Many people don't invest in the stock market because they think it is too complicated or difficult. But nowadays, it's easier than ever to do so. You can set up automatic investing so you don't even have to remember to make stock purchases. And there are plenty of investment options to choose from that can be ideal for your portfolio, whether you're a new investor who knows nothing about the stock market or an experienced investor who tracks it every day.
You also don't need a ton of money to get started with investing and building up your portfolio. I'll show you how saving $10 per day could put you on track to growing your portfolio to more than $1 million in the long term.
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Tracking the S&P 500 is effective and easy to do
If you're able to set aside $10 each day and invest it, it can snowball over time and become much more significant. Thanks to the effects of compounding and investing in diversified exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track the S&P 500, you don't need a complicated strategy to generate some strong returns.
The State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY 1.52%) is a popular fund to invest in if you want to track the S&P 500. It's a smart strategy since the index includes the top companies on U.S. markets. These include the usual big names such as Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, plus hundreds of others you may not have even heard about. Historically, the index has averaged annual returns of around 10%.
NYSEMKT: SPY
Key Data Points
Here's how significantly your portfolio could grow by just saving $10 per day
If you're able to set aside $10 each day, that would translate into roughly $300 per month. If at the end of every month you invest that $300 into the State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust, here's how your balance might end up looking after 30-plus years of doing so.
| Year | Portfolio Balance (Assuming 10% Annual Growth) |
|---|---|
| 30 | $683,798 |
| 31 | $759,201 |
| 32 | $842,501 |
| 33 | $934,523 |
| 34 | $1,036,180 |
| 35 | $1,148,483 |
Data source: Calculations by author.
It would take approximately 34 years for your portfolio to get to $1 million, assuming the index continues to grow in line with its long-term average. But regardless of whether the return ends up being lower or higher, the takeaway is the same: You can build up a massive portfolio by just saving $10 per day into an S&P 500 index fund.
