Investment Growth Calculator
See how much your investments will grow, in real dollars as well as nominal ones
Your investment plan
That is $6,000 a year
Leave at 0 to skip the real-dollar view. The Bank of Canada targets 2%.
A fund's MER comes off your return every year, good year or bad.
Contributions versus growth
Where the money came from
Year by year
| Year | Contributions to date | Growth | Balance | In today's dollars |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $6,000 | $1,710 | $32,710 | $32,068 |
| 2 | $12,000 | $3,895 | $40,895 | $39,307 |
| 3 | $18,000 | $6,585 | $49,585 | $46,725 |
| 4 | $24,000 | $9,811 | $58,811 | $54,332 |
| 5 | $30,000 | $13,606 | $68,606 | $62,139 |
| 6 | $36,000 | $18,006 | $79,006 | $70,155 |
| 7 | $42,000 | $23,046 | $90,046 | $78,391 |
| 8 | $48,000 | $28,768 | $101,768 | $86,858 |
| 9 | $54,000 | $35,212 | $114,212 | $95,568 |
| 10 | $60,000 | $42,425 | $127,425 | $104,533 |
| 11 | $66,000 | $50,452 | $141,452 | $113,764 |
| 12 | $72,000 | $59,344 | $156,344 | $123,276 |
| 13 | $78,000 | $69,155 | $172,155 | $133,081 |
| 14 | $84,000 | $79,940 | $188,940 | $143,193 |
| 15 | $90,000 | $91,762 | $206,762 | $153,627 |
| 16 | $96,000 | $104,682 | $225,682 | $164,397 |
| 17 | $102,000 | $118,769 | $245,769 | $175,519 |
| 18 | $108,000 | $134,096 | $267,096 | $187,010 |
| 19 | $114,000 | $150,737 | $289,737 | $198,885 |
| 20 | $120,000 | $168,776 | $313,776 | $211,162 |
| 21 | $126,000 | $188,296 | $339,296 | $223,860 |
| 22 | $132,000 | $209,391 | $366,391 | $236,996 |
| 23 | $138,000 | $232,157 | $395,157 | $250,591 |
| 24 | $144,000 | $256,697 | $425,697 | $264,665 |
| 25 | $150,000 | $283,121 | $458,121 | $279,239 |
How investment growth is calculated
This calculator compounds your starting amount and every contribution at the return you enter, net of any fee, then optionally discounts the result back to today's dollars. It is the same engine as the future value calculator, with fees and inflation added.
How it works
Your initial amount compounds at the rate you set, for as many periods as the compounding frequency implies. Each contribution is added at the end of its period and compounds from that point on, which is the standard ordinary annuity treatment and the conservative one: a deposit made on the last day of the month earns nothing that month. The annual fee is subtracted from the return before anything compounds. A 7% return with a 2% MER compounds at 5%. That is not a rounding detail. Over 25 years on $10,000, the difference between 7% and 5% is roughly $20,000, which is why the fee cost is shown as a dollar figure rather than left as a percentage. If you enter an inflation rate, the final balance is divided by (1 + inflation) raised to the number of years. That converts a future dollar amount into what it would buy today, which is the only version of the number that is comparable to your current salary or expenses.
Nominal and real returns
A nominal return is the raw percentage. A real return is what is left after inflation, and it is the one that determines whether you can buy more than you can today. A portfolio earning 6% while inflation runs at 2% is growing at roughly 4% in real terms. This matters most over long periods. At 2% inflation, a dollar loses about a third of its purchasing power over 20 years. A projection that shows a large nominal number without the real one beside it flatters the plan.
Assumptions and limits
The return is assumed to be steady every single year. Real markets are not, and the order in which good and bad years arrive changes the outcome when you are also withdrawing money. For a savings projection the smooth assumption is reasonable; for a retirement drawdown it is not, and the retirement payout calculator handles that case. No tax is applied. Inside a TFSA, RRSP or FHSA that is correct. In a non-registered account it is not: interest and dividends are taxed as you earn them and capital gains are taxed when you sell, so a taxable account will finish below this projection. Contributions are assumed to be the same amount forever. If you plan to raise them with your income, run the calculator again with a higher figure to see the range rather than trying to average it.
Related calculators
Explore these complementary tools to go further:
- Project investment growth with custom contributions
- Compare compound interest at any frequency
- See the real value of your dollar using Bank of Canada CPI
- Calculate your TFSA contribution room and tax-free growth
- Estimate your RRSP tax refund and contribution room
- Plan how much you need to save for retirement with personalized projections
Frequently Asked Questions
Last updated: July 2026
It depends almost entirely on three numbers: what you start with, what you add, and the return net of fees. As an illustration, $25,000 plus $500 a month at a 6% net return compounds to roughly $325,000 over 20 years, of which about $145,000 is the money you put in and the rest is growth. Change the return to 4% and the same plan finishes near $260,000. That spread is why the fee input matters as much as the return input.
There is no single right answer, and any calculator that gives you one is overselling. What is defensible is to run the projection at more than one rate and look at the range: a conservative case, a middle case and an optimistic one. The important discipline is to enter a return net of fees, because published fund returns are already after the MER while a market index return is not.
Reviewed by Alexandre Bernier, CFP®, CIM®
Educational tool - estimates only. Not individualized financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. Using it does not create an advisor-client relationship. Rules and figures change; verify against current CRA sources and consult a qualified professional. Editorial policy →