OriginaveS&P 500 Index
What the S&P 500 Index is, where it lives officially, and how its ride has looked over the years.
What does the S&P 500 Index track?
The 500 biggest companies in the United States, chosen by a committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices and weighted by size — the bigger the company, the bigger its slice. Together they cover roughly 80% of the value of the whole US stock market.
When the evening news says "the market went up today", this is almost always the index they mean.
S&P Dow Jones Indices
Every figure here is in pounds — what you'd actually pocket buying on the London Stock Exchange. Fund fact sheets usually headline returns in US dollars, which can look very different in years when the pound moves against the dollar. Here's the full story, year by year.
CSP1 since 2010
The chart shows the dividend-adjusted share price of CSP1, the ETF tracking this index — not the raw index level. The shape of the ride is the same.
CSP1 returns by year (USD)
| Year | Total return |
|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | +10.66% |
| 2025 | +9.37% |
| 2024 | +27.35% |
| 2023 | +19.79% |
| 2022 | -9.05% |
| 2021 | +31.07% |
| 2020 | +13.65% |
| 2019 | +26.42% |
| 2018 | +0.01% |
| 2017 | +10.83% |
| 2016 | +34.10% |
| 2015 | +5.78% |
| 2014 | +22.03% |
| 2013 | +31.40% |
| 2012 | +7.14% |
| 2011 | +1.73% |
| 2010 | -26.08% |
Calendar-year total returns of CSP1 in USD, dividends reinvested — the ETF tracking this index, not the raw index level.
Compare CSP1 head to head
Yearly returns side by side against the other funds we track.