How does Gilded track the stock market?

Gilded does not display future stock market corrections, crashes, or downturns but these will happen. These events do not change the accuracy of our projections.
It is normal for the stock market to go through up and down cycles. This will result in years where the stock market returns very little or even negative returns. This does not make our projections inaccurate, since our average rates of return account for this variability. However, it does mean your experience of your finances will likely not feel as smooth as Gilded’s graphs. It is important to understand that an average annual rate of return of 8% may look like years where the stock market returns -16%, +10%, +23%, and then -9%. This still results in an average annual return of 8%, but the wide variability in returns year to year may make it feel quite different.