Should I buy stocks when they are falling?
Buying a broad index fund during a decline has historically paid off well. Buying an individual stock because it fell is riskier, because you need to know whether the fall is the market or the business.
For the market as a whole, the answer has been yes for as long as anyone has records. Every decline in the S&P 500 so far has been followed by a new high, and money invested during the scary stretches earned more than money invested during the calm ones. If you have a monthly contribution into an index fund, a falling market is simply a discount. Keep going.
For an individual stock, it is more complicated. Stocks fall for two very different reasons: the whole market is falling and dragging them along, or something is actually wrong with the company. The first is an opportunity. The second is a warning, and cheaper is not the same as cheap.
A way to tell them apart in a minute: check whether the sector and the market fell too. If everything is down, it is the market. If the stock fell alone, read the news on its company page and find out why. A cut forecast, an accounting problem or a lost major customer are reasons a stock deserves to be lower.
And whatever you decide, do not try to buy the exact bottom. Nobody can. Buying in a few instalments over weeks is the practical alternative, and it means you are always partly right.
Informational only, not financial advice. Updated September 4, 2026.
Get the free market brief
Top stories and analysis, summarized. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.