See how your savings and investments grow over time with compound interest and regular monthly contributions.
Future value in 20 years
at 7% annual return, compounded monthly
Contributions vs. Interest Earned
Assumes monthly compounding with contributions added at the end of each month. Actual returns vary year to year.
With excellent credit you're paying minimal interest on debt, which leaves more to invest. The longer your money compounds, the more powerful it becomes — see how it adds up for retirement with our retirement calculator.
Compound interest is interest earned on both your original money and the interest it has already earned. Over time this snowball effect accelerates — the longer your money stays invested, the larger the share of growth that comes from interest rather than your own contributions.
Starting early matters more than starting big. A dollar invested today has decades to compound, while a dollar invested later has only a few years. Even modest monthly contributions can grow into a substantial sum given enough time.
Compounding works in reverse on debt. Every dollar paid in credit card or loan interest is a dollar that can't compound for you. Improving your credit or consolidating debt frees up cash that can be invested instead.
The U.S. stock market has historically returned roughly 10% per year before inflation, or about 7% after. Conservative savers may use 4–5%; this calculator lets you model any rate so you can compare optimistic and cautious scenarios.