ROI Calculator
Calculate your Return on Investment for any asset. Enter an investment value or a specific stock trade — and see your annualized return (CAGR) compared against the S&P 500.
Investment details
Return on Investment
+50.00%
+14.47% / yr annualized (CAGR)
Total gain
+$5,000.00
Money multiple
1.50x
$10,000.00 → $15,000.00
CAGR
+14.47%
per year
vs. S&P 500 benchmark
✓ Beat marketYou outperformed the S&P 500 by 16.90 percentage points over this period.
What is ROI?
Return on Investment (ROI) measures how much money you made (or lost) relative to what you put in: ROI = (Final Value − Initial Value) / Initial Value × 100. A 50% ROI means you turned $10,000 into $15,000. Simple — but it doesn't tell you how fast you got there.
Why CAGR matters more than total ROI
Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) normalizes returns across time: CAGR = (FV / IV)^(1/years) − 1. A 50% total ROI over 10 years is a modest 4.1%/yr CAGR. The same 50% over 2 years is a 22.5%/yr CAGR — an exceptional performance. CAGR lets you compare any investment on an equal footing.
Beating the S&P 500
The S&P 500 has returned roughly 10%/yr before inflation over long periods. This is the benchmark most professional fund managers fail to beat consistently. If your CAGR exceeds 10%, you're outperforming the market — and likely most actively managed funds. If not, a low-cost index ETF (like VOO or SPY) may be worth considering.
The asymmetry of losses
One of the most important and counterintuitive facts in investing: losses and gains are not symmetric. Lose 50% and you need a 100% gain just to break even. Lose 20% and you need +25%. This asymmetry is why protecting against large drawdowns matters as much as chasing large gains.
For educational purposes only. Not financial advice. Past returns do not guarantee future results.