If you want to outperform the S&P 500, you may want to look at tech stocks. Many of the largest companies in the famed index are in the tech sector, and some of these stocks have produced returns well over 1,000% over the past decade. Artificial intelligence, cloud computing and cybersecurity are some of the key megatrends that have produced compounded returns in the sector.
You don’t even have to pick individual tech stocks to outperform the S&P 500. Tech exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, have done the job just fine. For instance, the Fidelity MSCI Information Technology Index ETF （ticker: FTEC） has delivered an average annual market price return of 22.1% over the past decade as of Dec. 15. Meanwhile, Vanguard’s top-performing S&P 500 ETF （VOO） is up an annualized 14.7% over the same 10 years.
Investors have made plenty of money from this sector, but these are six of best tech stocks that have delighted long-term investors the most. Their long-term returns demonstrate what’s possible for investors who search for hidden gems in the stock market:
Tech Stocks
Applied Digital Corp. （APLD）
Nvidia Corp. （NVDA）
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. （AMD）
Quantum Computing Inc. （QUBT）
Broadcom Inc. （AVGO）3,021%
Arista Networks Inc. （ANET）
Applied Digital Corp. （APLD）
10-year return: 27,257%
Applied Digital used to be a crypto miner, but its pivot into AI infrastructure has been quite fruitful. It’s a top-performing tech stock over the past decade due to a unique circumstance. While more investors are starting to learn about Applied Digital, it was actually a penny stock a decade ago.
It was a true penny stock, too, the type of stock you could buy shares of if you had a few pennies in your pocket. The company used to be called Applied Blockchain before it focused on AI. Investors had to endure multiple years of low returns for a company with a challenging balance sheet and no connection to AI. However, its big deals with CoreWeave Inc. （CRWV）， Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. （HPE） and Together AI set the stage for a 27,257% cumulative gain over the past decade, according to FinanceCharts.com. Applied Digital has a multi-gigawatt pipeline that should keep it busy and attract more hyperscalers, suggesting that additional lucrative contracts are on the way.
Nvidia Corp. （NVDA）
10-year return: 22,272%
Investors who accumulated Nvidia shares 10 years ago have gains that comfortably swallowed losses fueled by concerns over Chinese competitor DeepSeek and U.S. tariffs. The stock has recovered from what amounts to a blip this year and is currently up by more than 31% in 2025. The semiconductor giant has greatly benefited from crypto mining and the AI boom. The company established itself as the leading AI chip provider, resulting in a cumulative total return of 22,272% over the past 10 years.
Trade tensions have been headwinds, but the administration recently gave Nvidia permission to sell its H200 AI chips to approved customers in China, which can act as a meaningful tailwind. Artificial intelligence is still in its early innings, so Nvidia may have more room to run. The tech giant has established itself as a clear leader and has a leading $4.3 trillion market cap.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. （AMD）
10-year return: 8,373%
Advanced Micro Devices is another semiconductor company that has benefited from advances in crypto mining and artificial intelligence. The company’s stock has enjoyed an 8,373% cumulative gain over the past decade.
Nvidia’s ability to gobble up market share has hindered AMD’s long-term gains a bit, but the company has been fighting back. It has recently secured major partnerships with OpenAI, Oracle Corp. （ORCL）， Cisco Systems Inc. （CSCO）， International Business Machines Corp. （IBM） and other tech giants for its AI chips. While Nvidia is still the dominant player, tech leaders are looking for more affordable chips that still get the job done. That has translated into big gains for AMD shareholders this year. The chipmaker has surprised bears by outperforming Nvidia with a 72% year-to-date gain.
Quantum Computing Inc. （QUBT）
10-year return: 3,537%
Quantum Computing is another tech stock people forgot about when it was trading below $1 per share a decade ago. After a rocky ride up, it now trades at about $11 per share, with most of those gains taking place within the past two years. Quantum computing is high-potential technology that can rise as the next big thing, but it’s still in its early stages.
Quantum Computing stock has produced some false starts. The stock spiked in 2018 and 2020 but gave back most of those gains both times. It was trading as a penny stock as recently as 2024. QUBT shares have taken a 35.2% tumble in the past three months, following a $750 million private placement offering.
Quantum Computing is easily the riskiest stock on this list. It has a $2.5 billion market cap despite only producing $384,000 in Q3 revenue with $10.5 million in total operating expenses. The stock is essentially a gamble that quantum computing will be a multi-year megatrend and that Quantum Computing will be one of the biggest beneficiaries.
Broadcom Inc. （AVGO）
10-year return: 3,021%
Broadcom, once again, is a stock that has benefited immensely from artificial intelligence. Broadcom’s AI chips aren’t at the same level of dominance as Nvidia’s, but the company has carved out a solid piece of the AI pie. The recent acquisition of VMware has further boosted Broadcom’s financial growth and stock gains.
The semiconductor firm is up by 3,021% over the past decade and is approaching a $2 trillion market cap. It has rallied by about 800% over the past five years.
Broadcom is the only stock on this list that is considered a dividend growth stock. The company has a 0.8% forward yield and an excellent dividend program. Broadcom recently hiked its quarterly dividend by 10% to 65 cents per share.
Arista Networks Inc. （ANET）
10-year return: 2,766%
A major theme among outperforming tech stocks has been the AI boom, and Arista Networks is no exception to the rule. Although shares are up 13.9% year to date, trailing the S&P 500, the stock has rallied by 2,766% over the past decade.
Arista Networks produces hardware and software that enable AI infrastructure to run smoothly. Its customer base is heavily concentrated in “Magnificent Seven” companies like Meta Platforms Inc. （META） and Microsoft Corp. （MSFT）。 That’s good news if these companies continue to spend on AI, which is a likely scenario. Remarks from these firms’ recent earnings results suggest AI spending will continue to grow.
Why These Tech Stocks Outpaced the Stock Market
These six tech stocks have outperformed their peers and have crushed the S&P 500 over the long term. While these stocks are unlikely to repeat those gains over the next 10 years, investors can learn valuable lessons from their successes.
Investors who want to maximize their returns over the next decade may want to consider looking for stocks with lower market caps that operate in promising industries. Artificial intelligence is a key catalyst that should continue to propel stocks higher for many years, just as cloud computing and AI infrastructure continue to propel stock prices up since Amazon Web Services launched in 2006.
However, netting those impressive long-term gains required patience during sharp downturns. For instance, Nvidia lost more than 60% of its value from peak to trough in 2022 before its monstrous AI-fueled rally. Nvidia also lost about 50% of its value from peak to trough in Q4 2018. Investors also needed nerves of steel to hold Quantum Computing stock for a decade, given its dramatic spikes and drops during that stretch.
Warren Buffett’s mentor, Benjamin Graham, famously said that the stock market is a voting machine in the short run and a weighing machine in the long run. Investors should think about what a company can become in the next five to 10 years when they accumulate shares. If you stay focused on long-term growth rates and fundamentals, it’s easier to ride out market uncertainties.