Stock · Software and cloud
Microsoft real return vs inflation and money printing MSFT
Microsoft Corp. Software and cloud computing company behind Windows, Office and the Azure cloud platform.
Key numbers
- 1-month change
- +9.6%
- Volatility (30-day, annualised)
- 22.2%
Microsoft real return after inflation and money printing
In dollars and pounds, before and after inflation, since Mar 1986.
+1,032%Microsoft after US inflation since 201015.5% a year
Up 1,655% in dollars since 2010. After US inflation, up 1,032%. Against money printing, up 540%.
In pounds, up 2,045%, or up 1,214% after UK inflation.
- $ nominal
- +1,655%18.6% a year
- £ nominal
- +2,045%20.0% a year
- Real $ (US CPI)
- +1,032%15.5% a year
- Real £ (UK CPI)
- +1,214%16.5% a year
- vs US M2
- +540%11.7% a year
- Measured from
- Dec 2009to Oct 2026, 16 years 10 months
- Microsoft, Real $ (US CPI)$535.10
- $ nominal$535.10
- Oct 2026, latest
Loading the chart. Every figure is also in the table below.
| Period | $ nominal | £ nominal | Real $ (US CPI) | Real £ (UK CPI) | vs US M2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Past year from Oct 2025 | +3.3% | +2.6% | –a (see note a) | −0.1% | −1.5% |
| 5 years from Oct 2021 | +61.4% 10.0% a year | +66.9% 10.8% a year | +33.2% 5.9% a year | +32.0% 5.7% a year | +46.3% 7.9% a year |
| Since 2020 from Dec 2019 | +239% 19.6% a year | +240% 19.6% a year | +160% 15.0% a year | +157% 14.8% a year | +123% 12.5% a year |
| 10 years from Oct 2016 | +793% 24.5% a year | +724% 23.5% a year | +544% 20.5% a year | +481% 19.2% a year | +402% 17.5% a year |
| Since 2010 from Dec 2009 | +1,655% 18.6% a year | +2,045% 20.0% a year | +1,032% 15.5% a year | +1,214% 16.5% a year | +540% 11.7% a year |
| Since 2000 from Dec 1999 | +817% 8.6% a year | +1,019% 9.4% a year | +361% 5.9% a year | +466% 6.7% a year | +82.2% 2.3% a year |
| Since Mar 1986 first month in our data | +560,265% 23.7% a year | +623,821% 24.0% a year | +181,904% 20.3% a year | +196,825% 20.6% a year | +60,709% 17.1% a year |
- a US CPI was not published for Oct 2025.
How these figures are worked out
Sources, inflation measures and what is left out
- Month-end closes from Yahoo Finance, Nasdaq, Mar 1986 to Oct 2026. Oct 2026 is still in progress, so its figure is the latest close rather than a month-end. Our history for Microsoft starts in Mar 1986, so longer windows are left out.
- Real figures divide by US CPI (BLS, via FRED) or UK CPI (ONS, joined to the ONS long-run RPI before Jan 1988) and are stated in Oct 2026 money. The M2 lens divides by the US M2 money supply (Federal Reserve, via FRED). Pounds convert at each month's GBP/USD rate.
- US CPI is published with a lag: Oct 2026 uses the Aug 2026 figure.
- UK CPI is published with a lag: Oct 2026 uses the Aug 2026 figure.
- US M2 is published with a lag: Oct 2026 uses the Aug 2026 figure.
- Price returns only: dividends are not included, so the total return to a holder who reinvested them was higher.
- A return of 12 months or more also shows its yearly rate. Gaps in a source are left as gaps and never filled in.
Microsoft price history, past year
Daily closes from Nasdaq. Last refreshed .
Where Microsoft stands today
52-week range
- Below the high
- 0.0%
- Above the low
- 53.9%
Microsoft is at its highest close of the past year, above every daily close since 13 Oct 2025. The low point of that year was $352.83 on 25 Jun 2026, so the price has climbed 53.9% from there.
Moving averages
- 50-day$503.08 +7.9%
- 200-day$434.55 +25.0%
Price compared with each average. Bars to the right mean the price is above it.
Microsoft is 7.9% above its 50-day average and 25.0% above its 200-day average, so on both the shorter and the longer view the trend we measure is still pointing up. The 50-day line last crossed above the 200-day on 31 Aug 2026, the pattern traders call a golden cross.
Trend score
- Trend100
- Momentum79
- RSI score74
- Drawdown100
- Uptrend
- 65 or more
- Sideways
- 36 to 64
- Downtrend
- 35 or less
Rules-based, from 277 daily prices. It describes the trend so far and does not predict the next move. How it works.
Microsoft performance and biggest moves
Returns over time
| Period | MSFT | SPY | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 week | +2.6% | -0.1% | +2.7 pts |
| 1 month | +9.6% | +1.9% | +7.7 pts |
| 3 months | +37.2% | +3.1% | +34.1 pts |
| Year to date | +12.3% | +14.2% | −1.9 pts |
| 1 year | +5.6% | +17.4% | −11.8 pts |
Microsoft is up 5.6% over the past year on price alone, against +17.4% for the S&P 500 (through the SPY fund), so it has trailed that comparison by 11.8 percentage points. Dividends are not included, so the total return for holders would be a little higher.
Best and worst days in the past year
- Days that closed higher
- 50%
- Moves of 3% or more
- 25
The biggest one-day rise since 13 Oct 2025 came on 30 Jul 2026 (+15.5%) and the sharpest fall on 29 Jan 2026 (−10.0%). Of the 251 trading days in that period, 50% closed higher than the day before and 25 moved by 3% or more in one direction or the other.
Is Microsoft overbought, and how volatile is it?
RSI (14-day)
Overbought- Sessions at 70+ (past year)
- 20
- Sessions at 30 or lower
- 13
Microsoft's RSI is 70.6, above the 70 mark where we'd start calling it overbought, so the last few weeks have been heavily one-way. We don't treat that as a sell signal on its own, partly because Microsoft has spent 20 sessions up there in the past year and strong runs often keep going for a while.
Volatility against other US shares
13th calmest of 27- Typical daily move
- 1.4%
- Calmest in group
- BRK.B 10.8%
Microsoft's 30-day volatility is 22.2%, which works out at a move of roughly 1.4% on an ordinary day. That makes it the 13th calmest of the 27 US shares we track, close to the group median of 23.3%.
Microsoft compared with similar assets
| Asset | Price | Today | 1 month | 1 year | RSI | Trend score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSFTMicrosoft | $543.00 | -0.08% | +9.6% | +5.6% | 71 | 89 Uptrend |
| AAPLApple | $341.10 | -0.05% | +2.7% | +37.7% | 60 | 86 Uptrend |
| GOOGAlphabet | $350.25 | +0.21% | +4.4% | +43.2% | 58 | 80 Uptrend |
| NVDANVIDIA | $229.24 | +0.32% | +5.0% | +21.7% | 53 | 89 Uptrend |
Over the past year Alphabet has done best in this group (+43.2%) and Microsoft has been the weakest (+5.6%). Microsoft comes 4th of 4, 37.5 percentage points behind Alphabet.
About Microsoft
Microsoft was founded in 1975 and listed in 1986. Azure, its cloud platform, and Office subscriptions drive most of its growth, and it is one of the largest investors in OpenAI.
- Ticker
- MSFT
- Type
- Stock
- Sector
- Software and cloud
- Priced in
- USD
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Microsoft: questions people ask
Answers are built from the same live figures shown above, so they change as the price does. Last checked 14 Oct 2026.
Has Microsoft beaten inflation since 2010?
Yes. From the December 2009 close to October 2026, Microsoft went up 1,655% in dollars. US consumer prices rose 55.1% over the same months, which leaves a real gain of 1,032%, or 15.5% a year after inflation. A UK holder counting in pounds saw up 2,045%, which comes to up 1,214% once UK CPI is taken out. These are price returns: dividends are not included, so a holder who reinvested them did better.
How has Microsoft done against money printing?
The US M2 money supply grew 174% since 2010. M2 counts the cash, current accounts and savings deposits held in the US, so it measures how much new money was created rather than how much shop prices rose. Against it, Microsoft is up 540%.
What is Microsoft's real return over 10 years?
Over the 10 years to October 2026, Microsoft returned 793% in dollars (24.5% a year). After US inflation that is up 544%, 20.5% a year. In pounds after UK inflation it is up 481%.
What is the Microsoft share price today?
The last price we have for Microsoft is $543.00, down 0.1% on the day, as of 23:55 BST on 13 Oct 2026. We get US prices from Nasdaq and during trading hours they can be up to 15 minutes behind, so if you are about to trade you'll want the live quote from your broker rather than ours. Over the last month the shares have moved +9.6% and over the last year +5.6%.
Is Microsoft stock overbought right now?
Yes, on the 14-day RSI. It reads 70.6, above the 70 line we use as the cut-off for overbought, which means the up days over the last few weeks have been much bigger than the down days. Microsoft spent 20 sessions at 70 or above in the past year, which is one reason we don't treat a high reading as a cue to sell: in a strong run it can stay there for weeks.
How far is Microsoft from its 52-week high?
It's at the high: today's price is above every daily close in the past year. The highest close in the past year was $543.00 on today and the lowest was $352.83 on 25 Jun 2026, which puts today's price 100% of the way up that range. We work this out from daily closing prices rather than the intraday highs and lows an exchange reports, so our high can be a little lower than the one you'll see quoted elsewhere.
Is Microsoft above its 200-day moving average?
It is, and comfortably. Microsoft's last price of $543.00 is 25.0% above its 200-day average of $434.55, and the 50-day average of $503.08 is above the 200-day as well, which has been the case since 31 Aug 2026, when the two lines last crossed. We show the 200-day line because it averages about ten months of closing prices, so a single bad week hardly moves it, and when we look at a chart it's the quickest way to see whether a share has been rising or falling over the longer run, even if it can't tell us where the price goes from here.
How volatile is Microsoft stock?
Over the past 30 days Microsoft's annualised volatility has been 22.2%. If that number feels abstract, it works out at roughly a 1.4% move on an ordinary day. It is the 13th calmest of the 27 US shares we track and the median for the group is 23.3%, so at the moment it is about as jumpy as a typical member of the group. The biggest single-day swings of the past year were +15.5% on 30 Jul 2026 and −10.0% on 29 Jan 2026.
Important information
Capital at risk. The value of investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Educational information only, not financial advice. Read our disclaimer.
Microsoft: what the numbers say
Claude Haiku ·Microsoft shares rose 0.82 per cent today to $545.60, which is also the highest daily close of the past year. The stock now sits 54.6 per cent above its 52-week closing low of $352.83, set on 25 June 2026. It trades well above both its 50-day average of $503.13 and its 200-day average of $434.56.
Read the full summary Show less
The trend score is 89, labelled Uptrend, with momentum at 81 and RSI at 71.5, just above the 70 mark. The shares have gained 10.08 per cent over 30 days and 6.14 per cent over the past year, and 30-day annualised volatility stands at 22.3 per cent. Apple, Alphabet and NVIDIA all advanced today by smaller amounts, at 0.34, 0.39 and 0.49 per cent respectively.
Written by AI from this site's live data and checked figure by figure before publishing. Educational only, not financial advice.