Annualized Return Calculator
A return calculator that finds your annualized return (CAGR). Enter what you first invested, what it's worth now, and how long you held it to instantly get your annualized compound return. See your total return, gain or loss, and how many times your money grew, perfect for turning 'doubled in 3 years' into a clear yearly rate.
What is annualized return (CAGR)?
Annualized return turns a multi-year result into a single number: the steady yearly rate that would have grown your money the same way. Its formal name is CAGR (compound annual growth rate), and it summarizes bumpy performance as one clean per-year figure.
Say $3,000 became $6,000 after three years. The total return is 100%, but the annualized rate is about 26% — not 33% (100% ÷ 3). Because compounding stacks each year's gain on top of the last, simply dividing by the number of years overstates the real rate.
All you need is start, end, and time
Enter your starting amount, its current value, and how long you held it, and the annualized return appears instantly. You can switch the period between years and months, so odd spans like 3 years 6 months are handled exactly.
The result also shows your total return over the whole period, the total gain or loss, and how many times your money grew. If the ending amount is smaller than the start, the loss (a negative return) is calculated too and shown in red.
When to use it
It's handy when you're unsure what 'doubled in 3 years' means per year, when you want to compare two investments held for different lengths of time fairly, or when you want to see how your fund or stock account did against a benchmark like a savings account or the S&P 500.
The result shows your annualized return alongside the total return over the whole period, your total gain or loss, and how many times your money grew. Real investing zigzags, but over a long horizon this is the yearly pace your money effectively grew at.