ROI Calculator
Work out your return on investment in seconds. Get your ROI percentage, net profit, annualized return, CAGR, and a plain English verdict on how your investment performed.
ROI Calculator
Your Results
Enter your investment details and press Calculate ROI to see your full breakdown.
Investment Analysis
How to use the ROI Calculator
Enter what you put in, what you got back, and how long it took. The calculator does the rest, including the time adjusted numbers most simple tools skip. No sign up, completely free.
Enter your initial investment
Type the amount you originally put in. Add any fees or extra costs in the optional field for a true net ROI.
Enter the final value
Add what the investment is worth now, or the total amount you received back when you sold or exited.
Set the time period and type
Choose years or months and pick the investment type so the tool can annualize the return and benchmark it.
Read your full breakdown
Get your ROI, net profit, annualized ROI, CAGR, a letter grade, and a plain English verdict you can copy.
What is ROI and how is it calculated?
ROI stands for return on investment. It is a simple percentage that tells you how much profit you made compared to how much you put in, which makes it one of the most widely used metrics in finance and marketing. A positive ROI means the investment made money, and a negative ROI means it lost money.
The core ROI formula is straightforward:
For example, if you invest $10,000 and it grows to $15,000, your ROI is (($15,000 − $10,000) ÷ $10,000) × 100 = 50 percent. In other words, you earned 50 percent on top of what you originally put in.
The one big weakness of plain ROI is that it ignores time. A 50 percent return in one year is far better than 50 percent over ten years. That is why this calculator also gives you the annualized ROI and CAGR, so you can compare investments of different lengths fairly.
ROI, annualized ROI, and CAGR
Three numbers give you the full picture. Simple ROI shows the total gain, while the two time adjusted figures let you compare fairly across different holding periods.
Simple ROI
((Final − Invested) ÷ Invested) × 100Annualized ROI
((Final ÷ Invested) ^ (1 ÷ Years) − 1) × 100CAGR
((Final ÷ Invested) ^ (1 ÷ Years) − 1) × 100Annualized ROI and CAGR use the same compounding formula. CAGR is simply the name most often used for investments and long term projects, while annualized ROI is the common term in marketing and business.
What is a good ROI?
A good ROI depends on the investment type, the risk, and the time frame. As a rough guide, these are the typical average annual returns people aim for. Use them to judge whether your own return is strong, average, or weak.
| Investment type | Typical annual return | Risk level |
|---|---|---|
| Savings account | 3% to 5% | Very low |
| Bonds | 4% to 6% | Low |
| Stock market (index) | 7% to 10% | Medium |
| Real estate | 8% to 12% | Medium |
| Business | 15% to 30% | High |
| Cryptocurrency | Highly variable | Very high |
| Marketing campaign | 200% to 500%+ | Varies |
These are broad, long term averages, not guarantees. The US stock market has historically returned about 10 percent a year before inflation. Marketing ROI is quoted differently, often as revenue divided by spend, which is why the percentages look much higher.
Common ROI mistakes to avoid
ROI is easy to calculate but easy to get wrong. These are the errors that quietly make an investment look better or worse than it really was.
- Ignoring time. A 50 percent return means very different things over one year versus ten. Always check the annualized figure, which this tool calculates for you.
- Leaving out fees and taxes. Trading commissions, closing costs, and taxes all reduce your real return, so add them in the extra costs field.
- Using revenue instead of profit. For a business or campaign, ROI should be based on net profit, not gross sales.
- Forgetting inflation. A 4 percent return in a high inflation year can be a real loss in buying power.
- Comparing different holding periods with simple ROI. Use annualized ROI or CAGR to compare fairly.
- Ignoring risk. Two investments can show the same ROI while carrying very different levels of risk.
Who this free ROI calculator is for
Investors comparing stocks, funds, or property, business owners weighing a new project or equipment purchase, marketers proving the return on a campaign, real estate buyers checking a deal, and anyone deciding whether something was worth the money all use an ROI calculator to turn raw numbers into a clear percentage. Instead of wrestling with a spreadsheet, you get your total ROI, annualized return, and a verdict in seconds.
Frequently asked questions
What is an ROI calculator?
An ROI calculator is a free tool that works out your return on investment as a percentage. You enter the amount invested and the amount returned, and it shows your profit or loss, your ROI, and how well the money performed. This one also gives you the annualized return and CAGR so you can compare investments of different lengths.
How do you calculate ROI?
Subtract the initial investment from the final value to get your net profit, divide that by the initial investment, then multiply by 100. The formula is ROI = ((Final Value minus Initial Investment) divided by Initial Investment) times 100. For a $10,000 investment that grows to $15,000, the ROI is 50 percent.
What is a good ROI?
It depends on the investment and its risk. As a rough guide, savings sit around 3 to 5 percent a year, bonds 4 to 6 percent, the stock market 7 to 10 percent, real estate 8 to 12 percent, and businesses 15 to 30 percent. Anything that beats inflation and matches the risk you took is generally a good ROI.
What is the difference between ROI and annualized ROI?
Simple ROI is the total return over the whole period, ignoring time. Annualized ROI, also called CAGR, converts that into an equal yearly rate. A 50 percent total ROI over three years is about 14.5 percent annualized, which is the fair way to compare it against a one year investment.
What is a good marketing ROI?
Marketing ROI is usually higher because it is measured as revenue against spend. A common target is 5 to 1, meaning 5 dollars of revenue for every 1 dollar spent, which is about a 400 percent ROI. Anything below 2 to 1 often means the campaign is barely breaking even once other costs are included.
Can ROI be negative?
Yes. If the final value is less than the amount you invested, your ROI is negative, which means you lost money. For example, investing $10,000 and ending with $8,000 is a negative 20 percent ROI. This calculator clearly flags a loss and shows the size of it.
Is this ROI calculator free?
Yes. The Leemjaz ROI Calculator is completely free with no sign up and no limits. Everything runs in your browser, so nothing you type is stored or saved, and you can test as many scenarios as you like.
How do I calculate ROI in Excel?
Put your cost in one cell and your gain in another, then use the formula = (gain cell minus cost cell) divided by cost cell, and format it as a percentage. It works, but it will not annualize the return or factor in the holding period, which is where this calculator saves you time.
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