Which was the better investment since 2005, Apple or Microsoft?

Apple was the better investment. $1,000 invested in Apple in 2005 would be worth $251,395 today, compared to $20,697 for Microsoft.

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

$1,000 invested in Apple in 2005 would be worth $251,395 today (+25039.5%). The same $1,000 in Microsoft would be worth $20,697 (+1969.7%).

How do Apple and Microsoft compare to the S&P 500 since 2005?

The same $1,000 invested in the S&P 500 in 2005 would be worth $9,342 today (+834.2%). Apple returned $251,395 and Microsoft returned $20,697 over the same period.

Apple vs Microsoft: $1,000 invested since 2005

AAPL vs MSFT · Data through 2026-06-01

Investment amount

$1,000 invested in 2005 would be worth

AppleWinner

$251,617

+25061.7%

Microsoft

$20,700

+1970.0%

The same $1,000 in the S&P 500 would be worth $9,342(+834.2%)

Growth of $1,000

Apple vs. Microsoft vs. S&P 500, 2005 to present

Year-by-year comparison

Apple vs. Microsoft, 2005 to present

Year	Apple	Return	Microsoft	Return	S&P 500
2005	$1,000	-	$1,000	-	$1,000
2006	$1,964	+96.4%	$1,084	+8.4%	$1,098
2007	$2,230	+13.5%	$1,206	+11.2%	$1,261
2008	$3,520	+57.9%	$1,291	+7.1%	$1,227
2009	$2,344	-33.4%	$690	-46.6%	$758
2010	$4,995	+113.1%	$1,163	+68.7%	$1,005
2011	$8,825	+76.7%	$1,169	+0.5%	$1,228
2012	$11,872	+34.5%	$1,277	+9.3%	$1,280
2013	$11,952	+0.7%	$1,221	-4.4%	$1,491
2014	$13,465	+12.7%	$1,734	+42.0%	$1,811
2015	$22,524	+67.3%	$1,902	+9.7%	$2,066
2016	$19,032	-15.5%	$2,665	+40.1%	$2,048
2017	$24,255	+27.4%	$3,213	+20.6%	$2,458
2018	$34,003	+40.2%	$4,827	+50.2%	$3,104
2019	$34,309	+0.9%	$5,397	+11.8%	$3,029
2020	$64,760	+88.8%	$8,928	+65.4%	$3,678
2021	$111,396	+72.0%	$12,295	+37.7%	$4,310
2022	$148,453	+33.3%	$16,621	+35.2%	$5,309
2023	$123,267	-17.0%	$13,369	-19.6%	$4,875
2024	$158,413	+28.5%	$21,639	+61.9%	$5,879
2025	$203,734	+28.6%	$22,759	+5.2%	$7,421
2026	$225,017	+10.4%	$23,768	+4.4%	$8,633

Which came out ahead

Apple (AAPL) outpaced Microsoft (MSFT) over this stretch from 2005. That $1,000 grew to $251,395 in AAPL versus $20,697 in MSFT as of 2026-06-01, about 12x the ending value.

Stacked side by side, the totals tell the same story. Apple returned +25,040% against Microsoft at +1969.7%, a gap of about 23,070 percentage points over the 21.6-year window. Compounded, that is about 29.2% a year for AAPL against 15.1% for MSFT.

Both holdings beat a plain S&P 500 fund over the same span, which would have turned that $1,000 into about $9,342 at roughly 10.9% a year. Across this long 21.6-year window, small annual differences compounded into the wide ending gap. 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 2000 Since 2010 Since 2015 Since 2020 Since 2023

Individual stock pages

Apple since 2005+25,040%Microsoft since 2005+1969.7%

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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.