Investment Calculator
See how your investments grow over time. Project the future value of a lump sum or regular monthly contributions, compare what you put in against your investment gains, track your portfolio against milestones, or solve the monthly amount needed to reach a goal — with growth charts, an annualized return and a printable report.
| Year | Total Contributions | Investment Gain | Ending Balance |
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How Investment Growth Works
Three steps from a starting amount to a full future value, gain total and growth timeline.
Choose a one-time lump sum, regular monthly investing, a portfolio combining both, or solve the monthly amount needed to reach a target. Pick the mode at the top.
Add your initial investment, monthly contribution, expected annual return and investment period. Optionally add an inflation rate to see real purchasing power.
Get the future value, investment gain, growth multiple and annualized return, plus contribution-vs-gain charts, milestones and a full yearly table. Download a clean PDF report or copy the summary in one tap.
Investment Growth Projection
Model a lump sum, regular monthly investing, a combined portfolio, or reverse-engineer the monthly amount needed to hit a target.
Charts and milestones show exactly when your investment gains overtake the money you put in and become the bigger half of your portfolio.
Everything runs in your browser — no sign-up, nothing sent anywhere, and results update the moment you press Calculate.
Export a polished, branded report with your inputs, investment summary, growth charts, milestones and a full yearly table.
See your annualized return (CAGR) and the inflation-adjusted value, so you understand both the rate and the real buying power of your gains.
Know the number you're aiming for? The Goal-Based mode tells you exactly how much to invest each month to get there.
Related Finance Calculators
Round out your money plan with these companion tools.
Investment glossary
The key ideas behind investment growth, in plain language.
Investment Calculator for Building Wealth
Investing turns the money you set aside today into something larger by putting it to work in assets that grow and compound. This calculator shows that journey clearly: enter what you start with, what you add over time and a realistic return, and it projects the future value of your portfolio along with the investment gain your money earned on its own.
Start with an initial investment and an expected annual return, then add a monthly contribution if you invest regularly. The tool compounds monthly and reports your annualized return (CAGR) — the steady yearly rate equivalent to your total growth — so you can compare scenarios of different lengths on equal footing. Because prices rise over time, it also shows the inflation-adjusted value, the real purchasing power of your portfolio in today's dollars.
The contributions-versus-gains chart makes the most important lesson visible: over long horizons, the gains your investments generate usually become the majority of your balance, often far more than the money you actually contributed. That is the power of compounding, and the earlier you start, the more dramatic the effect.
If you have a specific number in mind, the Goal-Based mode works backwards: tell it the amount you want to reach and your timeframe, and it solves for the monthly contribution required to get there. Whether you are building a portfolio from scratch, investing a windfall, or topping up regularly, you get a concrete plan rather than a vague ambition.
For a complete financial picture, pair this with the rest of the suite: model pure growth with the Compound Interest Calculator, plan your nest egg with the Retirement Calculator, measure performance with the ROI Calculator, set a concrete target with the Savings Goal Calculator, or plan a home purchase with the Mortgage Calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions
The short, practical answers investors ask most.
Future value is the projected worth of your investment at the end of the period. It compounds your initial investment and any monthly contributions at your expected annual return — each period's gain is added to the balance before the next is calculated, so growth accelerates over time. This calculator compounds monthly and adds contributions at the end of each month.
Historically, a broadly diversified stock portfolio has returned roughly 7–10% per year before inflation over long periods, though individual years vary widely and past performance does not guarantee future results. Bonds and cash typically return less. A common conservative planning assumption is 6–7%; use a figure that matches your asset mix and risk tolerance.
Total return is the overall percentage your investment grew across the whole period. Annualized return (CAGR) is the equivalent steady yearly rate that would produce that same final value, which makes investments of different lengths comparable. This calculator reports both your total gain and the annualized return.
Inflation reduces the purchasing power of money over time, so a portfolio that grows in nominal terms may buy less than the raw number suggests. The inflation-adjusted (real) value shows what your future balance is worth in today's dollars. Your real return is roughly your nominal return minus the inflation rate.
Investing a lump sum immediately gives your money the most time to compound, which historically tends to outperform spreading it out. Investing monthly (dollar-cost averaging) smooths out market-timing risk and fits how most people earn and save. This calculator lets you model a lump sum, regular monthly contributions, or both together.
It depends on your goal, timeframe and expected return. Use the Goal-Based mode to enter a target amount and your timeframe, and the calculator solves for the monthly contribution needed to reach it. As a guideline, investing a consistent amount early and increasing it over time compounds into far more than starting larger but later.