What if you invested in Netflix in 2002?
NFLX · Technology · Data through 2026-06-01
If you invested $1,000 in Netflix in 2002
The same $1,000 in the S&P 500 would be worth $10,262(+926.2%)
The S&P 500 returned $10,262 on the same $1,000. Netflix beat the market by $653,042.
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Compare Netflix to another stock
See how Netflix stacks up since 2002, head to head.
What if Netflix keeps this up?
Project forward at Netflix's 30.3% historical growth rate. See 5-30 year scenarios.
Growth of $1,000
Netflix vs. S&P 500 vs. US Dollar, 2002 to present
Year-by-Year Returns
$1,000 invested in Netflix starting January 2002
| Year | Price | Value | Annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | $0.11 | $1,000 | - |
| 2003 | $0.09 | $876 | -12.4% |
| 2004 | $0.52 | $4,871 | +456.1% |
| 2005 | $0.16 | $1,526 | -68.7% |
| 2006 | $0.39 | $3,656 | +139.6% |
| 2007 | $0.33 | $3,027 | -17.2% |
| 2008 | $0.36 | $3,338 | +10.3% |
| 2009 | $0.52 | $4,796 | +43.7% |
| 2010 | $0.89 | $8,261 | +72.2% |
| 2011 | $3.06 | $28,411 | +243.9% |
| 2012 | $1.72 | $15,952 | -43.9% |
| 2013 | $2.36 | $21,930 | +37.5% |
| 2014 | $5.85 | $54,324 | +147.7% |
| 2015 | $6.31 | $58,633 | +7.9% |
| 2016 | $9.18 | $85,319 | +45.5% |
| 2017 | $14.07 | $130,719 | +53.2% |
| 2018 | $27.03 | $251,108 | +92.1% |
| 2019 | $33.95 | $315,394 | +25.6% |
| 2020 | $34.51 | $320,587 | +1.6% |
| 2021 | $53.24 | $494,589 | +54.3% |
| 2022 | $42.71 | $396,812 | -19.8% |
| 2023 | $35.39 | $328,735 | -17.2% |
| 2024 | $56.41 | $524,056 | +59.4% |
| 2025 | $97.68 | $907,407 | +73.2% |
| 2026 | $83.49 | $775,619 | -14.5% |
What this return means
$1,000 put into Netflix (NFLX) in 2002 turned into $663,304. That is a +66,230% total return, or roughly 663x your money, measured through 2026-06-01.
That is a compound rate of about 30.3% a year, an extreme pace that few holdings sustain for 24.6 years. By comparison the S&P 500 returned about $10,262 on the same stake, putting Netflix ahead by close to $653,042. The index compounded at about 9.9% a year over that period.
The year-by-year record shows how bumpy the ride was. The best single year was 2004 at +456.1%, and the worst was 2005 at -68.7%. At its lowest point the position was down about 69% from an earlier high. These figures use split-adjusted closing prices and exclude dividends, taxes, trading fees, and inflation, so a real after-tax result would differ.
This is historical math, not financial advice. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
What if you invested $100 a month instead?
Most people do not drop a lump sum in on day one. They add a fixed amount every month. Putting $100 into Netflix at the close of every month from May 2002 through June 2026 means 290 buys and $29,000 contributed over about 24.2 years.
$100/month, dollar-cost averaged
$2,955,412
+10,091% on $29,000 in
Same $29,000, all in at the start
$18,823,636
+64,809% on $29,000 in
Going all in at the start beat spreading the buys out by $15,868,225. That is the usual result when a stock trends up: each monthly buy pays a higher price than the last, so the average cost climbs. Averaging in also meant an average buy price of $0.70 per share across the whole stretch, so the monthly buyer never had to time a single low. Neither number counts dividends, taxes, or trading costs.
Illustrative fixed $100/month example, not a recommendation. Figures are computed from NFLX split-adjusted monthly closes through June 2026. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
Netflix at different times
See how the start year changes the outcome
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Numbers worth sharing
Occasional data drops when something interesting surfaces. No schedule, just signal.
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.