How long do stock market crashes take to recover?
A fall is only half the story: the wait to get back to even decides how painful it is, and it ranges from months to decades. Knowing the history helps set expectations, and shows why dividends and diversification matter.
Updated Sep 1, 2026
Typically 3.2 years to recover
Since 1900 the S&P 500 has fallen 20% or more 11 times. The typical fall took 17 months to hit bottom, and getting back to the old high took 3.2 years from the peak. The longest wait followed the Sep 1929 peak: 25 years on prices alone, or 7 counting dividends after inflation. Today the index is at or near a record high.
Since 1900
First, how far the S&P 500 sat below its previous high each month, with recessions shaded. Select a tile for the time each recovery took.
Every fall of 20% or more since 1900
Newest first. Months are counted on monthly average prices; after inflation counts dividends and rising prices. Select a column to sort.
| Fall | Size | Months to bottom | Months back up | Months, high to high | After inflation, with dividends | Back at the high |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dec 2021 high Low Oct 2022 | −20% | 10 | 14 | 24 | 27 | Dec 2023 |
Oct 2007 high Low Mar 2009 | −51% | 17 | 48 | 65 | 65 | Mar 2013 |
Aug 2000 high Low Feb 2003 | −44% | 30 | 51 | 81 | 153 | May 2007 |
Aug 1987 high Low Dec 1987 | −27% | 4 | 19 | 23 | 24 | Jul 1989 |
Jan 1973 high Low Dec 1974 | −43% | 23 | 67 | 90 | 144 | Jul 1980 |
Dec 1968 high Low Jun 1970 | −29% | 18 | 21 | 39 | 47 | Mar 1972 |
Dec 1961 high Low Jun 1962 | −22% | 6 | 15 | 21 | 17 | Sep 1963 |
Sep 1929 high Low Jun 1932 | −85% | 33 | 267 | 300 | 86 | Sep 1954 |
Dec 1909 high Low Aug 1921 | −37% | 140 | 41 | 181 | 11 | Jan 1925 |
Sep 1906 high Low Nov 1907 | −38% | 14 | 21 | 35 | 32 | Aug 1909 |
Sep 1902 high Low Oct 1903 | −29% | 13 | 17 | 30 | 27 | Mar 1905 |
How to read this page
How it’s measured. Robert Shiller’s monthly S&P 500 prices since 1871, monthly averages of daily closes, so falls look a little smaller than with daily closes. A crash is any fall of 20% or more from a high; recovery is the first month back at that high. The after-inflation column uses his total return series with dividends.
Sources. Robert Shiller’s long-run market data.
Dividends shorten recoveries a lot: after the 1929 crash prices took 25 years to regain their high, but an investor who reinvested dividends was back far sooner. Inflation lengthens them.
Someone who kept investing through a fall recovered sooner than these figures, which track a single sum invested at the peak.
This page is information, not investment advice. About our data and methods ›