See What Dollar-Cost Averaging Into Any Stock Would Have Made You

Pick a stock or ETF, a date range, a recurring amount. We replay the trade day-by-day against 20+ years of real adjusted-close prices. Free, no signup.

Same daily data the AWALYT backtesting engine runs on.

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What dollar-cost averaging actually does

Most people decide what they would have invested by looking at the chart and picking a date that makes the result look good. Real DCA does not work that way. You commit to a fixed amount on a fixed schedule and you keep going through every drawdown along the way.

This calculator replays that decision honestly. For every contribution date in the range you set, it buys the asset at that day's adjusted close, accumulates the shares, and tracks the portfolio value over time. No cherry-picking, no rebalancing tricks. Just the math you would have lived through.

How this calculator works

20+ years of adjusted-close data

Daily prices from the same provider the AWALYT backtesting engine uses. Splits and dividends are already reinvested into the price series.

Money-weighted annualized return (IRR)

A staggered cashflow series cannot be summarized with a simple lump-sum CAGR. We compute the IRR over your actual contribution schedule.

No fees, taxes, or slippage

A clean theoretical backtest. Your real-world return will be lower once brokerage costs and tax drag are factored in.

Single asset, native currency

V1 supports one stock or ETF at a time, in its native trading currency. Multi-asset DCA and currency conversion are on the AWALYT app roadmap.

Frequently asked questions

DCA is investing a fixed amount on a fixed schedule, regardless of price. Over time you buy more shares when prices are low and fewer when they are high, which smooths out the average cost of entry.

Prices come from the same daily-adjusted feed used by the AWALYT backtesting engine: split- and dividend-adjusted close, 20+ years of history for most US stocks and ETFs.

Yes. We use adjusted closing prices, which already incorporate cash dividends as reinvested into the asset. The final value reflects total return, not price-only.

No. This is a clean, fee-free backtest. Real-world DCA has brokerage fees, bid/ask spreads, and tax drag — your actual return will be lower than what the calculator shows.

Lump-sum CAGR assumes one investment at the start. DCA spreads contributions over time, so later dollars compound for less time. We use IRR (money-weighted return), which is the correct annualized figure for a staggered cashflow series.

Disclaimer

Informational only — not investment advice. This tool simulates a dollar-cost averaging strategy using historical price data, which is provided by third parties and may contain errors or gaps. Past performance does not guarantee future results. The simulation does not include trading fees, taxes, or currency conversion, so real-world returns would typically be lower. Awalyt is not a registered investment advisor.

DCA across a full portfolio, not just one ticker.

AWALYT runs the same data on full portfolios with allocations and rebalancing. Sign up for early access.

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