MSFT drawdown: 29.6% below the all-time high
Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) is 29.6% below its all-time high, set Oct 28, 2025 (as of market close, Jul 24, 2026). The chart shows every day as a percentage of the highest level reached up to that point: 100% means a fresh record, everything below is a drawdown. "All-time" means since our price data begins (1986).
- Below all-time high
- −29.6%
- 70.4% of ATH
- All-time high
- $542.1
- Oct 28, 2025
- Time below the high
- 9 mo
- since Oct 28, 2025
- Worst-ever drawdown
- −74.6%
- Mar 9, 2009
- Longest underwater
- 16.8 yrs
- between all-time highs
- Today's level first reached
- Nov 28, 2023
- 2.7 yrs ago
- Last time this deep
- Jan 25, 2023
- in a previous episode
% of all-time high since 1986#
The classic underwater chart (drawdown curve), drawn as % of the all-time high — 100% is a fresh record, everything below it is time spent underwater.
% of all-time high on the price basis — the all-time high considers the full history of MSFT, including years before the visible window. Dividends are excluded on this basis (the convention headlines use).
The deepest drawdowns on record#
Every decline of 15% or more from an all-time high (price basis), deepest first.
| Peak | Trough | Depth | Peak → trough | Recovered by | Underwater |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 27, 1999 | Mar 9, 2009 | −74.6% | 9.2 yrs | Oct 21, 2016 | 16.8 yrs |
| Oct 5, 1987 | Oct 26, 1987 | −50.3% | 21 days | Oct 5, 1989 | 2.0 yrs |
| Nov 19, 2021 | Nov 3, 2022 | −37.6% | 11 mo | Jun 15, 2023 | 1.6 yrs |
| Oct 28, 2025 | Jun 25, 2026 | −34.9% | 8 mo | not yet | 9 mo+ |
| Jul 16, 1990 | Aug 23, 1990 | −34.7% | 38 days | Jan 16, 1991 | 6 mo |
| May 8, 1987 | Jul 7, 1987 | −28.6% | 2 mo | Sep 28, 1987 | 5 mo |
| Feb 10, 2020 | Mar 16, 2020 | −28.2% | 35 days | Jun 9, 2020 | 4 mo |
| Jul 17, 1995 | Jan 9, 1996 | −26.4% | 6 mo | Apr 18, 1996 | 9 mo |
Price basis (no dividends) — the convention crash histories use. With dividends reinvested, recoveries arrive years earlier; switch the basis on the chart above to see it.
Drawdown vs what came next#
One dot per month since 1986: how far MSFT stood below its all-time high, and the total return over the following 1, 5 and 10 years.
Read this with survivorship bias in mind: MSFT is on this chart precisely because it survived — the many stocks that fell this far and never recovered (or were delisted) aren't on anyone's chart, so past recoveries here say little about the odds ahead. Monthly windows also overlap heavily (they are not independent samples). Not investment advice.
FAQ
- How far is MSFT from its all-time high?
- MSFT is currently 29.6% below its all-time high, set Oct 28, 2025 (as of market close, Jul 24, 2026). Prices only, the convention headlines use; with dividends reinvested the gap is usually smaller.
- What was the biggest MSFT drawdown ever?
- The deepest decline on record in our data (since 1986) took the stock 74.6% below its prior high, bottoming Mar 9, 2009. The table on this page lists every major episode with its peak, trough and recovery date.
Methodology & related#
Daily closing prices since 1986 (split-adjusted). "All-time" means since our price data begins — MSFT may have traded earlier. For a 150-year index drawdown record see the S&P 500 drawdown page. The price basis excludes dividends; the total-return basis reinvests them; the real basis additionally deflates by CPI. See also returns by year, 150 years of returns and the rolling-returns explorer. Past performance does not predict future returns; not investment advice.