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Investment Projection Calculator

Project an investment portfolio over time. Adjust contributions, return, fees, and inflation to see what your money is really worth at the finish line.

Last reviewed: · Reviewed by the Money Scale editorial team · How we source our data

Power mode. Every input exposed, every assumption sourced, charts and shareables.

Investment Projection
The simple "what does $X/month become?" projection. No comparison, no fees — just the trajectory.

$1,000

$500

30 years

7.75% annually

Ending balance

$718,577

You invested

$181,000

Growth

$537,577

0y1y2y3y4y5y6y7y8y9y10y11y12y13y14y15y16y17y18y19y20y21y22y23y24y25y26y27y28y30y$0$200K$400K$600K$800K

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💰 $718,577

$1,000 start + $500/mo for 30 years at 7.75%

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The Investment Projection Calculator models a portfolio over time with contributions, expected return, fees, and inflation — and shows BOTH the nominal ending balance (the big number) and the inflation-adjusted real-dollar ending balance (the honest number). Every default value is sourced (S&P 500 long-run return per NYU Stern, CPI inflation per BLS), so the math reflects what historical markets have actually done.

Free, private, and no signup

Money Scale is built the opposite way from the big finance sites: the numbers you enter never leave your device, and there's nothing to sign up for.

  • Your numbers stay privateEvery calculation runs in your browser. We never receive or store your salary, balances, or inputs.
  • Always freeNo paywall, no upsell to a calculator that actually works.
  • No login, no emailUse every tool instantly — we never gate results behind a signup.
  • Sourced defaultsStarting rates and assumptions cite real data, not made-up numbers.

How this calculator works

  1. Enter your current portfolio balance (use $0 if you're starting from scratch).
  2. Set your monthly contribution. Even small amounts compound meaningfully over decades.
  3. Pick an annual return. 7% real / 10% nominal is the long-run US stock average; use lower numbers if you hold meaningful bonds.
  4. Add expected fees. Broad-market index funds (VTI, VOO, similar) are 0.03%–0.20%. Anything above 0.5% is worth questioning.
  5. Set your inflation assumption (3% long-run) and time horizon. The chart compares nominal vs real-dollar growth side-by-side.

FV = P × (1 + r − f)^t + C × [((1 + r − f)^t − 1) / (r − f)] × 12

Standard future-value of an annuity with an initial principal. We apply fees as a return drag (r − f) and inflation-adjust the ending balance separately so the 'real dollars' view shows what the future balance is actually worth in today's purchasing power.

FV
Future portfolio value
P
Initial principal
C
Monthly contribution
r
Annual return before fees
f
Annual fee drag
t
Years invested

Frequently asked questions

Each year your returns earn returns of their own. Over decades this snowballs, which is why starting early matters more than picking the perfect investment.

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Sources
Every default value is sourced. Verify anything.
National Avg Savings APY — 0.38% (as of May 2026)FDIC National Rates and Rate Caps High-Yield Savings (typical) — 4% (as of May 2026)FDIC National Rates + reported HYSA APY (top online banks) S&P 500 — 10% (as of 2026 (1928–2025 dataset))NYU Stern (Damodaran) — S&P 500 Annual Returns 1928–2025 Total US Stock Market — 9.7% (as of 2026)CRSP US Total Market Index (long-run avg) 10-Year Treasuries — 4.5% (as of May 2026)Federal Reserve FRED — 10-Year Treasury (DGS10) US Real Estate — 4.2% (as of 2026)S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US National Home Price Index (FRED) Gold — 7.8% (as of 2026)World Gold Council historical price data Long-run CPI Inflation — 3% (as of 2026)Bureau of Labor Statistics — CPI-U (long-run avg) 30-Year Fixed Mortgage — 6.36% (as of May 2026)Freddie Mac PMMS — 30-Year Fixed Rate Mortgage Average Credit Card APR (avg, accounts assessed interest) — 21.52% (as of May 2026 release (March 2026 data))Federal Reserve G.19 — Consumer Credit Auto Loan (60-month new car, avg) — 7.52% (as of May 2026 release (March 2026 data))Federal Reserve G.19 — Consumer Credit Personal Loan (24-month unsecured, avg) — 11.4% (as of May 2026 release (March 2026 data))Federal Reserve G.19 — Consumer Credit Federal Direct Subsidized/Unsubsidized (Undergrad) — 6.52% (as of AY 2026-27)US Dept of Education — Interest Rates and Fees for Federal Student Loans HELOC (typical introductory rate) — 7.26% (as of May 2026)Bankrate — Current HELOC Rates 12-month CD (top online rate, typical) — 4.1% (as of May 2026)FDIC + reported top online CD rates Mortgage Refinance Closing Costs (typical) — 3% (as of 2026)Freddie Mac — Cost of Refinancing College Tuition Inflation (long-run avg) — 4% (as of AY 2025-26 (Nov 2025 publication))College Board — Trends in College Pricing 2025