# How Nasdaq (NDAQ) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/ndaq
> Data as of October 20, 2026. Total returns include reinvested dividends. Past performance does not predict future results; nothing here is investment advice.

Built by QuantCommons' quantitative engine, this page is about relative opportunity, not data on NDAQ alone. It places NDAQ (Nasdaq, Inc.) against 20+ popular alternatives, its neighboring categories and the entire market of over 10,000 U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs, and surfaces what has done better on consistent outperformance, return for the risk taken, behavior in real market crashes and diversification. The result is a clearer view of where NDAQ stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: NDAQ's full trading record, from July 2002 through September 2026. The crash tests reach back to 2000 using older funds and the S&P 500. All returns include reinvested dividends. Data as of October 20, 2026.

## Key findings

- **Right now:** Not every peer went the same way. Over the past 3 months, CME (CME Group) rose 21.0% and SCHW (Charles Schwab) fell 11.1%.
- **Stock or market?:** NDAQ held up far better than its industry: it rose 3.5% over the past 3 months while the capital markets ETF IAI (iShares U.S. Broker-Dealers & Securities Exchanges ETF) fell 5.9%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its capital market peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: CME (CME Group) rose 21.0%, while SCHW (Charles Schwab) fell 11.1%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** NDAQ has trailed the market, rising 8.1% over the past year against 15.8% for the S&P 500 and 17.9% for the Nasdaq 100. On the flip side, it lagged its capital market peers in 2023, then moved up the pack in 2025.
- **Long term:** Over the past decade, NDAQ returned 17.6% a year against 15.5% a year for the S&P 500 (407% in total against 321%). Even so, the past 5 years only trailed the S&P 500 (52.9% against 81.7%), after a much stronger decade (407% against 321%).
- **In a crash:** The Covid crash took 37.1% off NDAQ, against 33.7% for the S&P 500. That was more than ICE (Intercontinental Exchange, 33.0%) but less than SCHW (Charles Schwab, 41.5%).
- **Diversification:** NDAQ is some diversification, but not a hedge: a correlation of 0.59 with the S&P 500 over 5 years and 0.59 with the total US market, more closely than 89% of stocks worth at least $300 million. When the S&P 500 had a down month, NDAQ usually fell with it (17 of 22 months).
- **Better options**
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** RY (Royal Bank of Canada, banks) and TD (Toronto-Dominion Bank, banks) earned more than NDAQ with less volatility over the past 5 years. RY returned 17.3% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 8.9% a year at 24.7%.
  - **Whole market:** 377 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than NDAQ with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI (Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF), VOO (Vanguard S&P 500 ETF) and BRK-B (Berkshire Hathaway).

## How much would $10,000 in NDAQ have grown?

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in NDAQ over the past 24 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of NDAQ over the same span and NDAQ's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in NDAQ at the end of September 2002 would have grown to $374,031 by September 2026, more than the $144,215 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Five of the eight other investments on the chart ended ahead of NDAQ, and AME finished highest, at $671,367.

## NDAQ at a glance

This section summarizes the key facts about the stock, its returns over periods from one to ten years and the risk it has carried, with dividends reinvested throughout.

- NDAQ's deepest decline since it began trading in 2002 was 68.5%, from December 2007 to November 2008. It took about six years from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 23 full calendar years, NDAQ's best was 2005, when it returned 245%, and its worst was 2008, when it lost 50.1%. It lost money in six of those years.
- NDAQ is 5.2% below its all-time high.

- Type: Stock, Financials (Financial - Data & Stock Exchanges)
- Trading since: July 1, 2002
- Market value: $53B
- Volatility (5 years): 24.7%; Sharpe ratio: 0.47
- Worst decline ever: −68.5%, from December 26, 2007 to November 20, 2008; back at its high by December 18, 2014

| Period | NDAQ total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | +0.1% |
| 3 months | +3.5% |
| 6 months | +8.8% |
| year to date | −0.9% |
| 1 year | +8.1% |
| 3 years | +95.1% |
| 5 years | +52.9% |
| 10 years | +407% |

## NDAQ against the whole market

Where NDAQ ranks among every stock and fund, and what across the market has done better.

### How does NDAQ rank among all stocks?

This section ranks NDAQ on return, volatility, risk-adjusted return and worst decline against every stock worth at least $300 million with enough history.

- NDAQ's worst decline of the past 10 years ranks in the top 5% of the 2,187 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top fell the least.

| Measure | NDAQ | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | +8.1% | 1,659 of 3,287 (top 51%) |
| 3-year return | +95.1% | 960 of 3,017 (top 32%) |
| 5-year return | +52.9% | 1,070 of 2,893 (top 37%) |
| 10-year return | +407% | 411 of 2,202 (top 19%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 24.7% | 299 of 2,893 (top 11%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.47 | 1,010 of 2,893 (top 35%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −38.3% | 112 of 2,187 (top 6%) |

### What has beaten NDAQ on both return and risk?

Each dot is an investment, placed by how much it earned a year over the past 5 years (higher is better) and how much its price swung, its volatility (further left is calmer).

- 67 stocks and 310 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than NDAQ over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 10% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half NDAQ's swings, DXJ has the best return for its risk: 26.6% a year at 19.1% volatility, 23% less than NDAQ's 24.7%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.34 against 0.47 for NDAQ.
- Among NDAQ's popular alternatives, CME is in the region. CME earned 11.2% a year against 8.9% a year for NDAQ, at 20.8% volatility, 16% less than NDAQ's 24.7%.

### Is there a better investment than NDAQ?

The table below lists investments that beat NDAQ over the past 5 years on at least one of these measures: a higher annual return with lower volatility, a higher annual return at similar volatility, a similar return with lower volatility, a higher Sharpe ratio with a smaller worst decline, a higher total return in most periods from 3 months to 10 years, or smaller losses in recent market crashes.

- Among NDAQ's popular alternatives, CME earned more than NDAQ with less volatility over the past 5 years: 11.2% a year at 20.8% volatility, against 8.9% a year at 24.7%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, RY (banks) and TD (banks) earned more than NDAQ with less volatility over the past 5 years. RY returned 17.3% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 8.9% a year at 24.7%.
- Across the whole market, 377 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than NDAQ with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them VTI, VOO and BRK-B.

The 15 strongest of 377 investments that beat NDAQ over the past 5 years, out of 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million.

| Investment | Group | Annual return (5 years) | Volatility | Sharpe | Worst decline (10 years) | 10Y return | Correlation with NDAQ | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NDAQ: Nasdaq, Inc. (this page) |  | +8.9% | 24.7% | 0.47 | −38.3% | +407% |  |  |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +20.8% | 22.6% | 0.96 | −25.7% | +508% | 0.32 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [IVW](https://easycompare.io/research/ivw): iShares S&P 500 Growth ETF | US Large-Cap Growth | +13.1% | 21.5% | 0.68 | −32.7% | +413% | 0.55 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | US Momentum Equity | +18.7% | 20.8% | 0.93 | −30.9% | +499% | 0.37 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| OEF: iShares S&P 100 ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +14.3% | 17.8% | 0.84 | −31.4% | +367% | 0.58 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [RSG](https://easycompare.io/research/rsg): Republic Services, Inc. | Environmental Services | +13.9% | 18.5% | 0.80 | −34.0% | +446% | 0.28 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods; Smaller losses in recent crashes |
| IOO: iShares Global 100 ETF | Global Equity | +15.7% | 17.2% | 0.94 | −31.4% | +361% | 0.57 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| TDIV: First Trust NASDAQ Technology Dividend Index Fund | Technology Equity | +16.2% | 21.3% | 0.81 | −32.0% | +388% | 0.44 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [MPLX](https://easycompare.io/research/mplx): MPLX Lp | Oil & Gas Midstream | +23.5% | 18.8% | 1.22 | −75.2% | +350% | 0.37 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| GARP: iShares MSCI USA Quality GARP ETF | Broad Market | +17.5% | 22.5% | 0.83 | −31.4% | — | 0.48 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| SPUS: SP Funds S&P 500 Sharia Industry Exclusions ETF | Technology | +15.0% | 19.5% | 0.82 | −30.8% | — | 0.51 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [ABBV](https://easycompare.io/research/abbv): AbbVie Inc. | Pharmaceuticals | +26.1% | 23.4% | 1.11 | −45.1% | +603% | 0.03 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [RY](https://easycompare.io/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | Banks | +17.3% | 18.2% | 0.97 | −40.0% | +352% | 0.30 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [V](https://easycompare.io/research/v): Visa Inc. | Payment Processing | +12.8% | 22.9% | 0.64 | −36.4% | +429% | 0.41 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | International Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +428% | 0.05 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |
| [PM](https://easycompare.io/research/pm): Philip Morris International Inc. | Tobacco | +21.0% | 23.4% | 0.94 | −42.9% | +242% | 0.15 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher return in most periods |

## NDAQ against its popular alternatives

The investments people most often weigh against NDAQ, compared period by period and year by year.

### How do NDAQ's risk and return compare with its alternatives?

This map plots each investment's annual return over the past 5 years against its volatility, the size of its typical price swings.

- Only CME was both more rewarding and calmer than NDAQ over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- 13 of the 23 popular alternatives earned less than NDAQ over the past 5 years while swinging more, the weaker corner of the map.
- Over the past 5 years, NDAQ returned 8.9% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (24.7% against 17.1%).

### Has NDAQ consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

This section compares NDAQ with the investments people most often weigh against it, checking each one over eight periods from one month to ten years.

- CBOE outperformed NDAQ in every long-term period and in all but one short-term period, the most consistent record in the group.
- Only one of the 23 popular alternatives, CBOE, outperformed NDAQ in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- CME earned more for the risk it took than NDAQ (a higher Sharpe ratio) and fell less in its worst decline of the past 10 years.

| Investment | 1Y return | 3Y return | 5Y return | 10Y return | Periods ahead of NDAQ | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NDAQ: Nasdaq, Inc. (this page) | +8.1% | +95.1% | +52.9% | +407% |  |  | 0.47 |
| CBOE: Cboe Global Markets, Inc. | +34.2% | +101% | +165% | +463% | 4/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term | all-weather | 0.91 |
| [IBKR](https://easycompare.io/research/ibkr): Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. | +24.4% | +320% | +355% | +935% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 1.04 |
| [MS](https://easycompare.io/research/ms): Morgan Stanley | +13.9% | +170% | +110% | +627% | 2/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.66 |
| [GS](https://easycompare.io/research/gs): The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. | +18.2% | +215% | +145% | +521% | 1/5 short-term, 3/3 long-term |  | 0.77 |
| LPLA: LPL Financial Holdings Inc. | −4.9% | +47.1% | +88.9% | +1,057% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.54 |
| FICO: Fair Isaac Corporation | −50.6% | −12.3% | +94.8% | +549% | 0/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term |  | 0.52 |
| [CME](https://easycompare.io/research/cme): CME Group Inc. | +14.6% | +57.7% | +70.1% | +319% | 4/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.62 |
| [MSCI](https://easycompare.io/research/msci): MSCI Inc. | +11.8% | +25.5% | +0.5% | +702% | 3/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.16 |
| [COIN](https://easycompare.io/research/coin): Coinbase Global, Inc. | −50.3% | +129% | −45.7% | — | 1/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.29 |
| FDS: FactSet Research Systems Inc. | +9.5% | −24.7% | −21.8% | +127% | 5/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.01 |
| MORN: Morningstar, Inc. | −1.9% | −3.7% | −22.9% | +203% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.00 |
| SSNC: SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc. | +8.3% | +81.0% | +26.0% | +200% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.31 |
| TW: Tradeweb Markets Inc. | +10.2% | +48.4% | +45.3% | — | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.41 |
| [BLK](https://easycompare.io/research/blk): BlackRock, Inc. | −0.6% | +96.3% | +41.1% | +313% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.39 |
| [ICE](https://easycompare.io/research/ice): Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. | +3.5% | +52.4% | +30.0% | +240% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.35 |
| BR: Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. | −20.2% | +9.7% | +8.7% | +234% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.19 |
| MKTX: MarketAxess Holdings Inc. | −1.9% | −26.8% | −56.7% | +19.9% | 2/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.30 |
| [MCO](https://easycompare.io/research/mco): Moody's Corporation | +1.1% | +57.3% | +33.4% | +383% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.35 |
| [SPGI](https://easycompare.io/research/spgi): S&P Global Inc. | −7.4% | +28.2% | +3.7% | +293% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.16 |
| [XLF](https://easycompare.io/research/xlf): State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF | +7.2% | +81.3% | +50.9% | +241% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.54 |
| VRSK: Verisk Analytics, Inc. | −18.1% | −16.8% | −6.7% | +151% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.08 |
| FIS: Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. | −44.3% | −21.6% | −66.6% | −41.3% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.47 |
| [SCHW](https://easycompare.io/research/schw): The Charles Schwab Corporation | −3.1% | +86.2% | +19.1% | +221% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.27 |

### How did NDAQ do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2003, along with where NDAQ ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- NDAQ finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 15 of its 23 full calendar years, and ahead of it in each of the last two.
- Among its popular alternatives, FICO came out ahead of NDAQ most often, in 16 of the 23 years both traded.
- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, NDAQ finished in the top quarter in seven of 23 years and in the bottom quarter in five. In 2025, it ranked 6 of 24.

| Year | NDAQ | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +27.2% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +34.9% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | −3.7% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −11.2% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +60.1% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +26.0% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +33.9% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | +8.2% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +16.8% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | +17.4% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How NDAQ has fallen, how it held up in crashes beside the S&P 500 and its popular alternatives, and what moves independently of it.

### What were NDAQ's worst declines?

A drawdown is the decline from a peak to the lowest point before a new high.

- In all five of NDAQ's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: NDAQ fell 48.0% from January to June 2006, while the S&P 500 slipped only 4.2%.
- The slowest recovery came after NDAQ fell 68.5% from December 2007 to November 2008; it did not regain that peak until December 2014, six years later.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −68.5% | December 26, 2007 | November 20, 2008 | December 18, 2014 | −48.8% | 2008 financial crisis |
| −66.2% | July 9, 2002 | April 16, 2003 | May 6, 2005 | −6.5% | dot-com bust |
| −48.0% | January 30, 2006 | June 13, 2006 | October 31, 2007 | −4.2% |  |
| −38.3% | February 4, 2020 | March 23, 2020 | May 29, 2020 | −31.9% | Covid crash |
| −32.9% | November 5, 2021 | May 18, 2022 | July 30, 2024 | −15.8% | 2022 bear market |

### How did NDAQ do in stock market crashes?

This section measures how far NDAQ, the S&P 500 and each alternative fell from peak to trough during every major market crash since 2000.

- Among its popular alternatives, FDS held up best, falling less than NDAQ in six of the nine crashes they both traded through.
- NDAQ began trading after the dot-com bust, but nine of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was MCO's 18.5%, against 47.5% for the S&P 500.
- NDAQ fell further than the S&P 500 in five of the nine crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when NDAQ fell 68.5% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.

| Crash | Dates | NDAQ fall | SPY fall |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Dot-com bust | March 10, 2000 to October 9, 2002 | not trading | −47.5% |
| Global financial crisis | October 9, 2007 to March 9, 2009 | −68.5% | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | −5.3% | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −16.1% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −10.1% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −6.4% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −16.7% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −37.1% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −27.8% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −5.7% | −3.4% |

### How closely does NDAQ move with the S&P 500?

Upside capture measures how much of the S&P 500's gains an investment kept in the months the market rose, and downside capture how much of its losses it took in the months the market fell.

- LPLA took just 52% of the S&P 500's losses, against 97% for NDAQ, while still keeping 110% of its gains.
- Over the past 10 years, NDAQ captured 104% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 97% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 0.91. Its share of the market's gains was slightly larger than its share of the losses.
- Five of the 21 popular alternatives had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than NDAQ's 1.07, led by CME, LPLA and CBOE.

Measured over the past 10 years of monthly returns against SPY.

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NDAQ: Nasdaq, Inc. (this page) | 104% | 97.0% | 0.91 |
| CBOE: Cboe Global Markets, Inc. | 79.0% | 50.0% | 0.53 |
| [IBKR](https://easycompare.io/research/ibkr): Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. | 128% | 92.0% | 1.03 |
| [MS](https://easycompare.io/research/ms): Morgan Stanley | 142% | 137% | 1.39 |
| [GS](https://easycompare.io/research/gs): The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. | 136% | 133% | 1.39 |
| LPLA: LPL Financial Holdings Inc. | 110% | 52.0% | 0.85 |
| FICO: Fair Isaac Corporation | 137% | 159% | 1.31 |
| [CME](https://easycompare.io/research/cme): CME Group Inc. | 50.0% | 11.0% | 0.33 |
| [MSCI](https://easycompare.io/research/msci): MSCI Inc. | 131% | 121% | 1.12 |
| FDS: FactSet Research Systems Inc. | 71.0% | 97.0% | 0.76 |
| MORN: Morningstar, Inc. | 93.0% | 117% | 1.07 |
| SSNC: SS&C Technologies Holdings, Inc. | 113% | 153% | 1.32 |
| [BLK](https://easycompare.io/research/blk): BlackRock, Inc. | 127% | 157% | 1.30 |
| [ICE](https://easycompare.io/research/ice): Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. | 88.0% | 94.0% | 0.84 |
| BR: Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. | 90.0% | 105% | 0.90 |
| MKTX: MarketAxess Holdings Inc. | 40.0% | 74.0% | 0.62 |
| [MCO](https://easycompare.io/research/mco): Moody's Corporation | 131% | 151% | 1.26 |
| [SPGI](https://easycompare.io/research/spgi): S&P Global Inc. | 107% | 125% | 1.04 |
| [XLF](https://easycompare.io/research/xlf): State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF | 96.0% | 107% | 1.02 |
| VRSK: Verisk Analytics, Inc. | 63.0% | 73.0% | 0.73 |
| FIS: Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. | 54.0% | 150% | 0.82 |
| [SCHW](https://easycompare.io/research/schw): The Charles Schwab Corporation | 89.0% | 90.0% | 0.91 |

### What diversifies NDAQ?

Correlation measures how closely two investments move together, on a scale from 1 (in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to -1 (in opposite directions).

- Moving a fifth of the money in NDAQ into DXJ would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 19% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+8.9% for NDAQ alone, +13.0% for the mix).
- FIX made money in five of the six calendar years in which NDAQ lost money.
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of NDAQ over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.44 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with NDAQ | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in NDAQ's 6 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.32 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 2 of 6 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.05 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 3 of 6 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.44 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 2 of 6 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.23 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 3 of 6 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.39 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 1 of 6 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.17 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 4 of 6 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.37 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 1 of 6 |
| [XLE](https://easycompare.io/research/xle): State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF | 0.24 | +177% | 25.5% | 0.93 | 4 of 6 |

## Common questions

### What was NDAQ's worst drawdown?

NDAQ's deepest decline since it began trading in 2002 was 68.5%, from December 2007 to November 2008. It took about six years from the low to climb back to its old high.

### What were NDAQ's best and worst years?

Over 23 full calendar years, NDAQ's best year was 2005, when it returned 245%. Its worst was 2008, with a return of -50.1%.

### Is there a better investment than NDAQ?

Among NDAQ's popular alternatives, CME earned more than NDAQ with less volatility over the past 5 years: 11.2% a year at 20.8% volatility, against 8.9% a year at 24.7%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, RY (banks) and TD (banks) earned more than NDAQ with less volatility over the past 5 years. RY returned 17.3% a year at 18.2% volatility, against 8.9% a year at 24.7%.

### Is NDAQ more volatile than the S&P 500?

Yes. NDAQ's volatility over the past 5 years was 24.7%, 1.4 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, NDAQ's return lands within 24.7% of its average, either way. The higher it is, the rougher the ride and the harder it is to hold through a slump.

### What is NDAQ's Sharpe ratio?

NDAQ's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.47, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so NDAQ earned less for each unit of risk than an index fund did. The Sharpe ratio is the return earned above cash for each unit of volatility: two investments with the same return are not equal if one got there with far bigger swings.

### How correlated is NDAQ with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, NDAQ's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.59 with the S&P 500. Correlation runs from 1 (moving in lockstep) through 0 (unrelated) to −1 (moving in opposite directions). They often move together: some diversification next to an index fund, but not a cushion. In the table, the correlation column measures each option against NDAQ instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a NDAQ holding.

### What are the best alternatives to NDAQ?

Of the 23 popular alternatives we compared, one outperformed NDAQ in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: CBOE.

### Did NDAQ outperform the S&P 500?

NDAQ finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 15 of 23 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +27.2%, against +17.7% for the index.

### How did NDAQ do in stock market crashes?

NDAQ fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in three of the nine major crashes it has traded through, and further in five. The clearest case was the 2008 financial crisis, when NDAQ fell 68.5% and the S&P 500 fell 55.2%.

### What diversifies NDAQ?

These had a low correlation with NDAQ over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.32), DXJ (correlation 0.05) and EMLP (correlation 0.44); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.09), CLS (correlation 0.18) and FIX (correlation 0.26). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

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## Explore further

- Full page with charts: https://easycompare.io/research/ndaq
- All research pages: https://easycompare.io/llms.txt
- Compare the entire market against NDAQ live: https://betterthanspy.com/?b=NDAQ&utm_source=easycompare&utm_medium=research