Return on investment (ROI) calculator

Find the gain, ROI and annualized return of an investment.

Enter your values and press Calculate. Your inputs stay in the address, so you can switch language or share the link.

Formula

ROI = (final value − investment) ÷ investment × 100 annualized = (final ÷ investment)^(1 ÷ years) − 1

How it works

ROI is the gain as a percentage of the amount invested. The annualized return spreads that growth evenly over the years so investments of different lengths can be compared.

Worked example

The same calculation with the default values:

  • Amount invested 10,000
  • Final value 14,500
  • Years held 3
  1. net gain = 14,500 − 10,000 = 4,500
  2. ROI = 4,500 ÷ 10,000 × 100 = 45%
  3. annualized = (14,500 ÷ 10,000)^(1 ÷ 3) − 1 = 13.18512%

Result: Net gain: 4,500.00 USD · Return on investment: 45% · Annualized return: 13.19%

Past returns are not a guide to future results. Fees and tax are not included.

Common mistakes

  • Comparing ROI figures across investments with very different time periods without also computing the annualized figure - a 20% return over 5 years is very different from 20% in one year, which is why both numbers are shown.
  • Forgetting to include all costs of the investment (fees, taxes on gains, maintenance) in the initial investment figure - omitted costs overstate the real return.
  • Treating ROI as risk-adjusted - it measures return only, not the risk taken to achieve it; two investments with the same ROI can carry very different risk.

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