Average Emerging Markets return

Over the last 10 years the Emerging Markets has returned +7.6% a year (CAGR) with dividends reinvested — +4.6% from price alone, and +4.1% after inflation. Since 2006 the annualized figure is +6.8%. Every standard window, through Oct 2, 2026:

Window	Since	Total return /yr	Price only /yr	Dividends /yr	After inflation /yr
1 year	Oct 2, 2025	+11.44%	+8.95%	+2.49%	+8.54%
3 years	Oct 3, 2023	+18.90%	+15.60%	+3.30%	+15.70%
5 years	Oct 4, 2021	+6.97%	+3.84%	+3.13%	+3.01%
10 years	Oct 3, 2016	+7.56%	+4.63%	+2.93%	+4.14%
15 years	Oct 3, 2011	+6.57%	+3.57%	+3.00%	+3.84%
20 years	Oct 2, 2006	+5.75%	+2.90%	+2.84%	+3.12%
21.6 years (all data)	Mar 10, 2005	+6.85%	+4.09%	+2.75%	+4.17%

Annualized (CAGR) from VWO daily closes at exact anniversary dates; inflation adjustment uses CPI (CPIAUCSL). The dividends column is the reinvested-dividend contribution — total return minus price return.

The years behind the average#

“Average” hides how lumpy the ride is: across 20 full calendar years, the market finished positive 65% of the time, with a best year of +76.3% (2009) and a worst of -52.5% (2008). The arithmetic mean of single years is +9.2% and the median +12.2% — but compounding through the crashes brings the realized annualized return to +6.8%. Almost no individual year lands near the average.