What happens if you miss the stock market's best days?

The stock market may be a wild ride of emotions.

So what happens if you tried to time the market and missed out on the best moments when it has the most positive impact?

Let's find out!

Fidelity has put together the infographic growth of $10,000 being invested from 1980 to 2020 in the S&P 500 index fund and what happens if you missed the greatest five market days.

Missing the best 5 days when you're otherwise fully invested drops your overall return by 38%

Missing out on the 10 best days will halve your long-term returns.

The above chart tracks a 40 year period ( 14,600 days ), while it could be tempting to try to sell out to prevent downturns, but timing it well is difficult.

Missing even a few of the market's top days might have a huge impact on your results, you're betting that you can get in and out without missing just five of those 14,600 days.

Fact: The majority of the best stock market days have come in the midst of bearish market. Of the top 10 biggest gaining days, six occurred during the 2000s dot-com burst or the 2008 financial crisis.

While no one enjoys losing money, speak to your financial advisor who may be able to assist you in capitalizing to create an advantage during a market downturn.

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#JustinInCase: The above information is provided for general information only and does not constitute financial advice. While we have taken care to check the source of the information, we cannot guarantee that the information is accurate, complete or will suit your individual financial needs. Please refer to the original source for more details.