Investment Return Calculator
Work out the total return and annualized (CAGR) return on an investment, from what you put in to what it's worth now.
Total return vs. annualized return
These two numbers answer different questions, and mixing them up leads to bad comparisons. Total return is simply how much an investment grew in value over the whole period you held it — a straightforward percentage change from what you put in to what it's worth now. Annualized return, or CAGR (compound annual growth rate), smooths that same growth into an equivalent steady yearly rate, which is what makes it possible to fairly compare investments held for different lengths of time.
A 60% total return sounds identical whether it happened over 2 years or 10 years, but the annualized return tells a very different story: roughly 26% a year in the first case, versus about 4.8% a year in the second. This calculator computes both from just three numbers — what you started with, what it's worth now, and how long you held it — using the standard CAGR formula: (final ÷ initial)^(1 ÷ years) − 1.
What this doesn't capture
This calculator assumes a single lump-sum investment with no additional contributions or withdrawals along the way, and it doesn't smooth out volatility — two investments with the same CAGR can have had very different, and very different-feeling, rides to get there. It also doesn't account for taxes, fees, or inflation eating into the real return.
If you're modeling regular contributions growing forward rather than measuring a past or hypothetical result, the Compound Interest Calculator is the better tool. For a full retirement projection with contributions, see the Retirement Savings Calculator.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between total return and CAGR?
Total return is the overall percentage gain over the entire holding period, with no adjustment for how long that took. CAGR (annualized return) converts that into an equivalent constant yearly rate, which is the only fair way to compare investments held for different lengths of time.
Can I use this for a partial year, like 8 months?
Yes — enter the holding period as a fraction of a year, e.g. 0.67 for 8 months. The holding period field accepts decimals for exactly this reason.
Does this account for dividends or additional contributions?
No — this calculator measures the return between a single starting value and a single ending value only. If you made regular contributions along the way rather than one lump sum, use the Compound Interest Calculator instead, which is built for that case.
Why is my CAGR lower than my total return?
CAGR will always be lower than total return for holding periods longer than one year, because it's spreading the same overall gain across multiple years of compounding. For holding periods under a year, CAGR is actually higher than total return, since it's annualizing a shorter period upward.