Estimate simple investment performance from starting value, ending value, years, contributions, and withdrawals.
$10,000 to $16,000 over 5 years
This is a quick return check, not a time-weighted return, money-weighted return, IRR, XIRR, tax report, fee-adjusted statement, inflation-adjusted result, or investment recommendation.
Estimate average annual return from a beginning and ending value.
Adjust a simple return for extra contributions or withdrawals.
Compare simple average return with a basic CAGR check.
Check rough investment performance without saving personal data.
$4,000 net gain, 33.33% cumulative return, and 6.67% simple average return
$4,500 net gain and 4.02% simple average return
50% cumulative return and 14.47% CAGR
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Plain-language answers about when to use the estimate, what your numbers mean, what is left out, and how privacy works.
Use it when you want to test the exact inputs on this page: Estimate average annual return from a beginning and ending value. Adjust a simple return for extra contributions or withdrawals. The result is a check against your assumptions, not proof that a lender, tax app, broker, platform, or provider will use the same number.
Starting value means the account or investment value at the beginning of the period. Ending value means the value at the end of the period before this quick return check. Years means the full length of the measurement period. Contributions means money added during the period. This quick estimate does not know the exact dates of each deposit. Withdrawals means money removed during the period. The calculator adds it back when finding net gain.
No. Simple average annual return divides cumulative return by years. CAGR shows the steady yearly growth rate from starting value to ending value, but this calculator does not adjust CAGR for contribution or withdrawal timing.
Money you add is not investment growth. The calculator subtracts contributions when finding net gain so a deposit is not counted as return.
Use IRR or XIRR when cash-flow timing matters, such as many deposits and withdrawals on different dates. This page is a quick estimate, not a money-weighted performance report.
In plain language: Net gain = ending value + withdrawals - starting value - contributions. Cumulative return divides net gain by starting value plus contributions. Simple average annual return divides cumulative return by years. CAGR compares starting value with ending value only, so it is not cash-flow adjusted. For the $10,000 to $16,000 example with $2,000 added, net gain is $4,000. The invested base is $12,000, so cumulative return is 33.33% and simple average annual return over 5 years is 6.67%.
Read net gain first, then cumulative return, then simple average annual return. Use CAGR as a separate growth-rate check, especially when there were no deposits or withdrawals.
This is a simple return check, not a full performance report. It does not calculate time-weighted return, money-weighted return, XIRR, exact cash-flow timing, dividends, fees, taxes, inflation, volatility, benchmark fit, or investment suitability. For official statements, fund comparisons, tax reports, or uneven cash flows, use broker records, fund reports, or an IRR/XIRR method instead of this shortcut.
Check whether deposits, withdrawals, dividends, fees, taxes, and the time period are entered the same way for every investment you compare.
No. The calculator runs in your browser tab. Recent answers stay only on the page while you use it, and they are not sent to a server.