $10,000 would have fallen to roughly $6,600 by late March 2020, before recovering by August. If they had bought at the start of 2022, it would have fallen to around $7,500 by October and taken about two years to get back to even.

The lesson from VOO’s history is not that losses don’t happen. It is that investors who stayed invested through each fall were eventually rewarded, while those who sold near the lows locked in their losses.

What the Corrections Taught Investors

The first lesson is that sharp falls are normal. In its first 16 years, VOO lived through at least six declines of roughly 15% or more, about one every two to three years.

The second is that the cause of each fall was different and rarely predicted. A credit downgrade, an oil crash, a trade war, a pandemic, an inflation shock, a tariff war and a war in the Middle East each caught markets by surprise.

The third is that recoveries also tend to be sudden. Many of the strongest days in VOO’s history came within weeks of the worst ones, which is why investors who try to time their exits often miss the rebound. Regular investing, known as dollar-cost averaging, is one way investors have stayed invested through these swings, as FRC’s guide to dollar-cost averaging vs lump sum explains.

How VOO’s Costs Fell Over Time

VOO launched at an expense ratio of 0.06% and has since been cut to 0.03%, or $3 a year for every $10,000 invested. Those reductions came as Vanguard’s S&P 500 fund grew and competition between providers intensified.

Low costs compound over time in the same way returns do. Over 16 years, the gap between a 0.03% fund and one charging even a few tenths of a percent adds up to a meaningful sum.

FRC’s comparison of SPY vs VOO shows how VOO’s lower fee and open-end structure have helped it edge ahead of SPY over long periods.

How VOO Compared With Its Closest Rivals

Because SPY, IVV and VOO all track the S&P 500, their year-by-year returns have been almost identical, with small differences from fees and fund structure. FRC’s comparison of VOO vs IVV explains why the choice between those two comes down to convenience.

Total market funds such as VTI have tracked VOO closely too, differing mainly in years when smaller companies outperformed or lagged. FRC’s comparison of VOO vs VTI explains that difference.

Dividend funds behaved very differently in some years, especially 2022, when SCHD lost only about 3%. FRC’s comparison of SCHD vs VOO explains the trade-offs between income and growth.

Dividends Through the Years

VOO has paid dividends every quarter since launch, passing on the dividends paid by S&P 500 companies. As those companies have grown their payouts, VOO’s dividend per share has risen over time.

Because VOO’s share price has risen faster than its dividends, its yield has generally been modest, often between about 1% and 2%. Most of VOO’s return over its history has come from rising share prices, with dividends adding a steady boost.

FRC’s guide to when VOO pays dividends explains its quarterly schedule and ex-dividend dates.

Taxes Over VOO’s History

Through every market cycle, VOO has been highly tax-efficient. As a low-turnover index ETF using the in-kind creation and redemption process, it has rarely distributed capital gains to shareholders.

Most of its dividends have been qualified dividends, taxed at the lower long-term capital gains rates. That has made VOO a popular choice in taxable brokerage accounts as well as IRAs and 401(k) plans.

FRC’s guides to tax-efficient ETFs for a taxable brokerage account and how to minimize capital gains tax explain how investors keep tax bills low.

What VOO’s History Does Not Tell You

VOO’s 16-year record covers a period that included unusually low interest rates for much of its life and an exceptional run for large technology companies. Future returns may be lower, and the next decade may look very different.

The S&P 500 has also had long periods of poor returns in the past, before VOO existed. From 2000 to 2009, for example, the index produced a slightly negative total return over a full decade, through two major bear markets.

That is why most long-term investors pair a fund like VOO with other holdings, such as international stocks and bonds. FRC’s guide to how to invest in the S&P 500 explains the index’s longer history and how it fits into a portfolio.

Is Your Money Safe in VOO?

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

When you hold VOO 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 those VOO suffered in 2020 and 2022.

VOO’s history shows that its value can fall sharply and stay down for long periods. Its safeguards protect the safekeeping of your investment, not its value.

Keep Learning

VOO’s first 16 years show both the power and the discomfort of owning the stock market. Large gains came alongside sharp falls, and the investors who did best were usually the ones who stayed the course.

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 bull market, 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 how much $500 a month grows over 30 years are natural next steps.

Your Next Step

Since September 2010, VOO has returned about 14.7% a year, turned $10,000 into about $91,300 and finished 13 of its 15 full calendar years higher. Along the way it fell about 19% in 2011, 20% in 2018, 34% in 2020, 25% in 2022 and close to 19% in 2025, and recovered each time.

Use that history to set realistic expectations: expect sharp falls, plan for them in advance and focus on investing consistently over the long term.