Investment Return Calculator
What return did you really earn? A single "total return" hides the timing of your money. This works out your true annualised return - CAGR for a lump sum, or the money-weighted IRR once you add contributions over time.
Measures the raw return between money in and money out; excludes taxes, fees and inflation, which all lower your real return. IRR is solved by iteration - the annual rate that makes your contributions grow into the final value. Not investment advice.
Frequently asked
CAGR vs IRR - what is the difference?
CAGR (compound annual growth rate) is the smooth annual rate that turns a single starting amount into an ending amount - perfect for a one-off investment. But once you add money over time, CAGR breaks down, because it ignores when each dollar went in. IRR (internal rate of return), also called the money-weighted return, accounts for the timing of every contribution and is the honest annualised return on the money you actually invested. This calculator shows CAGR for lump sums and IRR the moment you add regular contributions.
Why can a simple return figure be misleading?
Say you turned 50,000 of contributions into 70,000 - a 40% "total return". Spread that over ten years and it sounds great, but if most of the money only went in during the last two years, its true annualised return is modest. A single total-return percentage hides the timing; the annualised money-weighted return (IRR) does not, which is why it is the number professionals use to judge performance.
What is a good annual return?
It depends on risk and time period, but for context: broad stock markets have delivered roughly 7-10% a year nominally over long stretches, bonds less, cash least. Beating those with lower risk is hard. Just as important, compare your return to inflation - a 6% return with 4% inflation is only about 2% in real terms. A growing balance that trails inflation is a real loss.
Does this account for taxes and fees?
No - it measures the raw return between what you put in and what you ended with. Your real, spendable return is lower once fees and taxes are deducted. A 1% annual fee, for example, can quietly erode a large share of your long-run return. To see the full picture, judge performance net of costs and after inflation, not on the headline number alone.
How is IRR calculated here?
It solves, by iteration, for the single monthly rate that makes the present value of all your contributions equal to your final value - then annualises it. In plain terms, it finds the constant annual return that, applied to each contribution from the day it was invested, would produce exactly the ending balance you entered. It is the standard, mathematically fair way to measure return when money goes in at different times.
Can Alvest track my real returns automatically?
Yes - it is the core of Alvest. It calculates the true, money-weighted return of your actual portfolio across every asset, and shows it in real, after-inflation terms, so you always know your genuine performance rather than a flattering headline. You can start free.