Type in your numbers and watch the gap between "money you put in" and "money compounding did for you" grow. That gap is the entire point of investing early.
This is an estimate for planning purposes — it doesn't account for taxes, fees, or market volatility. Actual returns will vary.
| Year | Contributed | Growth | Balance |
|---|
Every month, two things happen to your balance: your new contribution gets added, and your entire balance — including last month's growth — earns another month of return. That second part is compounding, and it's why the growth line in the chart above barely moves for the first several years, then curves upward fast. Nothing changes about your behavior; the math just needs time to build on itself.
A common planning assumption is 6-7% annual return for a diversified stock portfolio after inflation, though the S&P 500's long-run nominal average is closer to 10%. Use a more conservative number if you want a margin of safety.
No — it shows gross growth before taxes, account fees, or fund expense ratios, so treat the result as an upper-bound estimate rather than a guarantee.
For long-term investing, quarterly or annually is usually enough — frequent checking tends to increase anxiety without improving your results.