Which was the better investment since 2000, Apple or Microsoft?

Apple was the better investment. $1,000 invested in Apple in 2000 would be worth $372,671 today, compared to $12,534 for Microsoft.

What would $1,000 in Apple vs Microsoft be worth today?

$1,000 invested in Apple in 2000 would be worth $372,671 today (+37167.1%). The same $1,000 in Microsoft would be worth $12,534 (+1153.4%).

How do Apple and Microsoft compare to the S&P 500 since 2000?

The same $1,000 invested in the S&P 500 in 2000 would be worth $8,517 today (+751.7%). Apple returned $372,671 and Microsoft returned $12,534 over the same period.

Apple vs Microsoft: $1,000 invested since 2000

AAPL vs MSFT · Data through 2026-06-01

Investment amount

$1,000 invested in 2000 would be worth

AppleWinner

$370,974

+36997.4%

Microsoft

$12,534

+1153.4%

The same $1,000 in the S&P 500 would be worth $8,517(+751.7%)

Growth of $1,000

Apple vs. Microsoft vs. S&P 500, 2000 to present

Year-by-year comparison

Apple vs. Microsoft, 2000 to present

Year	Apple	Return	Microsoft	Return	S&P 500
2000	$1,000	-	$1,000	-	$1,000
2001	$417	-58.3%	$624	-37.6%	$992
2002	$477	+14.3%	$651	+4.3%	$830
2003	$277	-41.9%	$485	-25.5%	$641
2004	$435	+57.1%	$570	+17.5%	$859
2005	$1,482	+240.9%	$606	+6.2%	$912
2006	$2,911	+96.4%	$657	+8.4%	$1,001
2007	$3,305	+13.5%	$730	+11.2%	$1,150
2008	$5,219	+57.9%	$782	+7.1%	$1,119
2009	$3,475	-33.4%	$418	-46.6%	$691
2010	$7,405	+113.1%	$704	+68.7%	$916
2011	$13,082	+76.7%	$708	+0.5%	$1,120
2012	$17,599	+34.5%	$774	+9.3%	$1,167
2013	$17,717	+0.7%	$739	-4.4%	$1,359
2014	$19,961	+12.7%	$1,050	+42.0%	$1,651
2015	$33,389	+67.3%	$1,152	+9.7%	$1,884
2016	$28,214	-15.5%	$1,614	+40.1%	$1,868
2017	$35,955	+27.4%	$1,946	+20.6%	$2,241
2018	$50,406	+40.2%	$2,923	+50.2%	$2,830
2019	$50,861	+0.9%	$3,269	+11.8%	$2,761
2020	$96,001	+88.8%	$5,407	+65.4%	$3,353
2021	$165,134	+72.0%	$7,446	+37.7%	$3,929
2022	$220,068	+33.3%	$10,066	+35.2%	$4,841
2023	$182,732	-17.0%	$8,096	-19.6%	$4,444
2024	$234,833	+28.5%	$13,104	+61.9%	$5,360
2025	$302,018	+28.6%	$13,783	+5.2%	$6,766
2026	$333,568	+10.4%	$14,394	+4.4%	$7,871

Which came out ahead

Apple (AAPL) outpaced Microsoft (MSFT) over this stretch from 2000. That $1,000 grew to $372,671 in AAPL versus $12,534 in MSFT as of 2026-06-01, about 30x the ending value.

The headline returns line up with the dollar figures. Apple returned +37,167% against Microsoft at +1153.4%, a gap of about 36,014 percentage points over the 26.6-year window. Compounded, that is about 24.9% a year for AAPL against 10% for MSFT.

Both holdings beat a plain S&P 500 fund over the same span, which would have turned that $1,000 into about $8,517 at roughly 8.4% a year. The ride was not equally smooth. Apple moved across a far wider band of yearly returns than Microsoft did. All figures use split-adjusted closing prices and exclude dividends, taxes, fees, and inflation, so a real after-tax result would differ.

Treat this as history rather than advice about either company. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Other start years

Apple vs Microsoft from a different starting point

Since 2005 Since 2010 Since 2015 Since 2020 Since 2023

Individual stock pages

Apple since 2000+37,167%Microsoft since 2000+1153.4%

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For informational and educational purposes only. Not financial advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results. All calculations are based on split-adjusted closing prices from Yahoo Finance and do not account for dividends, taxes, or trading fees. See our methodology and full disclaimer.