CEO compensation and the S&P 500 Index (in 2014 dollars), 1965–2014
| Year | CEO compensation (in millions of 2014 dollars) | S&P 500 Index (adjusted to 2014 dollars) |
|---|---|---|
| 1965/01/01 | 0.83191 | 579.3905 |
| 1966/01/01 | 0.832076 | 544.4317 |
| 1967/01/01 | 0.832242 | 569.9553 |
| 1968/01/01 | 1.035328 | 586.6767 |
| 1969/01/01 | 1.035355 | 558.2041 |
| 1970/01/01 | 1.035383 | 452.5541 |
| 1971/01/01 | 1.03541 | 512.5317 |
| 1972/01/01 | 1.035438 | 552.3217 |
| 1973/01/01 | 1.086788 | 511.7382 |
| 1974/01/01 | 1.086975 | 358.4384 |
| 1975/01/01 | 1.087162 | 344.8192 |
| 1976/01/01 | 1.087348 | 386.0265 |
| 1977/01/01 | 1.087535 | 349.4082 |
| 1978/01/01 | 1.486966 | 320.0905 |
| 1979/01/01 | 1.487196 | 313.0516 |
| 1980/01/01 | 1.487427 | 324.748 |
| 1981/01/01 | 1.487657 | 319.8241 |
| 1982/01/01 | 1.487887 | 281.9998 |
| 1983/01/01 | 1.488117 | 362.5433 |
| 1984/01/01 | 1.488348 | 348.2643 |
| 1985/01/01 | 1.488578 | 391.9966 |
| 1986/01/01 | 1.488808 | 487.2128 |
| 1987/01/01 | 1.489039 | 572.1898 |
| 1988/01/01 | 1.489269 | 511.319 |
| 1989/01/01 | 2.769045 | 595.5699 |
| 1990/01/01 | 2.770492 | 587.6306 |
| 1991/01/01 | 2.771939 | 637.7438 |
| 1992/01/01 | 4.905754 | 687.3812 |
| 1993/01/01 | 5.501263 | 728.6534 |
| 1994/01/01 | 4.35423 | 727.3423 |
| 1995/01/01 | 5.862171 | 835.6524 |
| 1996/01/01 | 7.456101 | 1007.489 |
| 1997/01/01 | 11.34543 | 1284.651 |
| 1998/01/01 | 16.90274 | 1574.586 |
| 1999/01/01 | 14.93373 | 1886.034 |
| 2000/01/01 | 20.38361 | 1962.216 |
| 2001/01/01 | 11.42832 | 1596.986 |
| 2002/01/01 | 10.09622 | 1308.073 |
| 2003/01/01 | 12.91146 | 1242.542 |
| 2004/01/01 | 14.18892 | 1417.185 |
| 2005/01/01 | 16.61245 | 1464.087 |
| 2006/01/01 | 18.50301 | 1538.828 |
| 2007/01/01 | 18.78553 | 1686.762 |
| 2008/01/01 | 13.26949 | 1341.581 |
| 2009/01/01 | 10.57487 | 1046.467 |
| 2010/01/01 | 12.66208 | 1237.875 |
| 2011/01/01 | 12.86322 | 1334.015 |
| 2012/01/01 | 14.99809 | 1422.473 |
| 2013/01/01 | 15.71064 | 1670.708 |
| 2014/01/01 | 16.31562 | 1931.38 |
Note: CEO annual compensation is computed using the "options realized" compensation series, which includes salary, bonus, restricted stock grants, options exercised, and long-term incentive payouts for CEOs at the top 350 U.S. firms ranked by sales.
Source: Authors' analysis of data from Compustat's ExecuComp database and Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis