# Gold vs Stocks: The 10-Year Reality Check

Imagine you dropped $1K into gold back in 2015. Fast forward to today—that investment would sit at around $2,360. Looks decent, right? A 136% gain sounds solid until you stack it against the S&P 500's 174% return over the same decade.

Here's the tea: Gold averaged 13.6% annual returns while stocks clocked 17.41%. Even wilder? Gold's been all over the place historically. After Nixon ditched the gold standard in 1971, it printed 40.2% yearly returns through the 70s. Then the 80s hit and it flatlined to just 4.4% annually.

**Why people still stack gold:**
- Zero correlation with stock market crashes (diversification flex)
- Inflation hedge that actually works (rose 13% in 2023 alone)
- Geopolitical uncertainty play (jumped 24% in 2020)
- Literally millennia of "this has value" backing

**The catch:** Gold generates zero cash flow. It just sits there. Stocks and real estate produce actual revenue. Gold's the zombie apocalypse insurance policy—worthless until everything else collapses, then suddenly it's the only thing that matters.

Forecasters expect gold to hit ~$3K/oz in 2025 (10% gain). But if you're chasing returns? Stocks still have the edge. If you're hedging chaos? Gold earns its place in the portfolio.