Investment Calculator

Owning a time machine isn’t the only way to predict what your investments could be worth in the future. Our investment calculator can give you an idea of your earning potential. Plug in your numbers to get started.

Enter Your Information

If you were born in 1960 or later, you can retire at age 67 with full benefits.

$

This should be the total of all your investment accounts, including 401(k)s, IRAs, mutual funds, etc.

$

This is the amount you invest each month. We recommend investing 15% of your paycheck.

%

This is the return your investment will generate over time. Historically, the 30-year return of the S&P 500 has been roughly 10–12%.1

Your Results

Estimated Retirement Savings

In 0 years, your investment could be worth:

$0

Want to make a plan to meet your investment goals?
Are you saving enough to retire the way you want?
Scared to invest or feeling behind?
  • Initial Balance

    $ 0

    0% of Total

  • Contributions

    $ 0

    0% of Total

  • Growth

    $ 0

    0% of Total

What if I...

  • Saved an extra $100 per month.

    Adds $100 a month in contributions, but creates

    $0

    in additional growth

  • Gave up daily coffee purchases.

    Adds $128 a month in contributions, but creates

    $0

    in additional growth

  • Gave up weekly restaurant visits.

    Adds $200 a month in contributions, but creates

    $0

    in additional growth

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Ramsey SmartVestor

Navigate the Market With a SmartVestor Pro

You’ve got the numbers. Now it’s time to connect with a SmartVestor Pro. These pros teach and guide but won’t intimidate—so you can feel confident about investing, no matter what’s going on in the market. You got this!


Ramsey Solutions is a paid, non-client promoter of SmartVestor Pros. 
Learn more.

Ramsey SmartVestor

Navigate the Market With a SmartVestor Pro

You’ve got the numbers. Now it’s time to connect with a SmartVestor Pro. These pros teach and guide but won’t intimidate—so you can feel confident about investing, no matter what’s going on in the market. You got this!


Ramsey Solutions is a paid, non-client promoter of SmartVestor Pros. Learn more.



















 

A SmartVestor Pro Can Help You:

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Make an investing plan with your goals and the big picture in mind.

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Get clear on your options and ways to diversify your investments.

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Manage your investments and guide you in ways to help protect your nest egg.

Investing Terms

Investing terminology can be, well, confusing. And since we like to say, “Never invest in something you don’t understand,” here are some investing terms and what they mean.

The percentage rate that consumer prices—things like milk, eggs, gas and more—are expected to rise by in the future. For investing, the goal should be for your long-term investment performance to outpace inflation.

A goal that guides your investment decisions—like trying to retire at a certain age or leave a legacy for your loved ones. Your investment goals are based on things like your personal circumstances, age, risk tolerance and future money needs.

The amount of time you'll keep your money invested—for example, now through when you retire.

Different Types of Investments

There are a lot of different investment choices out there. Trying to learn about all of them could get overwhelming, so here's a list of the most common and how they work.

A bond is a type of loan between an investor and a corporate or government borrower that promises to repay the money with interest. Since they’re often backed by governments and guarantee a steady return, bonds are seen as a “safe” investment and attract a lot of investors.

But we don’t recommend betting your retirement on bonds because their returns just aren’t impressive, especially when compared to mutual funds, and bonds barely outpace inflation.

A certificate of deposit (CD) is a special kind of savings account that comes with a fixed interest rate. Basically, it’s like giving a bank or credit union a loan from your own pocket. In exchange for lending them a lump sum of your money for a fixed amount of time, they agree to pay you interest until the CD “matures” (that’s the term banks use for when a CD reaches its end date).  

But historically, their interest rates don’t keep up with inflation, which is what makes things more expensive over time. So, they’re not exactly a winning strategy for long-term investing.

Commodities are raw materials like gas, oil, beef, gold and grains. Commodities trading is when you buy and sell these things, and there are many ways to do that. The basic principles of supply and demand typically drive the commodities markets, but factors like weather or political turmoil can play a role in prices.

Exchange-traded products (ETPs) are a common method for buying and selling commodities. An investing pro can help you weigh the pros and cons—but we don’t recommend ETPs since we think the potential rewards don’t balance out the risk. 

Exchange-traded funds are funds that are traded on a stock market exchange. They generally mirror a market index, like the Dow Jones Industrial Average or the S&P 500, by investing in most or all of the company stocks included on that index. So they’re a lot like mutual funds, except they can be traded like stocks.

ETFs that average 10–12% average annual can be good to include in a taxable brokerage account as part of a long-term investing strategy (once you’ve maxed out retirement accounts like your 401(k) or Roth IRA).

Mutual funds are professionally managed investment portfolios that allow investors to pool their money together to invest in something. There are many different types out there that you can talk with an investing pro about. We generally recommend investing evenly across four different types of growth stock mutual funds: growth and income, growth, aggressive growth, and international funds.

Inside a typical growth stock mutual fund are stocks from dozens, sometimes hundreds, of different companies, so you’re basically buying bits and pieces of all those companies. Some of those company stocks go up while others go down, but the idea is that the overall value of the fund should go up and beat inflation over time.

Real estate investing comes in different shapes and sizes. You can purchase a home and live in it. You can purchase properties and rent them out. Or you can flip houses. The idea with any of these investment opportunities is to (hopefully) make a profit.

Your real estate investing funds should be separate from your retirement savings—that’s why we don’t include real estate as part of the investment calculator.

Stocks represent shares (or tiny pieces) of a company. When a company goes public, they sell these small shares to people to fund growth. Picture a big ol’ sheet cake that someone cuts up into lots of small squares. If you purchase one of those squares, you own that slice. When you buy stocks, you become a part owner of the company. Although we don’t recommend single stocks, we do recommend that you invest in growth stock mutual funds.

Common Questions (and Answers)

An investment calculator is a simple way to estimate how your money could grow if you keep investing at the rate you’re going right now. 

And you don’t have to figure all of this out on your own. Our SmartVestor program can set you up with an investment pro who’ll guide you through the investing process and help you understand what you’re investing in.

Some folks will need $10 million to have the kind of retirement lifestyle they’ve always dreamed about. Others can comfortably live out their golden years with a $1 million nest egg. There’s no right or wrong answer here—it all depends on how you want to live in retirement!

Got your vision? Figure out how much you’ll need to make it a reality.

Getting started with investing can be intimidating. You’re putting your hard-earned money on the line. But you can arm yourself with the right tools and knowledge to get started—no matter your age or how much you earn. Ready to learn more? Try these five steps to help you get started.

SmartVestor™ is an advertising and referral service for investment professionals operated by The Lampo Group, LLC d/b/a Ramsey Solutions (“Ramsey Solutions”). When you provide your contact information through the SmartVestor site, Ramsey Solutions will introduce you to up to five (5) investment professionals (“Pros”) that cover your geographic area. Each Pro has entered into an agreement with Ramsey Solutions under which the Pro pays Ramsey Solutions a combination of fees, including a flat monthly membership fee and a flat monthly territory fee to advertise the Pro’s services through SmartVestor and to receive client referrals from interested consumers who are located in the Pro’s geographic area. Each Pro may also, if applicable, pay Ramsey Solutions a one-time training fee.
 
The fees paid by the Pros to Ramsey Solutions are paid irrespective of whether you become a client of a Pro and are not passed along to you. However, you should understand that all of the Pros that are available through SmartVestor pay Ramsey Solutions fees to participate in the program. Further, the amount of compensation each Pro pays to Ramsey Solutions will vary based on certain factors, including whether the Pros choose to advertise in local or national markets. Ramsey Solutions has a financial incentive to present certain Pros that offer their services on a national basis (“National Pros”) more often than other National Pros that pay lower fees.
 
It is up to you to interview each Pro and decide whether you want to hire them. If you decide to hire a Pro, you will enter into an agreement directly with that Pro to provide you with investment services. Ramsey Solutions is not affiliated with the Pros and neither Ramsey Solutions nor any of its representatives are authorized to provide investment advice on behalf of a Pro or to act for or bind a Pro. Ramsey Solutions introduces you to Pros that cover your geographic area based on your zip code. Neither Ramsey Solutions nor its affiliates provide investment advice or recommendations as to the selection or retention of any Pro, nor does Ramsey Solutions evaluate whether any particular Pro is appropriate for you based on your investment objectives, financial situation, investment needs or other individual circumstances.
 
No investment advisory agreement with a Pro will become effective until accepted by that Pro. Ramsey Solutions does not warrant any services of any SmartVestor Pro and makes no claim or promise of any result or success by retaining a Pro. Your use of SmartVestor, including the decision to retain the services of a Pro, is at your sole discretion and risk. Any services rendered by a Pro are solely that of the Pro. The contact links provided connect to third-party websites. Ramsey Solutions and its affiliates are not responsible for the accuracy or reliability of any information contained on third-party websites. Each Pro has signed a Code of Conduct under which they have agreed to certain general investment principles, such as eliminating debt and investing for the longer-term, and, if applicable, have completed Ramsey Pro Training. However, Ramsey Solutions does not monitor or control the investment services the Pros provide.