MSCI Data

Download MSCI Datasets, Index and Glossary

CFA Institute Research Foundation provides CFA members complimentary access to a range of leading indexes from MSCI. These indexes encompass several regions and markets and are available in five separate files: Climate & ESG; Factors; Market Cap; Sectors; and Thematic. All the data is in USD.

All files have the same format:

Date: dd/mm/yyyy format, as of the last business day of the month
Code: MSCI reference
Index name: self-explanatory
Index variant: STDR (price return), GRTR (gross return) and NETR (net return)
Index level: self-explanatory

NOTE: “Price return” includes stock price performance only. “Gross return” includes stock price and gross dividend income performance. “Net return” includes stock price and net dividend income performance, which includes the impact of taxes on dividends)

These monthly index levels can facilitate a wide range of return-based calculations, from simple monthly performance to annualized returns. For example:

Monthly performance for December 2021 = (Index level End of December 2021 - Index level November 2021) / Index level End of November 21
10-year annualized performance as of December 2021 = (Index level End of December 2021 / Index level End of December 2011) ^ (1/10) -1
NOTE: “-” = minus; “/” = divided by; “^” = to the power of

By using these calculations, it is possible to compare results between indexes and to calculate additional risk measures, such as volatility. The inclusion of price and gross returns may also facilitate the calculation of dividend income for each index.

For more details on performance calculations and MSCI’s construction methodologies relating to these indexes, please refer to MSCI’s website.