What if you kept investing in the Nasdaq 100 through the COVID crash?
You started investing 300,000 won every month in a Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ) in February 2020, just before the COVID-19 crash. See what that would have looked like with real data. Because it was a period of a short, deep plunge followed by a rapid rebound, checking the maximum drawdown together with the recovery time is especially important.
Investment conditions
Asset · Nasdaq 100 ETF (QQQ)
Method · Recurring monthly investment
Period · 2020-02-01 ~ 2026-07-01
Amount · $222 / month
As of · 2026-07-01
Key metrics
These results do not reflect taxes. Based on historical data.
Risk & recovery
As important as returns. This service does not hide maximum drawdown or loss periods.
Maximum drawdown (MDD)
-22.4%
Largest drop from peak
Longest loss period
4months
Months in loss: 8
Recovery period
5months
Growth over time
Invested principal (dashed) and portfolio value (solid). Values below match the calculation.
Total invested $17,333 → Final value $35,097 (+102.5%), Maximum drawdown (MDD) -22.4%
Why this period and asset
In February-March 2020, fear of the COVID-19 pandemic sent global markets plunging in a very short time. The Nasdaq 100 fell a substantial amount from its peak within weeks, then rebounded quickly as massive liquidity from central banks combined with strength in tech stocks. This scenario starts just before the plunge, so it passes through both a short, deep crash and an unusually fast recovery. It is worth remembering that this rapid recovery reflected the specific policies and conditions of that period, and not every crash ends so quickly.
Interpreting the result
This scenario shows the unusual pattern of a short, deep crash followed by a fast recovery. Be sure to check the maximum drawdown, underwater period, and recovery time on the results screen. If you kept investing during the plunge, purchases at low prices during the brief bottom could have lowered your average cost. But the fast recovery here was only clear in hindsight; no one could know the speed of recovery at the time of the crash. Comparing this fast-recovery case with slow ones like the dot-com or 2008 episodes helps put it in perspective.
Caveats & limits
The fast recovery from the COVID crash reflected specific policies and conditions of that time; not every crash ends so quickly. During a crash, remember that you cannot know when, or whether, recovery will come. The Nasdaq 100 is heavily weighted toward tech and is highly volatile. As a foreign asset, exchange rates affect won-denominated returns, and expense ratios, trading costs, and taxes lower performance. There is no guarantee that this fast recovery will repeat, and this page does not recommend buying.
Data sources & limits
- Price data source: Yahoo Finance / FinanceDataReader
- Collected on: 2026-07-23
- Effective trading date: 2026-07-01
- Price basis: 复权收盘价(已反映股息与拆股)
- Trading fees and taxes are not reflected — figures are pre-tax.
- Based on historical data; does not guarantee future returns.
Frequently asked questions
After a crash, does the market always recover quickly like in COVID?
No. The fast recovery in 2020 reflected specific conditions like massive liquidity injections. In cases like the dot-com bust or 2008, recovery took several years. At the time of a crash you cannot know the speed of recovery, so it is risky to plan on a fast rebound.
What if you had stopped investing during the plunge?
Stopping during the brief bottom could have meant missing the chance to accumulate at low prices. But whether recovery would be fast or slow was unknowable at the time, so whether stopping helped is only clear in hindsight. Try comparing continued versus stopped under the same conditions.
Why did investing during the plunge turn out advantageous?
Monthly investing accumulates more units at low prices during a bottom, lowering the average cost. When recovery was fast, as in COVID, this effect stood out. But that was because recovery happened to be fast; in crashes with long underwater periods, the same approach can produce different results.
Related scenarios
📋 结果基于历史数据计算,过去的收益不代表未来的收益。
📋 本服务旨在帮助理解投资、供教育之用,并非投资建议。