CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) is the single steady annual return that would take your portfolio from today’s value to your target over a set number of years. Enter three numbers below — the calculator shows the rate your goal actually requires, with an honest check of how realistic it is. Everything runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
Your goal
This calculator provides mathematical context only. It is not investment advice, and modelled returns do not guarantee future results. Capital at risk.
What is CAGR — and why it’s the honest way to state a goal
CAGR is the smoothed annual rate of growth between two points in time — as if your portfolio grew by exactly the same percentage every year, without the ups and downs. Instead of “I want to 4× my money,” CAGR tells you what that wish actually demands: the yearly return required, which you can then compare against reality.
How should you read the result?
Use it as a reality check, not a plan. As a rough compass: globally diversified equity portfolios have historically delivered mid-single-digit real returns over long horizons — so a goal that requires 15%+ every year for a decade isn’t a plan, it’s a hope. If the required rate looks too high, the honest levers are a longer horizon, larger contributions, or a smaller target — not a riskier portfolio chosen after the fact.
What this calculator deliberately doesn’t do
It isolates the pure growth rate — no contributions, no fees, no inflation. That’s the point: one clean number. If you invest monthly, your required CAGR is lower than shown (new money does part of the work). And remember that platform and fund fees come straight out of whatever the market gives you — our fee-drag analysis covers how much that matters over 20 years. For the return you’ve actually earned so far — deposits included — that’s a different metric (XIRR), and a different calculator.
There’s no universal “good” — context is everything. As a historical reference point, broadly diversified global equity portfolios have delivered mid-single-digit real (after-inflation) returns over long periods. A goal requiring far more than that, every year, deserves a rethink of the horizon or the contributions rather than a riskier portfolio.
No — deliberately. It isolates the pure growth rate between two values. If you add money regularly, the return you actually need is lower than the number shown, because contributions do part of the work. Our regular investing calculator models that case.
No. CAGR describes a smooth hypothetical path between two points. Your real portfolio zig-zags, and if you’ve made deposits along the way, your money-weighted return (XIRR) is the honest measure of what your pounds earned.
Yes — the calculator runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is uploaded, stored, or sent to any server. Close the tab, and it’s gone.
About this tool
- All computation happens locally in your browser using JavaScript — no data is uploaded, stored or sent anywhere.
- This calculator provides mathematical context only. It is not investment advice, and modelled returns do not guarantee future results. Capital at risk.