Calculators

ROI Calculator

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Calculate return on investment (ROI), profit, and annualized ROI from invested and returned amounts. Use calendar dates or a fixed holding period, with an invested-vs-profit pie chart.

Enter invested and returned amounts, then choose dates or a fixed holding period to see ROI and annualized return.

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ROI calculation

ROI

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Investment gain

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Annualized ROI

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Investment length

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Note: This calculator is for illustrative purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.

Measure how efficiently capital turned into returns. Enter what you put in and what you got back, set the holding period by dates or years, and review total ROI plus annualized performance.

How to use this ROI calculator

  1. Enter amount invested (cost basis) and amount returned (proceeds or current value).
  2. Choose Use dates for calendar holding period, or Use length to type years directly.
  3. Click Calculate — gain, ROI %, annualized ROI, and a pie chart update together.

What is ROI?

Return on investment expresses net gain relative to what you put in. A 100% ROI means proceeds doubled the original stake. ROI is popular because it scales across deal sizes — $500 profit on $500 invested is comparable to $5 million on $5 million in percentage terms.

ROI differs from rate of return (ROR) mainly in framing: ROI is often cited for projects, marketing campaigns, or one-off bets, while ROR appears in portfolio reporting. Both compare gain to cost; annualizing adjusts for time so you can compare a two-year flip with a ten-year hold.

Basic ROI formula

Annualized ROI

Total ROI ignores how long money was tied up. Annualized ROI compounds the growth rate to a per-year figure (similar to CAGR):

t = years held

Worked example

Invest $1,000, receive $2,000 after about 4.5 years:

  • Gain: $1,000
  • ROI: 100%
  • Annualized ROI: roughly 16.6% per year — because doubling in under five years implies strong yearly compounding.

When ROI misleads

ROI does not account for risk, leverage, taxes, fees, or cash flows between purchase and sale. A 200% ROI on a highly leveraged real-estate flip may reflect more risk than a 12% annualized return in a diversified index fund. Use ROI as a first screen, then layer in time-adjusted metrics and total cost of ownership.

Examples and use cases

Real-world use cases

  • Stock sale: An investor bought shares for $3,200 and sold for $4,100 after 14 months — ROI shows total gain; annualized ROI helps compare to index fund returns.
  • Equipment purchase: A small business spends $12,000 on machinery that generates $18,000 in net proceeds after 3 years to screen whether the capex beat their hurdle rate.
  • Real estate flip: A flipper nets $45,000 on $150,000 invested over 8 months — high ROI but annualized ROI accounts for the short hold period.

Common questions

Quick answers before you start calculating.

It depends on asset class and risk. Public equities have historically averaged high single-digit to low double-digit annualized returns over long periods. Compare against your opportunity cost and inflation.