Princeton Asset

Portfolio Backtesting Tool (1970 – present) with Full Asset Class Coverage

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Most portfolio backtesting tools are constrained in ways that matter most: access to limited number of asset classes, short backtesting time span or both.

To address these constraints, PrincetonAsset aggregates 76 asset class data from multiple sources into a portfolio backtesting tool. It supports a broad set of asset classes spanning U.S. equities, international markets, fixed income, housing, and real assets, with coverage extending back to 1970.

What This Tool Does Differently

1) Full Asset Class Coverage (Not Just “Total Market”)

Instead of approximating exposures, the tool lets you construct portfolios across the size and value spectrum.

For example, you can explicitly allocate to:

  • Total market
  • Large value vs growth
  • Mid-cap blend/value/growth
  • Small-cap and small-cap value
  • Micro-cap and ultra-small segments

This allows you to test factor-driven portfolios instead of just broad proxies.

2) Deep International Granularity

Most tools stop at “ex-US.” ours one goes further:

  • Developed vs emerging markets
  • International small-cap
  • International small-cap value
  • Region and country specific breakdowns (Europe, UK, Japan, Pacific)

This allows you to model broadly diversified portfolios closer to academic or style factor constructions.

3) Multi-Asset Support

Portfolios aren’t limited to equities. You can include:

  • Treasuries across durations
  • TIPS (inflation-protected bonds)
  • Corporate bonds
  • Muni and High Yield bonds
  • International and EM bonds
  • REITs
  • US House Price Index
  • Commodities, gold and silver

You can also evaluate results in both nominal and real (inflation-adjusted) terms.

4) Long-Term Historical Coverage

Data back to 1970 enables testing across:

  • High inflation regimes (1970s)
  • Disinflation and rate declines (1980s–2010s)
  • Multiple equity cycles and crashes

This is critical for understanding how strategies behave outside recent market conditions.

What You Can Actually Test

Because the tool operates at the asset-class level, you can isolate variables instead of guessing and answer concrete portfolio questions:

  • How much small-cap value exposure is optimal?
  • Does international diversification improve risk-adjusted returns?
  • How does a 100% equity portfolio compare to a mixed allocation?
  • What drawdowns should you realistically expect?
  • What withdrawal rates are sustainable under different allocations?

For the portfolio Real Returns we included ±1/2/3 standard deviation bands to highlight how volatile outcomes can be over time.

Design Philosophy

This tool is built around a few principles:

  • Asset-class clarity
  • Deterministic backtesting (no black-box assumptions)
  • Support for serious portfolio construction

It’s designed for investors who want to understand why a portfolio behaves the way it does not just see an output.

We strongly point out that this tool is not a portfolio generator, it’s a diagnostic tool:

useful for understanding behavior across regimes, not predicting the future…

This tool is designed with that constraint in mind. It’s not trying to tell you: what the “best” portfolio is. It’s trying to help you see: what a given portfolio actually does.

Backtesting is fun

It allows you to understand asset class history and see how they behaved in different regimes.

To test a specific idea: factor tilts, international exposure, or withdrawal behavior, you can build your portfolio backtests directly at: https://go.princetonasset.com/portfolio/new

  • edit, save or share
  • free with or without an account

Or search for shared models here: https://go.princetonasset.com/

List of asset classes:

  1. VTSAX – Vanguard Total Stock Market Index Fund Admiral Shares
  2. VXF – Vanguard Extended Market Index Fund ETF
  3. VVIAX – Vanguard Value Index Fund Admiral Shares
  4. DFLV – DFA Dimensional US Large Cap Value ETF
  5. VFIAX – Vanguard 500 Index Fund Admiral Shares
  6. VIGAX – Vanguard Growth Index Fund Admiral Shares
  7. QQQ – Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ-100)
  8. VMVAX – Vanguard Mid-Cap Value Index Fund Admiral Shares
  9. VIMAX – Vanguard Mid-Cap Index Fund Admiral Shares
  10. VMGMX – Vanguard Mid-Cap Growth Index Fund Admiral Shares
  11. VIOV – Vanguard S&P Small-Cap 600 Value ETF
  12. VSIAX – Vanguard Small-Cap Value Index Fund Admiral Shares
  13. DFSV – DFA Dimensional US Small Cap Value ETF
  14. DFAT – Dimensional U.S. Targeted Value ETF
  15. AVUV – Avantis US Small Cap Value ETF
  16. VTMSX – Vanguard Tax-Managed Small-Cap Fund Admiral Shares
  17. DFAS – DFA US Small Cap Portfolio
  18. VSGAX – Vanguard Small-Cap Growth Index Fund Admiral Shares
  19. DFSCX – DFA US Micro Cap Portfolio
  20. BRSIX – Bridgeway Ultra-Small Company Market Fund
  21. IWC – iShares Micro-Cap ETF
  22. DFAR – DFA Dimensional US Real Estate ETF
  23. VGSLX – Vanguard Real Estate Index Fund Admiral Shares
  24. VT – Vanguard Total World Stock ETF
  25. VTIAX – Vanguard Total International Stock Index Fund Admiral Shares
  26. VFSAX – Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US Small-Cap Index Fund Admiral Shares
  27. VTMGX – Vanguard Developed Markets Index Fund Admiral Shares
  28. EFV – iShares MSCI EAFE Value ETF
  29. DFIV – DFA International Value Portfolio
  30. SCZ – iShares MSCI EAFE Small-Cap ETF
  31. DFIS – DFA Dimensional International Small Cap ETF
  32. AVDV – Avantis International Small Cap Value ETF
  33. DLS – WisdomTree International SmallCap Dividend Fund
  34. DISV – DFA Dimensional International Small Cap Value ETF
  35. VEUSX – Vanguard European Stock Index Fund Admiral Shares
  36. DFCSX – DFA Continental Small Company Portfolio
  37. IEUS – iShares MSCI Europe Small-Cap ETF
  38. DFE – WisdomTree Europe SmallCap Dividend Fund
  39. EWU – iShares MSCI United Kingdom ETF
  40. DFUKX – DFA United Kingdom Small Company Portfolio
  41. EWUS – iShares MSCI United Kingdom Small-Cap ETF
  42. VPADX – Vanguard Pacific Stock Index Fund Admiral Shares
  43. PS – MSCI Pacific Small Cap Index
  44. EPP – iShares MSCI Pacific ex-Japan ETF
  45. DFRSX – DFA Asia Pacific Small Company Portfolio
  46. PxJS – MSCI Pacific ex Japan Small Cap Index
  47. EWJ – iShares MSCI Japan ETF
  48. DFJSX – DFA Japanese Small Company Portfolio
  49. SCJ – iShares MSCI Japan Small-Cap ETF
  50. DFJ – WisdomTree Japan SmallCap Dividend Fund
  51. VEMAX – Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index Fund Admiral Shares
  52. DFEMX – DFA Emerging Markets Portfolio
  53. DFAE – DFA Emerging Markets Core Equity Portfolio
  54. DFEV – DFA Dimensional Emerging Markets Value ETF
  55. DEMSX – DFA Emerging Markets Small Cap Portfolio
  56. EEMS – iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Small-Cap ETF
  57. EWX – SPDR S&P Emerging Markets Small Cap ETF
  58. DGS – WisdomTree Emerging Markets SmallCap Dividend Fund
  59. AVES – Avantis Emerging Markets Value ETF
  60. VBTLX – Vanguard Total Bond Market Index Fund Admiral Shares
  61. VUSUX – Vanguard Long-Term Treasury Fund Admiral Shares
  62. VFIUX – Vanguard Intermediate-Term Treasury Fund Admiral Shares
  63. VFIRX – Vanguard Short-Term Treasury Index Fund Admiral Shares
  64. VUSXX – Vanguard Treasury Money Market Fund
  65. VAIPX – Vanguard Inflation-Protected Securities Index Fund Admiral Shares
  66. VICSX – Vanguard Intermediate-Term Corporate Bond Index Fund Admiral Shares
  67. VWEAX – Vanguard High-Yield Corporate Fund Admiral Shares
  68. VWIUX – Vanguard Intermediate-Term Tax-Exempt Fund Admiral Shares
  69. BNDW – Vanguard Total World Bond ETF
  70. BNDX – Vanguard Total International Bond Index Fund ETF
  71. VGAVX – Vanguard Emerging Markets Government Bond Index Fund Admiral Shares
  72. GSG – iShares S&P GSCI Commodity-Indexed Trust
  73. IAU – iShares Gold Trust
  74. SLV – iShares Silver Trust
  75. HPRI-SA – House Price Index Seasonally Adjusted
  76. $$$ – Cash

Disclaimer: This blog post is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Consult with a qualified financial advisor for personalized guidance.

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