CAGR Calculator

CAGR compresses a messy multi-year history into one smooth annual rate. Because it reports the same kind of number for a seven-year stock hold and a five-year revenue line, it is the standard way to put two very different histories on one scale.

Beginning value($)Ending value($)Elapsed time(years)Fractions are fine: 18 months is 1.5.

Compound annual growth rate

13.99%

Total growth: 150.00%
Growth multiple: 2.5

Values update as you type. This calculator covers the single scenario its formula assumes — see Common Mistakes for what it leaves out.

The formula this calculator uses

CAGR = (Ending Value / Beginning Value)^(1/n) - 1

EV: Ending value at the close of the period
BV: Beginning value at the start of the period
n: Number of years between them
CAGR: Smoothed annual growth rate; negative if EV < BV

How to check the result by hand

1
Establish the two endpoint values
Beginning value is what the position was worth at the start; ending value is what it is worth at the end. Measure both the same way — if the ending value includes reinvested dividends, the beginning value should reflect a likewise reinvested basis.
2
Divide ending by beginning to get total growth
$25,000 / $10,000 = 2.5, meaning the money grew by a factor of two and a half. This single ratio carries all the growth information; everything after this step only re-expresses it.
3
Count elapsed years precisely
Use fractions rather than whole calendar years whenever the window does not land on an anniversary. eighteen months is 1.5, forty-two months is 3.5. Getting n wrong is the most common hidden error because its effect is diluted inside the exponent.
4
Raise the growth factor to the power 1/n
2.5^(1/7) = 1.1399. This spreads the total growth evenly over every year, which is exactly what makes the result comparable across windows of different length.
5
Subtract 1 and convert to a percentage
1.1399 - 1 = 0.1399, so CAGR = 13.99%. Sanity-check by compounding it back: $10,000 x 1.1399^7 should reproduce $25,000.

For worked examples, common mistakes and the limits of this formula, read the full How To Calculate CAGR page.