Turn a starting value and an ending value into the numbers that matter: total return %, annualized return (CAGR) and total profit. Add contributions to see your true money-in vs. money-out result.
When you tell someone your investment "doubled," you are quoting a total return. But doubling in 2 years is a spectacular result, while doubling in 25 years barely keeps up with a savings account. That is why serious investors compare returns using an annualized return, also called the compound annual growth rate, or CAGR. This calculator gives you both, plus the raw profit in dollars.
Total return is the simplest measure of how an investment did over its whole life:
Total Return % = (Final Value − Initial Value) ÷ Initial Value × 100
If you put in $10,000 and ended with $18,000, your total return is ($18,000 − $10,000) ÷ $10,000 = 80%. Simple, but it hides one crucial detail: how long it took.
CAGR smooths the whole journey into one constant yearly growth rate:
CAGR = (Final ÷ Initial)(1 ÷ years) − 1
That same 80% gain earned over 5 years works out to a CAGR of about 12.5% per year. CAGR is the number to use when you compare a stock you held for 3 years against an index fund you held for 11 — it strips out the effect of different time spans so you are comparing like with like.
Worked example: $10,000 grows to $18,000 over 5 years. Total return = 80%, profit = $8,000, and the annualized return (CAGR) = 12.47% per year. A bank paying 12.47% compounded annually would land you in exactly the same place.
Real portfolios rarely sit untouched — you usually add money along the way. Toggle "Add contributions" and the calculator computes your profit and return against all the money you actually put in, not just the starting balance. Note that CAGR is most meaningful for a single lump sum left alone; with steady deposits, a money-weighted measure like IRR is more precise, but the simple return on total invested is a clear, honest figure for most people. To model a regular-deposit plan from scratch, use our dollar-cost averaging calculator.
Broad stock indexes have historically returned somewhere around 7–10% annualized over long stretches, but any single year can be wildly different. A 30% gain one year and a 20% loss the next do not average to +5% — compounded, they leave you down about 4%. Annualized return captures that compounding reality, which is exactly the kind of math that trips up beginners. Feel how volatile single-year returns can be, risk-free, in our stock market simulator.
Reality check: past returns never guarantee future results, and these figures ignore taxes, fees and inflation. This tool is for education only and is not financial advice — see the U.S. SEC at investor.gov.
Next, project future growth with the compound interest calculator, or check whether selling at a profit is worth the fees using the stock profit calculator.
Total return is the overall percentage gain or loss across the whole holding period. Annualized return (CAGR) is the constant yearly rate that would turn your starting value into your ending value over the same years. A 100% total return over 10 years is only about 7.2% per year annualized.
CAGR = (Final Value / Initial Value)^(1/years) − 1. It assumes smooth compounded growth each year, making it the fairest single number for comparing investments held for different lengths of time.
Yes. Toggle contributions on and enter the total you added over the period. The calculator then computes your simple profit and total return on all money invested. CAGR is most meaningful with no mid-period contributions, so it is reported on the initial value.
Yes. It runs in your browser with no account and no data leaves your device. Results are educational estimates, not financial advice.