Solves in three directions
Find the rate from two values, the future value from a rate, or how many years a target needs. Same screen, no switching pages.
CAGR Calculator – Compound Annual Growth Rate
Work out the compound annual growth rate between any two values, or flip the calculation round to find the future value or the time an investment needs. You also get the total return, the growth multiple, the inflation-adjusted real CAGR, the doubling time and a year-by-year table you can copy.
Three modesReal (inflation-adjusted) CAGRYear-by-year tableDoubling timeNothing is uploaded
Compound annual growth rate
0per year
This is a maths tool, not investment advice. Past growth never guarantees future growth, and a single smoothed rate hides every good and bad year in between.
What this CAGR calculator adds
A compound annual growth rate is one line of algebra. What most calculators leave out is everything you need to interpret it.
Real return after inflation
Enter an inflation rate and see the real CAGR calculated properly with the Fisher relation, not by simply subtracting one number from the other.
Year-by-year breakdown
A table and chart show the smoothed value at the end of every year, along with the gain each year adds, so the compounding is visible rather than implied.
Doubling time included
See exactly how long the money takes to double at that rate, next to the Rule of 72 shortcut so you can judge how good the shortcut is.
The working, written out
The formula is shown with your own numbers substituted in, which is what you need for a report, an assignment or a client explanation.
Private and instant
Your figures are calculated in the browser and never sent anywhere. No account, no limits, and it works with the connection off.
How to calculate CAGR
CAGR = (Ending value ÷ Starting value)1 ÷ years − 1 → expressed as a percentage
Pick what you are solving for
Use Find CAGR when you know both values and the period, Find future value when you know a rate, and Find time needed when you have a target.
Enter the two values
Starting value is what the investment, revenue or user count was at the beginning; ending value is what it is now. Use the same units for both.
Count the years carefully
Use the number of years between the two points, not the number of data points. Five annual figures from 2021 to 2025 span four years of growth, not five.
Add inflation if you want the real rate
A nominal 12% with 6% inflation is not a real 6%. The calculator applies the correct compounding adjustment for you.
Read the extra measures
Total return tells you how much it grew overall; CAGR tells you the pace. The growth multiple and doubling time make the same result easier to explain.
Copy the result
Take the headline figure and the key numbers with you into a spreadsheet, report or note.
CAGR compared with other return measures
CAGRThe single constant rate that would take you from the start value to the end value. Smooths out every year in between.
(FV/PV)^(1/n) - 1Total returnThe overall percentage change with no reference to time. Useful for headlines, useless for comparing periods of different lengths.
Average annual returnThe simple mean of yearly returns. Always equal to or higher than CAGR when returns vary, which is why it flatters volatile investments.
Real CAGRGrowth after inflation.
((1 + nominal) / (1 + inflation)) - 1, which is slightly lower than just subtracting the two rates.XIRR / money-weighted returnThe right measure when money was added or withdrawn during the period. CAGR assumes a single lump sum left alone.
Rule of 72A shortcut for doubling time: divide 72 by the growth rate. Close enough between roughly 5% and 15%, and shown here beside the exact figure.
What people use it for
- Compare two investments held for different lengths of time on an equal footing.
- Report revenue, subscriber or user growth over several years in one clean figure.
- Check whether a fund actually beat inflation once the real rate is worked out.
- Work backwards to the return a goal requires before deciding it is realistic.
- Estimate how long a lump sum needs to reach a target at a given rate.
- Sanity-check a headline return that quotes a total gain without mentioning the period.
- Build the growth assumptions behind a business plan or valuation model.
CAGR calculator FAQ
CAGR stands for compound annual growth rate. It is the single constant yearly rate that would have taken a value from its starting point to its ending point over the period, assuming the growth compounded each year. Because it removes the noise of individual good and bad years, it is the standard way to compare investments, revenue lines or any quantity measured over different time spans.
Divide the ending value by the starting value, raise the result to the power of one divided by the number of years, then subtract one. Multiply by a hundred to get a percentage. For example, 100,000 growing to 260,000 over eight years gives a CAGR of about 12.7% a year.
The average annual return is just the mean of each year’s percentage change, while CAGR is the compounded rate that actually connects the start and end values. When returns swing about, the average is always the higher of the two: a year of positive fifty per cent followed by a year of negative fifty per cent averages zero, but the CAGR is negative because the money really did shrink by a quarter.
No, it only means anything against a benchmark. A growth rate that looks strong for a bond fund is weak for an early-stage company, and any rate below inflation is a real loss whatever the headline says. Compare the figure with a relevant index, the inflation rate for the same period and the risk that was taken to get it.
Yes. If the ending value is lower than the starting value, the compound rate is negative and describes the yearly pace of the decline. The calculator handles that normally. What it cannot handle is a starting value of zero or a negative value, because there is no meaningful ratio between them.
Count the gaps between your two dates, not the data points. Figures for 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 look like five years but represent four years of growth, and using five understates the rate. Part years are fine here: eighteen months is 1.5.
Not accurately. CAGR assumes one lump sum left untouched, so it cannot account for money paid in or taken out along the way. For regular contributions use an SIP or compound interest calculation, and for irregular cash flows use XIRR, which weights every deposit by how long it was invested.
Divide one plus the nominal rate by one plus the inflation rate, then subtract one. Simply subtracting inflation from the nominal rate is a common shortcut but it slightly overstates the real return, and the gap widens as both rates rise. Enter an inflation figure above and the real rate is worked out for you.
Turn two numbers into a rate you can compare
CAGR, total return, real return after inflation, doubling time and the full year-by-year table. Free, unlimited and private.