What Is a Bear Market and How Long Do Bear Markets Last?

"Are we in a bear market?" is one of the most common questions in markets, especially in crypto, where it is asked almost weekly. The term has a simple definition, but what it means for your money depends on how long the fall lasts.

What people on X are asking

In August 2026 a crypto app account asked its followers are we in a bear market or bull market?, and the same month another user asked an exchange founder whether we are in a bear market or not. In February a third asked whether we were in a bear market or still bullish. Those were about crypto; the definition and the history below use a stock index, where the record is much longer.

The fact-checked answer

The definition. Investor.gov describes a bear market as a period when prices fall 20% or more from recent highs, often alongside widespread pessimism. The 20% line is a convention used by the media and market strategists, not an official rule. For bitcoin, 20% falls are so frequent that the term is used more loosely.

UXS chart

Nasdaq Composite since 1971 (log scale)

Nasdaq Composite, daily close: latest

25,253

November 9, 2026

Highest in chart period

27,600

October 6, 2026

Lowest in chart period

54.87

October 3, 1974

Change over 1 year

+9.8%

vs November 7, 2025

Source: FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED NASDAQCOM). Retrieved November 10, 2026. Chart computed and drawn by UXS from the raw series. Log scale makes equal percentage moves the same height across decades. Download the data (CSV)

Year by year: Nasdaq Composite, daily close

Computed by UXS from the same data as the chart. Tap a column header to sort. * = year to date (latest data November 9, 2026).

Year	Nasdaq Composite, daily close: last value	Change vs prior year	Year high	Year low
2026*	25,253	+8.7%	27,600	20,795
2025	23,242	+20.4%	23,958	15,268
2024	19,311	+28.6%	20,174	14,510
2023	15,011	+43.4%	15,099	10,305
2022	10,466	-33.1%	15,833	10,213
2021	15,645	+21.4%	16,057	12,609
2020	12,888	+43.6%	12,899	6,860.67
2019	8,972.60	+35.2%	9,022.39	6,463.50
2018	6,635.28	-3.9%	8,109.69	6,192.92
2017	6,903.39	+28.2%	6,994.76	5,429.08
2016	5,383.12	+7.5%	5,487.44	4,266.84
2015	5,007.41	+5.7%	5,218.86	4,506.49

All 13 Nasdaq Composite bear markets since 1971 (declines of 20% or more on daily closes)

Computed by UXS from FRED NASDAQCOM daily closes (price only), calendar days. Each episode runs from a record close to the lowest close before the next record. Tap a column header to sort.

Record close	Low close	Decline	Days down	Days from low to new record
Jan 11, 1973	Oct 3, 1974	−59.9%	630	1,435
Sep 13, 1978	Nov 14, 1978	−20.4%	62	254
Feb 8, 1980	Mar 27, 1980	−24.9%	48	109
May 29, 1981	Aug 13, 1982	−28.8%	441	83
Jun 24, 1983	Jul 25, 1984	−31.5%	397	531
Aug 26, 1987	Oct 28, 1987	−35.9%	63	645
Oct 9, 1989	Oct 16, 1990	−33.0%	372	168
Jul 20, 1998	Oct 8, 1998	−29.5%	80	50
Mar 10, 2000	Oct 9, 2002	−77.9%	943	4,579
Aug 29, 2018	Dec 24, 2018	−23.6%	117	120
Feb 19, 2020	Mar 23, 2020	−30.1%	33	77
Nov 19, 2021	Dec 28, 2022	−36.4%	404	428
Dec 16, 2024	Apr 8, 2025	−24.3%	113	80

What the table shows. Bear markets vary enormously. Seven of the 13 regained their old high within about six months of the low; the 1973–74 and 2000–02 falls took about four and twelve and a half years. The deepest ones coincided with recessions or the bursting of valuation bubbles; several shallow ones (1998, 2018, 2025) happened without a recession. Our page on what happens to stocks in a recession looks at that link.

Bear market vs correction. A 10–20% fall is usually called a correction. The Nasdaq has had 19 of those since 1971; see how often the Nasdaq falls 10%.

What tends to end them. Looking at the episodes above, lows often came when central banks eased (2020, 1998), when inflation fears faded (1982, 2022) or after valuations had compressed a lot (2002). The Fed rate-cut page shows that cuts did not always mark the bottom.

Many investors also watch whether the index is trading below its 200-day moving average during a decline, though crossings are frequent.

Recession signals such as the inverted yield curve are covered separately.

Some traders try to profit from falling prices by short selling, which carries open-ended loss risk.

Weak market breadth often shows up before the headline index falls.

Credit spreads often widen as bear markets deepen; see what high-yield spreads say about stocks.

Deep bear markets take years to repair; see the gain needed to recover from a 50% loss.

Stress indices often spike in bear markets; see what the STLFSI measures.

Decision helper

Checklist for living through a bear market

1. Know your time horizon; money needed soon should not be in stocks.
2. Rebalance by rule, not by mood.
3. Expect sharp bear-market rallies of 10% or more that may fade.
4. Avoid leverage and margin.
5. Keep contributing if your plan says so; lower prices buy more shares.
6. Check that your emergency fund is intact.

Quick poll

How do you define a bear market for your own investing?

• A 20% drop from the high
• Prices below the 200-day moving average
• A recession plus falling stocks
• When my portfolio is down a lot

Save my answer

What each answer means

• A 20% drop from the high: That is the common convention and the one used in our table above.
• Prices below the 200-day moving average: A trend-following definition; it triggers more often and earlier than the 20% rule.
• A recession plus falling stocks: Closer to the deep, long bear markets; shallow ones without a recession would not count.
• When my portfolio is down a lot: Personal, and honest, but it depends on your mix of assets.

Your answer is stored only in this browser (localStorage). UXS does not collect, count or publish votes, so no totals are shown.

Common mistakes

• Calling a bottom after the first big rally.
• Assuming bear markets always last years; many lasted only months.
• Assuming they always recover quickly; 2000–02 took over 12 years for the Nasdaq.
• Measuring with intraday prices, which changes dates and depths.

FAQ

What is a bear market in simple terms?

A fall of 20% or more from a recent high, usually with negative sentiment.

How long does a bear market last on average?

For the Nasdaq Composite since 1971, the median fall lasted about 117 days from record to low; the range was 33 to 943 days.

How long does it take to recover?

The median was about 168 days from the low to a new record, but two cases took about 4 and 12.5 years.

Is a bear market the same as a recession?

No. A recession is a decline in economic activity; a bear market is a fall in prices. They often overlap but not always.

Are we in a bear market now?

The Nasdaq Composite was 8.5% below its October 6, 2026 record on November 9, 2026, so not by the 20% definition.

Is crypto in a bear market?

Bitcoin closed about 40% below its October 2025 record on November 9, 2026, which meets the 20% definition; see the bitcoin price history.