Finance

Annualized Rate of Return Calculator

Calculate the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of any investment.

Formula:
CAGR = (Ending / Beginning)^(1/Years) − 1
Total Return = (Ending − Beginning) / Beginning × 100

CAGR vs Average Return

CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) shows the smooth annual rate that gets you from the beginning value to the ending value. It's different from arithmetic average return because it accounts for compounding.

Example

An investment that grows $10,000 to $18,000 over 5 years has a CAGR of 12.47%. This means the investment grew as if it earned exactly 12.47% every year, even though actual yearly returns likely varied.

CAGR Benchmarks

AssetHistorical CAGR
S&P 500 (1957-2024)~10.5%
US Real Estate~3.8%
US Bonds (Agg)~5.3%
Gold~7.5%
Inflation (CPI)~3.3%