Dollar-cost averaging calculator
Put the same amount in every month and time in the market does the rest. This projects it honestly: invested and growth shown separately, at a constant assumed return that reality will not match year to year.
The projection
Projected value$60,618after 15 years
- You put in
- $37,000
- Growth
- $23,618
- Value at year 5
- $15,303
- Value at year 10
- $34,595
- Value at year 15
- $60,618
Estimate
workingfigures.com/calculators/dca-calculator
Formula
value(m) = value(m−1) × (1 + r/12) + monthly, iterated month by month; invested = initial + monthly × months; growth = value − invested.
Assumptions
A CONSTANT return, compounded monthly, contributions at month end, no fees, no taxes, no inflation adjustment. Real markets deliver the average through violent detours; the projection is a planning anchor, not a promise, and this is general information, not investment advice.
FAQ
- What return should I assume?
- Long-run diversified stock-index returns have averaged around 7% nominal before fees, but any single decade can sit far from that. Running 4%, 6% and 8% and planning around the low case is saner than betting on one number.
- Is dollar-cost averaging better than investing a lump sum?
- Statistically a lump sum invested immediately wins about two times in three, because markets rise more often than not. DCA wins psychologically: it removes the timing decision and keeps people invested through drops, and for money that arrives monthly (a salary, freelance income) it is simply the only option.
- Does this include fees and taxes?
- No. Fund fees compound against you the same way returns compound for you: at 30 years, a 1% yearly fee eats roughly a quarter of the final pot versus a 0.2% index fund. Model fees by lowering the assumed return by their amount.