# How Tesla (TSLA) compares with the whole market and its popular alternatives

> Source: EasyCompare research, https://easycompare.io/research/tsla
> 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 TSLA alone. It places TSLA (Tesla, Inc.) against 18 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 TSLA stands in the market, and of the alternatives worth a closer look.

Period covered: TSLA's full trading record, from June 2010 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:** The slide is TSLA's own: it is 23.7% below its high, against 1.3% for the S&P 500. TSLA has gone against the market, falling 4.8% over the past 6 months while the S&P 500 rose 9.1%.
- **Stock or market?:** TSLA rose 1.1% over the past 3 months, in line with the consumer discretionary sector ETF XLY (State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF), which rose 1.0%. The S&P 500 rose 3.9%. Its automobile peers did not move as one over the past 3 months: TM (Toyota Motor) rose 12.0%, while RIVN (Rivian Automotive) fell 27.9%.
- **Past 1 to 3 years:** Over the past year, TSLA fell 16.5% while the S&P 500 rose 15.8%. The same gap shows up over 3 years (76.3% against 89.3%). The long record (ahead of 99% of the stocks worth at least $300 million over 10 years) has not carried into the past 3 years (ahead of 61% of them).
- **Long term:** TSLA turned $10,000 into $282,000 over the past decade, against $42,100 in the S&P 500. That said, the past 5 years only trailed the S&P 500 (29.5% against 81.7%), after a much stronger decade (2,716% against 321%).
- **In a crash:** Across five sell-offs, TSLA has typically fallen about twice as far as the S&P 500.
- **Diversification:** Against the S&P 500, TSLA has a correlation of 0.49 over 5 years, more closely than 71% of stocks worth at least $300 million. Next to an index fund it is some diversification, but not a hedge. Over 10 years, TSLA's beta versus the S&P 500 was 1.91: in the S&P 500's rising months it gained 1.8 times as much as the index, and in falling months it lost 1.3 times as much.
- **Better options**
  - **Popular alternatives:** GM (General Motors) and RACE (Ferrari) earned more than TSLA with less volatility over the past 5 years. GM returned 6.9% a year at 36.7% volatility, against 5.3% a year at 60.0%.
  - **Nearby categories and themes:** NVDA (NVIDIA, autonomous vehicles theme) and NEU (NewMarket, specialty chemicals) earned more than TSLA with less volatility over the past 5 years. NVDA returned 58.0% a year at 51.9% volatility, against 5.3% a year at 60.0%.
  - **Whole market:** 1,628 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than TSLA with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them NVDA (NVIDIA), AAPL (Apple) and GOOG (Alphabet).

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

This chart tracks a hypothetical $10,000 investment in TSLA over the past 16 years, with dividends reinvested, alongside the same amount in the S&P 500, investments that ended ahead of TSLA over the same span and TSLA's popular alternatives, among those that traded for the entire period.

- $10,000 invested in TSLA at the end of September 2010 would have grown to $2,608,816 by September 2026, more than the $88,503 it would have become in SPY, an S&P 500 fund.
- Over the past 16 years, only two of the 2,048 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million that traded that long, leveraged funds aside, ended ahead of TSLA. Over the past 5 years, 1,813 did, and NVDA turned $10,000 into $110,811, against $13,726 for TSLA.
- Two of the seven other investments on the chart ended ahead of TSLA, and XPEL finished highest, at $11,042,289.

## TSLA 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.

- TSLA is still 23.7% below its all-time high.
- TSLA's deepest decline since it began trading in 2010 was 73.6%, from November 2021 to January 2023. It took 23 months from the low to climb back to its old high.
- Over 15 full calendar years, TSLA's best was 2020, when it returned 743%, and its worst was 2022, when it lost 65.0%. It lost money in two of those years.

- Type: Stock, Consumer Discretionary (Auto - Manufacturers)
- Trading since: June 29, 2010
- Market value: $1.5T
- Volatility (5 years): 60.0%; Sharpe ratio: 0.39
- Worst decline ever: −73.6%, from November 4, 2021 to January 3, 2023; back at its high by December 11, 2024

| Period | TSLA total return |
| --- | --- |
| 1 month | −0.4% |
| 3 months | +1.1% |
| 6 months | −4.8% |
| year to date | −14.7% |
| 1 year | −16.5% |
| 3 years | +76.3% |
| 5 years | +29.5% |
| 10 years | +2,716% |

## TSLA against the whole market

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

### How does TSLA rank among all stocks?

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

- TSLA's 10-year return ranks in the top 1% of the 2,202 stocks worth at least $300 million with 10 years of history.
- TSLA is among the more volatile stocks: its price swings rank in the bottom 21% of the 2,893 stocks worth at least $300 million, where the top is the calmest.

| Measure | TSLA | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1-year return | −16.5% | 2,546 of 3,287 (top 78%) |
| 3-year return | +76.3% | 1,173 of 3,017 (top 39%) |
| 5-year return | +29.5% | 1,344 of 2,893 (top 47%) |
| 10-year return | +2,716% | 22 of 2,202 (top 1%) |
| Volatility, 5 years | 60.0% | 2,278 of 2,893 (top 79%) |
| Sharpe ratio, 5 years | 0.39 | 1,276 of 2,893 (top 45%) |
| Worst decline, past 10 years | −73.6% | 1,415 of 2,187 (top 65%) |

### What has beaten TSLA 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).

- 1,014 stocks and 614 ETFs worth at least $500 million sit in the green region: each earned more than TSLA over the past 5 years with smaller price swings. That is 45% of the 3,633 screened.
- Among those with at least half TSLA's swings, FIX has the best return for its risk: 77.0% a year at 46.7% volatility, 22% less than TSLA's 60.0%, and a Sharpe ratio (return above cash per unit of volatility) of 1.46 against 0.39 for TSLA. BELFB earned the most, 78.0% a year, while still swinging less than TSLA (52.1% against 60.0%).
- Among TSLA's popular alternatives, RACE and GM are in the region. RACE earned 13.3% a year against 5.3% a year for TSLA, at 30.0% volatility, 50% less than TSLA's 60.0%.

### Is there a better investment than TSLA?

The table below lists investments that beat TSLA 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 TSLA's popular alternatives, GM and RACE earned more than TSLA with less volatility over the past 5 years. GM returned 6.9% a year at 36.7% volatility, against 5.3% a year at 60.0%.
- Looking beyond its popular alternatives, NVDA (autonomous vehicles theme) and NEU (specialty chemicals) earned more than TSLA with less volatility over the past 5 years. NVDA returned 58.0% a year at 51.9% volatility, against 5.3% a year at 60.0%.
- Across the whole market, 1,628 of the 3,633 stocks and funds worth at least $500 million earned more than TSLA with less volatility over the past 5 years, among them NVDA, AAPL and GOOG.

The 15 strongest of 1,628 investments that beat TSLA 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 TSLA | Better on |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| TSLA: Tesla, Inc. (this page) |  | +5.3% | 60.0% | 0.39 | −73.6% | +2,716% |  |  |
| [RY](https://easycompare.io/research/ry): Royal Bank of Canada | Banks | +17.3% | 18.2% | 0.97 | −40.0% | +352% | 0.25 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [CAH](https://easycompare.io/research/cah): Cardinal Health, Inc. | Health Care Distribution | +42.1% | 24.7% | 1.55 | −46.1% | +349% | 0.07 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [AAPL](https://easycompare.io/research/aapl): Apple Inc. | Computer Hardware | +18.5% | 28.0% | 0.75 | −38.5% | +1,168% | 0.50 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [GOOG](https://easycompare.io/research/goog): Alphabet Inc. | Internet Services | +19.0% | 32.0% | 0.71 | −44.6% | +752% | 0.38 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [TSM](https://easycompare.io/research/tsm): Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited | Semiconductors | +31.5% | 38.5% | 0.91 | −56.6% | +1,505% | 0.36 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [LLY](https://easycompare.io/research/lly): Eli Lilly and Company | Pharmaceuticals | +40.7% | 32.8% | 1.21 | −34.5% | +1,807% | -0.10 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VTI](https://easycompare.io/research/vti): Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF | US Total Market | +11.5% | 17.5% | 0.71 | −35.0% | +302% | 0.51 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [VOO](https://easycompare.io/research/voo): Vanguard S&P 500 ETF | US Large-Cap Equity | +12.8% | 16.9% | 0.80 | −34.0% | +324% | 0.49 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [WMT](https://easycompare.io/research/wmt): Walmart Inc. | Discount Retail | +20.8% | 22.6% | 0.96 | −25.7% | +508% | 0.23 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [JPM](https://easycompare.io/research/jpm): JPMorgan Chase & Co. | Banks | +17.3% | 24.3% | 0.78 | −43.6% | +537% | 0.14 | 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% | -0.16 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [HSBC](https://easycompare.io/research/hsbc): HSBC Holdings plc | Banks | +33.1% | 25.9% | 1.24 | −62.3% | +319% | 0.17 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| [JNJ](https://easycompare.io/research/jnj): Johnson & Johnson | Pharmaceuticals | +12.7% | 17.9% | 0.76 | −27.4% | +196% | -0.15 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | International Equity | +26.6% | 19.1% | 1.34 | −39.1% | +428% | 0.22 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | International Equity | +17.0% | 11.1% | 1.48 | −32.4% | +194% | 0.04 | Higher return, lower volatility; Higher Sharpe, smaller worst decline; Higher return in most periods |

## TSLA against its popular alternatives

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

### How do TSLA'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.

- RACE, GM and HMC were both more rewarding and calmer than TSLA over the past 5 years, earning a higher annual return with lower volatility.
- Over the past 5 years, TSLA returned 5.3% a year, less than the S&P 500's 12.7%, with higher volatility (60.0% against 17.1%).

### Has TSLA consistently beaten its popular alternatives?

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

- Only one of the 18 popular alternatives, GM, outperformed TSLA in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes.
- RACE earned more for the risk it took than TSLA (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 TSLA | Verdict | Sharpe |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| TSLA: Tesla, Inc. (this page) | −16.5% | +76.3% | +29.5% | +2,716% |  |  | 0.39 |
| [GM](https://easycompare.io/research/gm): General Motors Company | +34.0% | +168% | +39.5% | +193% | 4/5 short-term, 2/3 long-term | consistent | 0.36 |
| [HMC](https://easycompare.io/research/hmc): Honda Motor Co., Ltd. | +12.4% | +17.7% | +34.5% | +63.3% | 5/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.35 |
| [RACE](https://easycompare.io/research/race): Ferrari N.V. | +1.6% | +36.1% | +86.6% | +711% | 4/5 short-term, 1/3 long-term |  | 0.57 |
| [TM](https://easycompare.io/research/tm): Toyota Motor Corporation | +1.5% | +24.1% | +27.8% | +129% | 4/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.32 |
| [F](https://easycompare.io/research/f): Ford Motor Company | +6.0% | +25.9% | +3.0% | +71.8% | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.21 |
| CHPT: ChargePoint Holdings, Inc. | −29.4% | −86.8% | −98.2% | — | 3/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.49 |
| ALB: Albemarle Corporation | +0.8% | −27.6% | −56.7% | +31.3% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.03 |
| APTV: Aptiv PLC | −46.0% | −51.0% | −73.3% | −10.6% | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.43 |
| LI: Li Auto Inc. | −47.0% | −62.6% | −61.8% | — | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.00 |
| RIVN: Rivian Automotive, Inc. | −5.0% | −25.7% | — | — | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |
| VFS: VinFast Auto Ltd. | −12.5% | −46.7% | −70.6% | — | 1/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.26 |
| STLA: Stellantis N.V. | −59.5% | −73.3% | −69.7% | +39.2% | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.35 |
| FLNC: Fluence Energy, Inc. | −67.9% | −67.2% | — | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |
| LCID: Lucid Group, Inc. | −83.6% | −92.4% | −98.7% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.62 |
| MBLY: Mobileye Global Inc. | −50.3% | −79.5% | — | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | — |
| NIO: NIO Inc. | −51.4% | −54.7% | −91.4% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.34 |
| PSNY: Polestar Automotive Holding UK PLC | −85.1% | −94.7% | −98.8% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | -0.67 |
| XPEV: XPeng Inc. | −53.8% | −26.2% | −76.9% | — | 0/5 short-term, 0/3 long-term |  | 0.00 |

### How did TSLA do year by year?

This table shows each investment's total return in every full calendar year since 2011, along with where TSLA ranked among its popular alternatives each year.

- Ranked against its popular alternatives each year, TSLA finished in the top quarter in eight of 15 years and in the bottom quarter in two. In 2025, it ranked 10 of 19.
- None of the 13 popular alternatives came out ahead of TSLA in most of the years they have in common.
- TSLA finished ahead of the S&P 500 in 11 of its 15 full calendar years.

| Year | TSLA | SPY |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 | +11.4% | +17.7% |
| 2024 | +62.5% | +24.9% |
| 2023 | +102% | +26.2% |
| 2022 | −65.0% | −18.2% |
| 2021 | +49.8% | +28.7% |
| 2020 | +743% | +18.3% |
| 2019 | +25.7% | +31.2% |
| 2018 | +6.9% | −4.6% |
| 2017 | +45.7% | +21.7% |
| 2016 | −10.9% | +12.0% |

## Risk and diversification

How TSLA 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 TSLA's worst declines?

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

- In all five of TSLA's worst declines, the S&P 500 held up better over the same dates.
- Not every decline was the market's doing: TSLA fell 53.5% from September 2017 to June 2019, while the S&P 500 rose 13.1%.
- The longest climb back to a previous high took 23 months, after TSLA fell 73.6% from November 2021 to January 2023.

| Decline | Peak | Low | Back at the high | SPY over the same dates | Market event |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| −73.6% | November 4, 2021 | January 3, 2023 | December 11, 2024 | −16.8% | 2022 bear market |
| −60.6% | February 19, 2020 | March 18, 2020 | June 8, 2020 | −29.1% | Covid crash |
| −53.8% | December 17, 2024 | April 8, 2025 | December 16, 2025 | −17.3% |  |
| −53.5% | September 18, 2017 | June 3, 2019 | December 18, 2019 | +13.1% | late-2018 sell-off |
| −49.8% | September 4, 2014 | February 10, 2016 | April 3, 2017 | −4.6% | 2015 China and oil sell-off |

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

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

- TSLA fell further than the S&P 500 in all seven crashes it has traded through. The clearest case was the 2015 China and oil sell-off, when TSLA fell 45.6% and the S&P 500 fell 12.8%.
- Among its popular alternatives, TM held up best, falling less than TSLA in all seven crashes they both traded through.
- TSLA began trading after the 2008 financial crisis, but five of its popular alternatives lived through it. The mildest fall among them was TM's 48.9%, against 55.2% for the S&P 500.

| Crash | Dates | TSLA 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 | not trading | −55.2% |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 to May 7, 2010 | not trading | −1.5% |
| Euro debt crisis | July 22, 2011 to October 3, 2011 | −25.1% | −17.9% |
| China devaluation & oil rout | August 10, 2015 to February 11, 2016 | −45.6% | −12.8% |
| Volmageddon | February 2, 2018 to February 9, 2018 | −10.0% | −6.5% |
| Q4 2018 selloff | September 21, 2018 to December 24, 2018 | −21.6% | −19.3% |
| COVID crash | February 19, 2020 to March 23, 2020 | −60.6% | −33.7% |
| 2022 bear market | January 4, 2022 to October 12, 2022 | −45.4% | −24.5% |
| SVB / regional bank stress | March 8, 2023 to March 13, 2023 | −5.0% | −3.4% |

### How closely does TSLA 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.

- Over the past 10 years, TSLA captured 182% of the S&P 500's gains in rising months and 129% of its losses in falling months, with a beta of 1.91. It amplified the market's moves in both directions.
- Only RACE had a higher capture ratio (upside capture divided by downside capture) than TSLA's 1.40, out of eight popular alternatives with the same record.

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

| Investment | Upside capture | Downside capture | Beta |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| TSLA: Tesla, Inc. (this page) | 182% | 129% | 1.91 |
| [GM](https://easycompare.io/research/gm): General Motors Company | 107% | 135% | 1.31 |
| [HMC](https://easycompare.io/research/hmc): Honda Motor Co., Ltd. | 51.0% | 71.0% | 0.62 |
| [RACE](https://easycompare.io/research/race): Ferrari N.V. | 101% | 56.0% | 0.92 |
| [TM](https://easycompare.io/research/tm): Toyota Motor Corporation | 62.0% | 72.0% | 0.56 |
| [F](https://easycompare.io/research/f): Ford Motor Company | 105% | 167% | 1.51 |
| ALB: Albemarle Corporation | 128% | 221% | 1.48 |
| APTV: Aptiv PLC | 106% | 219% | 1.80 |
| STLA: Stellantis N.V. | 124% | 215% | 1.61 |

### What diversifies TSLA?

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 TSLA into HDV would have cut the portfolio's volatility by 20% over the past 5 years and raised its annual return (+6.5% for TSLA alone, +10.9% for the mix).
- HDV made money in two of the two calendar years in which TSLA lost money.
- Among large ETFs, LVHI, DXJ and EMLP have moved largely independently of TSLA over the past 5 years, with correlations of 0.22 or lower, and each still earned a positive 5-year return.

| Investment | Correlation with TSLA | 5Y return | Volatility | Sharpe | Rose in TSLA's 2 down years |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| LVHI: Franklin International Low Volatility High Dividend Index ETF | 0.04 | +119% | 11.1% | 1.48 | 1 of 2 |
| DXJ: WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund | 0.22 | +225% | 19.1% | 1.34 | 2 of 2 |
| EMLP: First Trust North American Energy Infrastructure Fund | 0.22 | +101% | 14.5% | 1.04 | 2 of 2 |
| HDV: iShares Core High Dividend ETF | -0.02 | +83.3% | 13.0% | 1.00 | 2 of 2 |
| [SMH](https://easycompare.io/research/smh): VanEck Semiconductor ETF | 0.43 | +323% | 36.9% | 0.97 | 1 of 2 |
| DBEF: Xtrackers MSCI EAFE Hedged Equity ETF | 0.30 | +85.0% | 13.8% | 0.96 | 1 of 2 |
| [GLD](https://easycompare.io/research/gld): SPDR Gold Shares | 0.02 | +126% | 18.9% | 0.96 | 1 of 2 |
| SPMO: Invesco S&P 500 Momentum ETF | 0.31 | +136% | 20.8% | 0.93 | 1 of 2 |

## Common questions

### What was TSLA's worst drawdown?

TSLA's deepest decline since it began trading in 2010 was 73.6%, from November 2021 to January 2023. It took 23 months from the low to climb back to its old high. Because TSLA launched in June 2010, that record does not include the dot-com bust, the 2008 financial crisis or the 2010 flash crash.

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

Over 15 full calendar years, TSLA's best year was 2020, when it returned 743%. Its worst was 2022, with a return of -65.0%.

### Is there a better investment than TSLA?

Among TSLA's popular alternatives, GM and RACE earned more than TSLA with less volatility over the past 5 years. GM returned 6.9% a year at 36.7% volatility, against 5.3% a year at 60.0%. Looking beyond its popular alternatives, NVDA (autonomous vehicles theme) and NEU (specialty chemicals) earned more than TSLA with less volatility over the past 5 years. NVDA returned 58.0% a year at 51.9% volatility, against 5.3% a year at 60.0%.

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

Yes. TSLA's volatility over the past 5 years was 60.0%, 3.5 times the S&P 500's 17.1%. Volatility measures how widely returns swing around their average: in roughly two years out of three, TSLA's return lands within 60.0% 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 TSLA's Sharpe ratio?

TSLA's Sharpe ratio over the past 5 years was 0.39, against 0.79 for the S&P 500, so TSLA 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 TSLA with the S&P 500?

Over the past 5 years, TSLA's monthly returns had a correlation of 0.49 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 TSLA instead: the lower it is, the more that option would diversify a TSLA holding.

### What are the best alternatives to TSLA?

Of the 18 popular alternatives we compared, one outperformed TSLA in at least 3 of 5 short-term and 2 of 3 long-term timeframes, with dividends reinvested: GM.

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

TSLA finished ahead of the S&P 500 (SPY) in 11 of 15 full calendar years. In 2025, it returned +11.4%, against +17.7% for the index.

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

TSLA fell less than the S&P 500 (SPY) in none of the seven major crashes it has traded through, and further in seven. The clearest case was the 2015 China and oil sell-off, when TSLA fell 45.6% and the S&P 500 fell 12.8%.

### What diversifies TSLA?

These had a low correlation with TSLA over the past 5 years and still earned a positive 5-year return: among large ETFs, LVHI (correlation 0.04), DXJ (correlation 0.22) and EMLP (correlation 0.22); among large stocks, CAH (correlation 0.07), CLS (correlation 0.25) and FIX (correlation 0.39). A correlation near zero means the two have moved largely independently.

## More research

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## Explore further

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