AAPL vs MSFT: Which Stock Has Delivered Better Long-Term Returns on Nasdaq?

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2026/01/08 00:22

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) sit at the center of modern equity markets. Both are mega-cap “platform” companies with global distribution, sticky ecosystems, and the ability to return large amounts of capital to shareholders. Yet they monetize in meaningfully different ways—differences that show up in how each stock reacts to economic cycles, product launches, enterprise spending, and shifts in technology narratives.

This guide compares AAPL stock and MSFT stock across business model, products, price behavior, dividend profile, and long-run return patterns—plus a clear explanation of how tokenized equity products on MEXC (e.g., AAPLON, AAPLX, MSFTON) differ from owning the underlying Nasdaq-listed shares.

What AAPL and MSFT Have in Common

Both are Nasdaq-listed, mega-cap compounders. Each has reached multi-trillion-dollar scale, with extremely broad shareholder bases and heavy index ownership.

Both blend product ecosystems with recurring revenue. Apple’s ecosystem ties devices to services; Microsoft’s ecosystem ties productivity software to cloud infrastructure. That “platform” dynamic drives high customer retention and the ability to layer new offerings into existing distribution.

Both return capital via dividends and buybacks. Neither is a high-yield stock, but both have long histories of shareholder returns and consistent dividend payments.

Business Model and Product Differences: Where the Money Really Comes From

Apple’s model: premium hardware + ecosystem services

Apple is still best understood as a premium device business supported by a services “flywheel.” According to Investopedia’s summary of Apple’s mix, iPhone revenue remains the single largest driver, while Services has become a major second engine. For example, the article cites iPhone sales around $201.18B out of $391.04B in 2024, with Services at $96.2B.

Product reality:

Core devices (iPhone, Mac, iPad, Wearables) create the installed base.
Services (App Store, subscriptions, payments, cloud, etc.) monetize that base and can smooth cyclicality versus hardware alone.

What tends to move AAPL stock: upgrade-cycle expectations (especially iPhone), margin shifts from mix, regional demand changes, and whether new features (including AI capabilities) translate into higher device replacement rates.

Microsoft’s model: enterprise productivity + cloud + platform services

Microsoft’s modern business is anchored in enterprise spending and recurring subscriptions. Investopedia highlights the strategic shift from one-time licensing toward subscriptions and cloud. It cites server products and cloud services as Microsoft’s largest FY2024 generator (about $97.7B), followed by office products and cloud services ($54.9B), with Windows smaller than in the past.

Product reality:

Office/Teams/Business software are deeply embedded in organizational workflows.
Azure and server/cloud offerings monetize infrastructure demand and application modernization.
Gaming (Xbox + services) adds a consumer/subscription layer Apple doesn’t directly mirror.

What tends to move MSFT stock: cloud growth, enterprise IT budgets, competitive positioning in cloud and AI tooling, and the ability to expand margins while investing heavily.

Bottom line: Apple’s “unit economics + ecosystem” exposure is more tied to consumer cycles and flagship launches, while Microsoft’s is more tied to enterprise renewals, cloud consumption, and productivity platform stickiness.

Price Snapshot and Nasdaq Context

Both stocks trade on NASDAQ, and both are heavily followed “bellwethers.”

Recent reference points (close prices):

AAPL closed $271.86 on Dec 31, 2025 (StockAnalysis historical table).
MSFT closed $483.62 on Dec 31, 2025 (StockAnalysis historical table).

52-week ranges (useful for framing current price vs. recent extremes):

AAPL 52-week range: 169.21 – 288.62 (as shown on StockAnalysis).
MSFT 52-week range: 344.79 – 555.45 (as shown on StockAnalysis).

These ranges matter because they hint at what the market has recently been willing to pay for each company’s earnings power—especially when narratives shift (AI cycles, device cycles, enterprise budgets).

Returns: How AAPL Stock and MSFT Stock Have Behaved Over Time

When investors say “return,” it’s important to distinguish price return from total return (which includes dividends). Below are annual total returns with dividends reinvested for both stocks, using the same methodology source for consistency.

Annual total returns (dividends reinvested)

Year	AAPL Total Return	MSFT Total Return
2025	+9.05%	+15.58%
2024	+30.71%	+12.93%
2023	+49.01%	+58.19%
2022	−26.40%	−28.02%
2021	+34.65%	+52.48%
2020	+82.31%	+42.53%
2019	+88.96%	+57.74%
2018	−5.39%	+20.80%
2017	+48.46%	+40.73%
2016	+12.48%	+15.08%

Source: TotalRealReturns (AAPL, MSFT).

How to read this table deeply (not just “who won”):

Both stocks can decline sharply in broad risk-off years (e.g., 2022).
Apple’s best years often reflect a mix of multiple expansion plus upgrade-cycle optimism (2020, 2019).
Microsoft’s best years tend to align with enterprise software strength and cloud/platform re-rating (2021, 2023).
In practice, the “winner” depends heavily on entry valuation, macro regime, and which narrative the market is paying for (device cycle vs. cloud/AI adoption).

Dividends: Growth Profiles, Not High Yield

Neither AAPL nor MSFT is primarily a dividend stock; yields are typically modest. Still, dividends matter because they signal capital-return discipline and add to total return over time.

Dividend per share by year

Year	AAPL	MSFT
2025	1.0300	3.4000
2024	0.9900	3.0800
2023	0.9500	2.7900
2022	0.9100	2.5400
2021	0.8650	2.3000
2020	0.8075	2.0900
2019	0.7600	1.8900
2018	0.7050	1.7200
2017	0.6150	1.5900
2016	0.5575	1.1100

Dividend yields (current framing)

StockAnalysis currently shows:

AAPL annual dividend is about $1.04 with yield around 0.39%.
MSFT annual dividend is about $3.64 with yield around 0.77%.

Interpretation: Microsoft has generally paid a higher dividend per share and often a higher yield, but both companies are best viewed as “total return” equities where buybacks and earnings growth usually dominate the long-run return profile.

Why the Business Model Differences Show Up in Stock Behavior

Sensitivity to the consumer vs. the enterprise

Apple’s core depends on consumer demand and replacement cycles; Microsoft’s core depends on enterprise renewal and usage expansion. In a slowing economy, consumers may delay device upgrades, while enterprises may still renew mission-critical productivity and cloud commitments—though consumption-based cloud can also slow if usage declines.

Revenue visibility and “recurrence”

Microsoft’s subscription and cloud contracts typically give stronger near-term visibility than a device-centric model. Apple’s Services segment increases recurrence, but hardware remains a larger swing factor for overall growth.

Narrative leadership cycles (AI, platforms, ecosystems)

Both benefit from platform narratives, but the “dominant storyline” changes: Microsoft often gets priced as an enterprise platform leader during cloud/AI buildouts, while Apple often gets priced on whether its ecosystem can trigger a major upgrade wave (and protect margins).

Product Differences and Similarities at a Glance

Apple products: iPhone-led hardware ecosystem + Services layer (monetize installed base).

Microsoft products: enterprise productivity suite + cloud infrastructure/platform + gaming ecosystem.

Similarity that matters for investors: both have “ecosystem switching costs”—once customers standardize on iOS/macOS + services or on Microsoft 365/Azure/Windows, the friction to leave is real. That stickiness is a key reason both companies can sustain high margins and strong cash generation over long periods.

Tokenized U.S. Stocks on MEXC: AAPLON vs AAPLX vs MSFTON

If you see tickers like AAPLON, AAPLX, or MSFTON on MEXC, it’s essential to understand what you’re buying: these are tokenized products designed to track stock prices, not the same thing as holding the Nasdaq-listed shares in a traditional brokerage account.

AAPLX (Apple xStock): a tracker certificate token

MEXC describes AAPLX as a tracker certificate issued as Solana SPL and ERC-20 tokens that tracks the price of Apple Inc.

Practical implication: your exposure is to the tracking instrument’s structure and rules (including how it handles fees, market hours, and corporate actions), not to direct equity ownership.

AAPLON / MSFTON (Ondo tokenized stocks)

MEXC lists products such as Apple Tokenized Stock (Ondo) (AAPLON) and Microsoft (Ondo Tokenized Stock) (MSFTON) as tokenized representations tied to those underlying equities.

Key differences vs owning AAPL or MSFT shares (plain-English)

Ownership & rights: holding a token typically does not equal being a registered shareholder with full voting rights.
Dividend handling: the way dividends are passed through (or reflected in price) depends on the token product’s terms, not automatically the same as stock ownership.
Market structure: tokenized products may trade on crypto rails with different liquidity, spreads, and trading conventions than Nasdaq.
Counterparty and structure risk: tokenized designs can be “asset-backed” or “synthetic/tracker” structures; the risk profile changes based on how the product is engineered. MEXC educational materials highlight that some tokenized stock structures track via instruments/oracles rather than direct share backing, which is why reading product descriptions matters.

In short: AAPL and MSFT are Nasdaq common stocks; AAPLON/AAPLX/MSFTON are tokenized exposures whose behavior depends on product structure. They may be useful for price exposure in certain contexts, but they are not identical to owning the underlying shares.

In Actual Work: What This Comparison Is Commonly Used For

Portfolio building: deciding whether you want more consumer-cycle exposure (AAPL-leaning) or enterprise/cloud exposure (MSFT-leaning), and how to diversify within mega-cap tech.
Risk explanations for reports: translating stock moves into drivers (upgrade cycle vs. cloud growth) when writing weekly market updates.
Product research: evaluating tokenized-stock products by mapping “what it tracks” vs. “what you actually own,” so you can explain differences clearly to users or stakeholders.

Final takeaway

AAPL stock is ultimately a bet on premium consumer hardware economics amplified by an increasingly meaningful Services layer; MSFT stock is a bet on enterprise software recurrence and cloud platform expansion. Both have delivered strong long-run returns, both pay growing dividends, and both trade on Nasdaq—but they can behave differently when macro conditions or tech narratives change.

Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes and general research. It is not financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security or digital asset.

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