TQQQ observed max drawdown: 79.1%
ProShares UltraPro QQQ (3x). From its 2021-12-31 peak, TQQQ fell 79.1% to the 2022-12-31 trough and needed 3.1 years to make a new high (2025-01-31). Computed from 197 months of observed fund history. Raw fund prices begin 2010-02-11; the monthly analysis runs from 2010-02-28 through 2026-06-30.
TQQQ observed fund drawdown statistics
2021-12-31 peak to 2022-12-31 trough.
New high reached 2025-01-31.
Share of all months spent below a prior high.
Rolling year ending 2022-12-31.
The biggest TQQQ drawdowns in observed fund history
| Depth | Peak | Trough | Recovered | Peak to trough | Total underwater |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -79.1% | 2021-12-31 | 2022-12-31 | 2025-01-31 | 12 mo | 3.1 years |
| -49.1% | 2020-01-31 | 2020-03-31 | 2020-06-30 | 2 mo | 5 months |
| -48.7% | 2018-08-31 | 2018-12-31 | 2019-11-30 | 4 mo | 15 months |
| -37.4% | 2010-04-30 | 2010-06-30 | 2010-10-31 | 2 mo | 6 months |
| -35.9% | 2011-04-30 | 2011-09-30 | 2012-02-29 | 5 mo | 10 months |
Methodology: observed TQQQ fund prices only, first available from 2010-02-11. Monthly closing-price statistics cover 2010-02-28 through 2026-06-30; no proxy or pre-inception simulation is included in this table. Educational information, not investment advice.
Hypothetical extended / pre-inception TQQQ history
This separate series combines observed prices with a modeled pre-inception extension from 1970-01-31 through 2026-07-31. The 2026-07-31 endpoint is the legacy current partial-month bucket/month-end label, not evidence that TQQQ was observed through that future date. It is not observed TQQQ performance. The API's observed boundary is 2010-02-11; observed monthly statistics run from 2010-02-28 through 2026-06-30.
Assumptions: TQQQ is modeled as 3x daily QQQ, with a 0.95% annual expense ratio and borrowing at FFR + 0.50% on borrowed exposure. Before FRED rate history begins, the fallback borrowing rate is 2.5% per borrowed turn.
3x daily Nasdaq 100. The simulated dot-com path loses essentially everything; 2022 alone was about minus 80 percent.
Modeled extended statistics
2000-03-31 peak to 2009-02-28 trough.
Still below the prior peak.
Share of all months spent below a prior high.
Rolling year ending 2001-09-30.
For context, SPY (the S&P 500 baseline) had a maximum drawdown of 50.8% over the same kind of monthly-close analysis.
Modeled extended drawdowns
| Depth | Peak | Trough | Recovered | Peak to trough | Total underwater |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -99.97% | 2000-03-31 | 2009-02-28 | not yet | 107 mo | 26.3 years |
| -99.5% | 1970-04-30 | 1974-09-30 | 1998-12-31 | 53 mo | 28.7 years |
| -29.6% | 1999-01-31 | 1999-02-28 | 1999-06-30 | 1 mo | 5 months |
| -18.8% | 1999-12-31 | 2000-01-31 | 2000-02-29 | 1 mo | 2 months |
| -7.8% | 1999-06-30 | 1999-07-31 | 1999-08-31 | 1 mo | 2 months |
Monthly closing prices, peak-to-trough on total return where available. The pre-inception segment is a reconstruction, not a live fund record, and actual tracking, financing, taxes, spreads, and volatility drag can differ.
Drawdowns are the reason tactical strategies exist
Buy-and-hold TQQQ means living through every number on this page. BestFolio tracks published TAA strategies whose whole job is cutting these drawdowns, with out-of-sample track records.