Gold vs Bitcoin vs S&P 500 in 2026: The Scorecard After 4 Months of War, $100 Oil, and AI Mania

# Gold vs Bitcoin vs S&P 500 in 2026: The Scorecard After 4 Months of War, $100 Oil, and AI Mania

> **Quick answer:** Through April 25, 2026, gold is the runaway YTD leader at +12.6%, with the S&P 500 in second at +4.1% and Bitcoin essentially flat at +0.3%. The Iran war, central bank demand, and a broken "digital gold" narrative have flipped the conventional asset hierarchy — and Polymarket now gives gold 47% odds of finishing 2026 as the top performer.

Four months into 2026, the definitive asset class scorecard is in — and it is not what most portfolio managers predicted in January. Gold vs Bitcoin vs S&P 500 2026 performance has produced a clear winner, a respectable runner-up, and one very uncomfortable loser. Here is how the numbers break down, why they look this way, and what it means for your allocation.

## The 2026 YTD Scoreboard: Gold Wins, Bitcoin Loses

Let us start with the numbers as of April 25, 2026:

| Asset | YTD Return | Key Level | |-------|-----------|-----------| | Gold | **+12.6%** | All-time highs above $5,000/oz | | S&P 500 | **+4.1%** | Record close 7,158 (April 24) | | Bitcoin | **+0.3%** | Essentially flat |