Even after 20 years, gold was not always in the black
Share of periods in which a gold investment was in the red after 1, 3, 5, 10, 15 and 20 years: the share falls with the holding period, but even after 20 years it remains above zero.
Even after 20 years, gold was not always in the black
For every month since 1968 one can ask: did someone who bought then and held for a given time end up in the black or in the red? The bar shows the share of loss-making cases. It falls with the holding period, but even after two decades it does not reach zero.
The cross-check: on average (median) 1 year returned +6.1 %, 20 years on the other hand +237.0 % — so the loss cases are the minority, but not an exception. London reference price in US dollars, monthly values 1968–2026, calculated from our own price data. Every rolling window of the respective length is evaluated — at 20 years that is 464 windows. The windows overlap and are therefore not independent of one another; the shares describe the past and are not a probability for the future. Calculated without adjusting for inflation — in purchasing power the loss shares would be higher.
Where the numbers come from
This chart is calculated from our own price recordings. It is recalculated twice a day — after the daily close and after the London reference price at 16:30.
- our own measurement Our own daily closing prices for the metals — new values every trading day
The Chart view shows the most recently calculated state. The Image version — including the one for sharing and downloading — is a still image generated nightly at 02:30. Last generated on 09/11/2026 at 03:00.
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