Stock market crashes do not happen often, but they leave a long mark on investors and the economy. Since the 1929 crash, U.S. stocks have gone through 27 bear market declines of 20% or more.
This article gathers the main numbers from the biggest U.S. drops. It covers how far prices fell, how long each fall lasted, and how long it took to get back to the old high.
The data comes from several sources, and the figures do not always match. Each source may use a different index, start date or end date, so the numbers are best read as ranges.
What Counts as a Stock Market Crash?
A stock market crash is a sudden, sharp fall in a broad market index. It is often described as a drop of 10% or more over a few days. No single percentage works for every case.
A crash is different from a correction or a bear market. Those terms describe the size of a fall from a recent high, while a crash describes how fast the selling happens.
| Term | Common meaning | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Crash | A sudden, severe fall across a market | Speed and breadth of selling |
| Correction | A decline of around 10% from a recent high | Fall from a peak |
| Bear market | A fall of 20% or more in a broad index | Depth and length of a downturn |
Bear markets are more common than many people think. Since 1929, the U.S. has seen 27 of them. The average peak-to-trough decline was 35%.
When a bear market did not come with a recession, the average fall was smaller, at 27%. The median bear market lasted 240 days and the median fall was 22%.
Length varies a lot. The shortest bear market on the list lasted 33 days. The longest lasted 630 days.
Once a bear market begins, stocks have taken about 52 more days on average to reach the bottom. The chart below groups all 27 by length.
Most crashes follow a pattern. There is a first shock and a sharp drop, then a period of heavy selling and swings, and finally a bottoming process that can last weeks or months.
Economists such as Robert J. Shiller call part of this “herd behavior.” That is when people drop their own analysis and follow the crowd.
Early Crashes and the 1929 Collapse
The first U.S. stock market crash came in March 1792. Securities fell about 25% in two weeks after the Bank of the U.S. expanded credit too fast. Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton worked with banks to calm the market.
Panics kept coming through the 1800s. In 1873, the bank Jay Cooke & Company failed, and at least 100 banks collapsed. The New York Stock Exchange closed for the first time on Sept. 20, 1873.
The Panic of 1907 brought bank runs and a credit shortage that threatened to shut the exchange. J.P. Morgan organized a rescue by pooling money from large banks.
That rescue led Congress to form the National Monetary Commission in 1908. Its work ended with the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, which created the U.S. central bank and 12 regional districts.
In 1929, the New York Stock Exchange handled more than 60% of all U.S. securities trades. There was no federal regulator, and company reports were often thin or misleading.
From 1921 to September 1929, the Dow grew to six times its earlier high. By Oct. 23, 1929, it had fallen 20% from its September peak. That set off margin calls, when brokers demanded repayment of loans.
On Oct. 28, the Dow fell another 13%. Over the two sessions on Oct. 28 and 29, the combined drop was about 23%.
The fall did not stop there. From 381.17 in September 1929, the Dow sank to 41.22 in July 1932, a loss of 89.2%. Unemployment reached about 25% by 1933.
The Dow did not regain its 1929 peak until November 1954, about 25 years later. Congress passed the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The second law created the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
A second hit came in 1937 and 1938. The Federal Reserve had doubled bank reserve requirements in 1936, and the government cut spending. Real GDP fell about 10% and unemployment rose to around 19%.
| Event | Year | Key figure |
|---|---|---|
| First U.S. crash | 1792 | About 25% drop in two weeks |
| Panic of 1873 | 1873 | At least 100 banks collapsed |
| Panic of 1907 | 1907 | Led to the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 |
| Wall Street Crash | 1929 to 1932 | Dow down 89.2% |
| Recession of 1937 to 1938 | 1937 | GDP down about 10%, unemployment near 19% |
Postwar Crashes From 1962 to 1989
The Kennedy Slide of 1962 followed a year when stocks had risen 27%. On May 28, 1962, the Dow lost about 5.7% in one day. Over several months, the broader market fell more than 20%.
About 8% of stockbrokers left the market in 1962. By the end of the year, stocks had mostly recovered.
The bear market that began in November 1968 lasted 20 months. Rising inflation and interest rates pushed the S&P 500 down 36.1%.
The 1973 to 1974 bear market was deeper. The S&P 500 fell 48% from January 1973 to December 1974. The Dow dropped from 1,051.70 to 577.60, a fall of 44%.
An oil embargo by OPEC pushed oil from $3 to $12 a barrel. Inflation reached 12% while the economy stalled. The Dow took 96 months, or eight years, to regain its high.
The early 1980s brought another drop. Higher interest rates, meant to fight double-digit inflation, pushed the S&P 500 down 27.1% over 21 months.
Black Monday came on Oct. 19, 1987. The Dow fell 22.6% in one session, the largest one-day drop in history. More than $500 billion in market value disappeared.
Program trading and a strategy called portfolio insurance added to the selling. Measured from August to October 1987, the Dow fell 36.7%, from 2,722 to 1,738.74. It took 54 months to recover.
The Friday the 13th mini-crash followed on Oct. 13, 1989. The Dow fell 6.91% after a $6.75 billion buyout of United Airlines fell through. The airline made up only a fraction of 1% of the market, so the deal alone is an unlikely full explanation.
In 1990, after Iraq invaded Kuwait, the Dow fell 18% in three months. It dropped from 2,911.63 on July 3 to 2,381.99 on Oct. 16.
| Event | Measure | Decline |
|---|---|---|
| Kennedy Slide, 1962 | Broader market, over months | More than 20% |
| Bear market, 1968 to 1970 | S&P 500 | 36.1% |
| Oil crisis, 1973 to 1974 | S&P 500 | 48% |
| Early 1980s recession | S&P 500 | 27.1% |
| Black Monday, 1987 | Dow, one day | 22.6% |
| Friday the 13th, 1989 | Dow, one day | 6.91% |
| Early 1990s recession | Dow, three months | 18% |
The Dotcom Bubble and the 2008 Financial Crisis
The 1990s brought a rush of money into internet companies. The Nasdaq Composite rose nearly 400% between 1995 and its March 2000 peak. Many firms with little or no revenue were valued at hundreds of millions of dollars.
The bubble burst in March 2000. The Nasdaq fell from 5,048.62 to 1,139.90 by October 2002, a drop of 77.8%. About $5 trillion in market value was lost, mostly in tech companies.
Recovery took a long time. The Nasdaq Composite passed its March 2000 peak in April 2015, about 15 years later. The Nasdaq 100 did not set a new high until 2017.
The 2008 crisis started in the housing market. The S&P 500 peaked at 1,576.09 in October 2007 and bottomed at 676.53 in March 2009, a fall of about 56%. Other sources put the figure between 51.9% and 57%, depending on the dates used.
The bear market lasted one year and three months by one count. The index took about 51.6 months to regain its high. In the calendar year 2008 alone, the S&P 500 fell 38.49%.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| July 11, 2008 | Mortgage lender IndyMac collapses |
| Sept. 7, 2008 | Government takes control of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac |
| Sept. 15, 2008 | Lehman Brothers files for bankruptcy with $613 billion in debt |
| Sept. 16, 2008 | Government buys 80% of insurer AIG |
| Sept. 29, 2008 | Dow falls 777.68 points after Congress rejects the bailout bill |
| Oct. 3, 2008 | Bailout bill passes |
| March 5, 2009 | Dow closes at 6,926, down more than 50% from its high |
The crisis led to the Dodd-Frank Act. It created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and set higher capital rules for banks. It also required regular stress tests of large financial firms.
The chart below compares the peak-to-trough fall in eight major events using one consistent source.
| Crash | Index | Peak | Trough | Decline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wall Street Crash (1929) | DJIA | 381.17 (Sep 1929) | 41.22 (Jul 1932) | 89.2% |
| 1973 to 1974 Bear Market | DJIA | 1,051.70 (Jan 1973) | 577.60 (Dec 1974) | 44.0% |
| Black Monday (1987) | DJIA | 2,722 (Aug 1987) | 1,738.74 (Oct 1987) | 36.7% |
| Dotcom Bubble (2000 to 2002) | Nasdaq | 5,048.62 (Mar 2000) | 1,139.90 (Oct 2002) | 77.8% |
| Global Financial Crisis | S&P 500 | 1,576.09 (Oct 2007) | 676.53 (Mar 2009) | 56.0% |
| September 11 Attacks (2001) | S&P 500 | 1,172.51 (Sep 2001) | 1,040.94 (Sep 2001) | 11.0% |
| China-Linked Sell-Off (2015) | S&P 500 | 2,130.82 (May 2015) | 1,867.01 (Aug 2015) | 12.4% |
| COVID-19 Panic (2020) | S&P 500 | 3,386.15 (Feb 2020) | 2,237.40 (Mar 2020) | 33.9% |
Flash Crashes and Sudden Shocks From 2001 to 2020
Some drops come fast and end fast. After the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001, the S&P 500 fell about 11%, from 1,172.51 to 1,040.94. It took roughly 0.6 months to recover, the shortest on the list.
The attacks also caused about $40 billion in insurance losses. A separate downturn in 2002 pushed indexes to lows last seen in 1997 and 1998.
The flash crash of May 6, 2010 lasted just 36 minutes. About $1 trillion in market value was wiped out on the Dow before most of it came back that day. The Dow fell nearly 1,000 points at its worst.
A September 2010 report from the CFTC and SEC pointed to heavy E-mini futures trading, manipulative trading, and liquidity providers pulling back their quotes.
In August 2011, the S&P 500 entered a short bear market, falling 21.58% from May to October. The U.S. had just lost its top credit rating from S&P for the first time.
The 2015 sell-off began in China. The Shanghai Composite had risen more than 55% from February to early June 2015. On Aug. 21, the Dow fell 530.94 points, or 3.1%.
The S&P 500 fell 12.4% from May to August 2015 and took about three months to recover. In 2018, the S&P 500 fell 19.73% from its Sept. 20 peak to Christmas Eve.
The COVID-19 crash was the fastest bear market on record. In 33 days, the S&P 500 dropped 34%. From Feb. 12 to March 23, 2020, the Dow lost 37%.
A Level 1 circuit breaker halted trading on March 16, 2020. The S&P 500 set a record high by Aug. 18, and the Dow crossed 30,000 for the first time on Nov. 24.
| Event | Date | Result |
|---|---|---|
| September 11 attacks | 2001 | S&P 500 down 11%, recovered in about 0.6 months |
| Flash crash | May 6, 2010 | Nearly 1,000 point Dow drop in minutes |
| Debt ceiling fight | Aug. 2011 | S&P 500 down 21.58% from May to October |
| China sell-off | Aug. 2015 | Dow down 3.1% in one day |
| Late 2018 drop | Sept. to Dec. 2018 | S&P 500 down 19.73% |
| COVID-19 crash | Feb. to March 2020 | S&P 500 down 34% in 33 days |
Recent Declines From 2022 to 2026
The S&P 500 peaked at 4,796 on Jan. 3, 2022. By October 2022, it was down 27.55%, at 3,498. The Nasdaq Composite fell 36.40% from its November 2021 high.
Other countries had sharp drops too. Russia’s MOEX Index fell 43.58% in four trading days in February 2022. On Aug. 5, 2024, Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 12.4% in a day, its worst since October 1987.
In April 2025, the U.S. announced large tariffs on imports. By the close on April 4, the Dow had lost more than 9%. On April 7, the S&P 500 was down 23% from its February high.
In October 2026, the main indexes sat near record highs. Yet figures from Morgan Stanley show a different picture under the surface. About 54% of Russell 3000 companies were down at least 20% from their June highs.
Nearly nine in 10 were down more than 10%. About 29% had lost more than 30%, and 7% were down by more than half.
The gap exists because the S&P 500 is weighted by company size. A few very large firms can lift the index while hundreds of others fall. Morgan Stanley’s Mike Wilson says the share of S&P 500 stocks above their 200-day average fell from about 75% to below 50%.
Wilson also says ongoing bond market swings could cause a 5% to 10% fall in the S&P 500. Earnings growth for the median company is still running in the mid-teens, according to Morgan Stanley.
| Event | Measure | Decline |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 stock market decline | S&P 500, Jan. to Oct. 2022 | 27.55% |
| 2022 stock market decline | Nasdaq Composite | 36.40% |
| 2022 Russian crash | MOEX, four trading days | 43.58% |
| 2024 Tokyo crash | Nikkei 225, one day | 12.4% |
| 2025 tariff sell-off | S&P 500, peak to April 7 low | 23% |
| 2026 breadth drop | Russell 3000 stocks down 20% or more | 54% |
How Markets Recover and What Slows a Crash
Recovery can mean three things: the start of a rebound, a return to the old high, or a healthy economy. These can happen at very different times. The figures below track only the return to an index’s old high.
| Index and earlier peak | High regained | Time from peak |
|---|---|---|
| Dow Jones: September 1929 | November 1954 | 25 years |
| Nasdaq Composite: March 2000 | April 2015 | 15 years |
| S&P 500: February 2020 | August 18, 2020 | 6 months |
The average recovery time for major U.S. crashes is about two years, though some took much longer. The 2020 crash was one of the quickest, at five months by one count.
Since 1950, the S&P 500 has risen 75% of the time in the year after a bear market low. Average gains were 6% over the next three months and 17% over the next 12 months.
The weakest 12-month periods after a bear market low came after the 2009 crisis and in the early 1970s. A rebound in an index also does not mean every stock recovers, since many dotcom firms never did.
Rules now exist to slow a fast drop. Circuit breakers came after Black Monday in 1987. On the New York Stock Exchange, a 7% fall in the S&P 500 triggers a 15 minute pause, and so does a 13% fall.
Those first two pauses apply only before 3:25 p.m. Eastern Time. A 20% fall ends trading for the rest of the day at any time.
The Federal Reserve also acts in severe downturns. It may cut interest rates or buy assets to add cash to the financial system. Even so, these tools have lowered the damage but have not ended crashes.
The Bottom Line
Crashes are a repeating part of market history. The data shows 27 bear markets since 1929, with an average fall of 35% and a median length of 240 days.
The deepest drop was 89.2% in 1929 to 1932, and the longest recovery took about 25 years. The 2020 crash was the fastest on record, falling 34% in 33 days.
Every source in this article cautions that past results do not predict future ones. The numbers explain what has happened and how long it took to recover. They do not say when the next drop will start.
Sources
- Timeline of U.S. Stock Market Crashes (Investopedia)
- Stock Market Crash Statistics, Dates & Recovery Times (GoodMoneyGuide)
- List of Stock Market Crashes and Bear Markets (Wikipedia)
- Stock Market Crashes in History: Causes, Falls, and Recoveries (Vantage)
- 27 Bear Market Declines Since 1929 (bear market chart and commentary)
- Stock Market Crash Hits 54% Of Stocks: Is The S&P 500 Next? (Forbes)
