Which was the better investment since 2010, Berkshire Hathaway or S&P 500 (SPY)?

S&P 500 (SPY) was the better investment. $1,000 invested in S&P 500 (SPY) in 2010 would be worth $9,294 today, compared to $6,547 for Berkshire Hathaway.

What would $1,000 in Berkshire Hathaway vs S&P 500 (SPY) be worth today?

$1,000 invested in Berkshire Hathaway in 2010 would be worth $6,547 today (+554.7%). The same $1,000 in S&P 500 (SPY) would be worth $9,294 (+829.4%).

How do Berkshire Hathaway and S&P 500 (SPY) compare to the S&P 500 since 2010?

The same $1,000 invested in the S&P 500 in 2010 would be worth $9,294 today (+829.4%). Berkshire Hathaway returned $6,547 and S&P 500 (SPY) returned $9,294 over the same period.

Berkshire Hathaway vs S&P 500 (SPY): $1,000 invested since 2010

BRK-B vs SPY · Data through 2026-06-01

Investment amount

$1,000 invested in 2010 would be worth

Berkshire Hathaway

$6,547

+554.7%

S&P 500 (SPY)Winner

$9,293

+829.3%

The same $1,000 in the S&P 500 would be worth $9,294(+829.4%)

Growth of $1,000

Berkshire Hathaway vs. S&P 500 (SPY) vs. S&P 500, 2010 to present

Year-by-year comparison

Berkshire Hathaway vs. S&P 500 (SPY), 2010 to present

Year	Berkshire Hathaway	Return	S&P 500 (SPY)	Return	S&P 500
2010	$1,000	-	$1,000	-	$1,000
2011	$1,070	+7.0%	$1,222	+22.2%	$1,222
2012	$1,025	-4.1%	$1,273	+4.2%	$1,273
2013	$1,268	+23.7%	$1,483	+16.5%	$1,483
2014	$1,460	+15.1%	$1,801	+21.4%	$1,801
2015	$1,883	+29.0%	$2,056	+14.1%	$2,056
2016	$1,698	-9.8%	$2,038	-0.9%	$2,038
2017	$2,148	+26.5%	$2,445	+20.0%	$2,445
2018	$2,805	+30.6%	$3,088	+26.3%	$3,088
2019	$2,689	-4.1%	$3,013	-2.4%	$3,013
2020	$2,936	+9.2%	$3,659	+21.4%	$3,659
2021	$2,981	+1.5%	$4,288	+17.2%	$4,288
2022	$4,096	+37.4%	$5,282	+23.2%	$5,282
2023	$4,076	-0.5%	$4,850	-8.2%	$4,850
2024	$5,021	+23.2%	$5,849	+20.6%	$5,849
2025	$6,132	+22.1%	$7,383	+26.2%	$7,383
2026	$6,287	+2.5%	$8,588	+16.3%	$8,588

Which came out ahead

Starting in 2010, S&P 500 (SPY) was the better of the two against Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B). That $1,000 grew to $9,294 in SPY versus $6,547 in BRK-B as of 2026-06-01, roughly $2,747 more in the end.

Stacked side by side, the totals tell the same story. S&P 500 (SPY) returned +829.4% against Berkshire Hathaway at +554.7%, a gap of about 274.7 percentage points over the 16.6-year window. Compounded, that is about 14.4% a year for SPY against 12% for BRK-B.

Because S&P 500 (SPY) is itself a broad index fund, this matchup measures a single position against the market rather than against another single stock. 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

Berkshire Hathaway vs S&P 500 (SPY) from a different starting point

Since 2000 Since 2005 Since 2015 Since 2020 Since 2023

Individual stock pages

Berkshire Hathaway since 2010+554.7%S&P 500 (SPY) since 2010+829.4%

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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.