Rate type APR is a nominal rate compounded at the frequency you pick. APY is the effective yearly rate already including compounding — use this if your bank quotes APY.
Choose how often interest compounds below.
Contribution timing Beginning: you deposit at the start of each period, so it earns interest that period. End: you deposit at the end, so it earns interest from the next period.
%
0 for tax-free accounts.
%
For today's-money value.
%/yr
Step up the monthly amount each year.
$
Added once a year.
%/yr
Step up the annual amount each year.
After 5 years
Projected future balance
$14,885
5.12% effective annual (monthly APR) · 5 yrs · end of period
A 9-sheet workbook: summary, assumptions, yearly & monthly schedules, scenarios, goal planner, charts data, methodology and sources — built from your exact inputs.
Estimate only. Actual results depend on bank APY, compounding method, taxes, fees, inflation, and contribution timing.
What your result means
Plain-English notes generated from your inputs — not financial advice.
Your money added
Of the $14,885 projected balance, $13,000 (87%) is money you put in yourself, and $1,885 (13%) is interest the bank adds.
Interest earned
The balance earns $1,885 in interest — a meaningful 13% of the total. Both your contributions and compounding are contributing.
What to change first: time, contribution, or rate
Because your own contributions are most of the balance, the fastest lever is usually saving more each month — the rate matters less over 5 years. A higher rate helps, but real, guaranteed savings rates are limited; the levers you control most are how much you add and how long you leave it.
Visual breakdown
How the balance builds from your deposits and interest. Each chart has a data table for exact figures.
Balance over time — deposits, interest & tax
Your contributions and interest, stacked to the nominal balance each year.
Balance over time — deposits, interest & tax
Year
Deposits
Interest
Tax
1
$3,400
$107
$0
2
$5,800
$342
$0
3
$8,200
$712
$0
4
$10,600
$1,224
$0
5
$13,000
$1,885
$0
The balance grows to $14,885 — $13,000 you contributed plus $1,885 net interest.
Show data table
Balance over time — deposits, interest & tax
Year
Deposits
Interest
Tax
1
$3,400
$107
$0
2
$5,800
$342
$0
3
$8,200
$712
$0
4
$10,600
$1,224
$0
5
$13,000
$1,885
$0
Ending balance each year
The running balance at the end of every year.
Ending balance each year
Year
Balance
1
$3,507
2
$6,142
3
$8,912
4
$11,824
5
$14,885
Reaches $14,885 after 5 years.
Show data table
Ending balance each year
Year
Balance
After tax
1
$3,507
$3,507
2
$6,142
$6,142
3
$8,912
$8,912
4
$11,824
$11,824
5
$14,885
$14,885
Deposits vs interest each year
How much you add versus how much interest is earned, year by year.
Deposits vs interest each year
Year
Deposits
Interest
1
$2,400
$107
2
$2,400
$235
3
$2,400
$370
4
$2,400
$512
5
$2,400
$661
Interest grows from a small share early on to $661 in the final year as the balance compounds.
Show data table
Deposits vs interest each year
Year
Deposits
Interest
1
$2,400
$107
2
$2,400
$235
3
$2,400
$370
4
$2,400
$512
5
$2,400
$661
What makes up the final balance
Your initial deposit, ongoing contributions, and the interest they earn.
What makes up the final balance
Part
Amount
Initial deposit
$1,000
Contributions
$12,000
Interest
$1,885
87% of the balance is money you saved and 13% is interest.
Show data table
What makes up the final balance
Part
Amount
Initial deposit
$1,000
Contributions
$12,000
Interest
$1,885
Year-by-year schedule
Each year’s starting balance, deposits, interest, and ending balance.
How the projection changes if you save more, the rate moves, inflation rises, or tax is removed — all else equal.
Future savings balance by scenario
Scenario
Future balance
Base case
$14,885
Monthly +10%
$16,245
Monthly +25%
$18,285
Rate −1%
$14,481
Rate +1%
$15,303
Inflation +1%
$14,885
Before tax
$14,885
Savings scenario comparison
Scenario
Result
Interest
Diff vs base
What it shows
Base case
$14,885
$1,885
—
Your inputs exactly as entered.
Monthly +10%
$16,245
$2,045
+$1,360
Saving 10% more each month adds $1,360 to the balance.
Monthly +25%
$18,285
$2,285
+$3,400
Saving 25% more each month adds $3,400.
Rate −1%
$14,481
$1,481
−$404
A 1-point lower rate reduces the balance by $404.
Rate +1%
$15,303
$2,303
+$418
A 1-point higher rate adds $418.
Inflation +1%
$14,162today’s money
$1,885
−$722
Higher inflation cuts the real value to $14,162 in today's money — about $722 less than your base in real terms.
Based on your base inputs ($14,885 future balance). Inflation and tax rows are shown in real / after-tax terms; the rest are nominal. Full scenarios are in the downloadable workbook.
Handles monthly and annual contributions, APR or APY, any compounding frequency, tax, and inflation, with charts, a full schedule, and a downloadable Excel workbook, in your currency.
Future balance, total deposits, gross interest, and after-tax balance
Goal mode: the monthly or annual saving you need to hit a target
Monthly and annual contributions, each with an annual increase
APR or APY, any compounding frequency, contribution timing, tax and inflation
Charts, a year-by-year and month-by-month schedule, and a formula-driven Excel workbook
Transparent assumptions Projection & goal modes 7 currencies APR or APY, any compounding 9-sheet Excel report
Results depend on APY, compounding, taxes, fees, and inflation.
Updated 15 June 2026 · Works in any currency
A savings calculator estimates your future balance by combining your starting amount, regular deposits, interest rate, compounding frequency, taxes, and time. It helps you see how much you will contribute, how much interest you may earn, and whether you are on track for a savings goal.
Jump to a section
Your $13,000 and the bank’s $1,885, and the year they trade places
A future savings balance combines five inputs: starting amount, deposits, rate, compounding frequency and years. It is always your deposits plus the interest earned, nothing else.
Future balance
start × (1+i)ⁿ + PMT × ((1+i)ⁿ − 1) / i
i is the periodic rate, n the number of periods, PMT the regular deposit. Begin-of-period deposits earn one extra period of interest.
On the defaults ($1,000 to start, $200 a month, 5% APR compounded monthly, 5 years) you reach $14,885, of which interest is 13%. Lengthen the horizon and that inverts:
Deposits and interest at six savings horizons.
Saved for
Balance
Your deposits
Interest
Interest share
5 years
$14,885
$13,000
$1,885
13%
10 years
$32,703
$25,000
$7,703
24%
15 years
$55,571
$37,000
$18,571
33%
20 years
$84,919
$49,000
$35,919
42%
25 years
$122,583
$61,000
$61,583
50%
30 years
$170,919
$73,000
$97,919
57%
Year 25 is the turning point, the first year interest exceeds half the balance, at 2.01× everything paid in. Your own inputs split the same way in the panels above.
$50 more a month beats a whole extra point of interest for 33 years
Three levers move a balance: save more, earn more, wait longer. Below, $50 more a month (the $200 deposit raised 25%) against an extra percentage point (5% to 6%).
Extra deposit against extra rate point, five horizons.
Saved for
Base balance
+$50/month adds
+1 rate point adds
5 years
$14,885
$3,400
$418
15 years
$55,571
$13,364
$5,046
25 years
$122,583
$29,775
$20,481
33 years
$206,269
$50,270
$49,222
34 years
$219,278
$53,456
$54,439
The gap narrows as a rate advantage compounds on a growing balance while a fixed deposit does not, but the two swap only at year 34. Below three decades, raise the amount you save. There is no universal monthly figure; it depends on your goal, income and timeline.
5% APR is 5.12% APY, and every compounding frequency in between is worth $50
APR is nominal, quoted before compounding; APY, the effective annual rate, contains the year’s compounding, so it is the true yearly rate and the only comparable one. More frequent compounding lifts it for the same APR.
APR → APY
APY = (1 + APR/m)^m − 1
m is the number of compounding periods a year. The schedule then compounds at the monthly equivalent.
Banks usually advertise APY, so set the rate type to match your quote. One 5% APR at five frequencies:
One APR at five compounding frequencies.
Compounded
APY
Balance after 5 years
Annually (1×/yr)
5.00%
$14,839
Quarterly (4×/yr)
5.09%
$14,876
Monthly (12×/yr)
5.12%
$14,885
Daily (365×/yr)
5.13%
$14,889
Continuously
5.13%
$14,889
Daily and continuous compounding round to the same APY, so any APY above 5.13% beats a 5% APR at any frequency. A high-yield account is mechanically identical, just a higher APY: enter the one it pays.
The inflation rate that erases this projection is 2.74%, not 5.12%
Tax applies to the interest only, never your deposits: your marginal rate hits the base case’s $1,885 of interest, and the tax, net interest and after-tax balance are reported. It slightly slows growth too. Leave it at 0 in a tax-free or tax-advantaged wrapper, a 529 included.
Inflation instead leaves the nominal balance alone and discounts it to today’s money; above your savings rate the real value falls as the nominal climbs.
The break-even is not the rate itself: your deposits arrive across the whole term, so only the earliest are exposed to the full 5 years of compounding. At 2.74% inflation the $14,885 balance is worth $13,003 in today’s money, effectively the $13,000 paid in; tax lowers that threshold further.
Sanity-check your inflation assumption against the consumer-price series below.
A $50,000 target asks for $716 a month, not $200
Goal mode reverses this: give it a target and a horizon and it solves the monthly, or annual, saving that reaches it, before tax.
Goal: required saving
PMT = (target − start·(1+i)ⁿ) / annuity factor
Solves the monthly deposit that reaches a target, given a starting balance and rate.
On the base case’s $1,000 start, 5% APR and 5-year horizon, ask for $50,000: $716 a month. Enter what you already save and it computes the gap: $200 a month lands on $14,885, $35,115 short, reaching it in month 167, about 13.9 years.
A shortfall has three exits: raise the deposit, extend the horizon, or lower the target. In a taxable account the true figure is slightly higher.
Why the headline, the schedule and the Excel file can never disagree
The workbook you download is the same month-by-month run as the headline, written as live formulas rather than pasted values. The rules it holds fixed:
The balance is simulated month by month; interest compounds using the monthly equivalent of the effective annual rate, so the schedule and the headline always reconcile.
An APR is converted to an effective annual rate (APY) at the chosen compounding frequency; an APY is used as entered, with the frequency then informational.
Monthly contributions are added every month; an annual contribution is added once a year. Each can step up yearly by its increase rate.
Tax is estimated as a flat rate on the interest earned and shown as a deduction; inflation discounts the future balance to today’s money as nominal ÷ (1 + inflation)^years.
Goal mode solves the required saving for a before-tax balance.
An annual increase steps each contribution up on its anniversary.
Currency is display-only: switch to INR, GBP, EUR, CAD or AUD and every figure, schedule and Excel export is relabelled, the model unchanged.
A savings rate no bank promises to hold for 5 years
Read the balance as what happens if the quoted rate persists: a promotional or bonus rate rarely survives 5 years.
Savings rates are usually variable; this tool assumes a constant rate over the whole period.
It does not model fees, minimum-balance rules, bonus-rate periods, early-withdrawal penalties, or withdrawals during the term.
Tax is a simplified flat estimate; real tax depends on your jurisdiction, income, and account type.
It is for interest-bearing savings, not volatile market investments — do not treat an assumed rate as a guaranteed return.
To draw down, use the retirement calculator for employer matches and contribution limits, or the retirement withdrawal calculator. It cannot model 529 state tax deductions or qualified-withdrawal requirements, ISA or PPF allowances, or any other wrapper’s conditions: this is the underlying growth math only.
Not a guarantee. For interest you want guaranteed, use the rate, terms, and day-count in your account’s own disclosure; for market investing use the regular investment calculator.
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Tools that build on the same saving and interest math:
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Retirement WithdrawalEstimate how long savings last under regular withdrawals (SWP) — drawdown, safe withdrawal rate, inflation, and a year-by-year schedule.
BudgetBuild a monthly and annual budget in simple or 65-line advanced mode, with savings rate, ratios, and a health score.
50/30/20 BudgetSplit take-home pay into 50% needs, 30% wants, and 20% savings, compare your real spending, and test alternative ratios.
Net WorthBuild a personal balance sheet — quick or 78-line detailed — with liquid and tangible net worth and debt analysis.
Coast FIREFind the inflation-adjusted amount you need invested today to coast to your retirement target on growth alone — and the exact gap to get there.
This page projects a balance from the figures you enter — it fetches no live deposit rates and does not know what your own bank pays. APY is a legal disclosure with a prescribed formula, so the first three sources are Regulation DD itself. The rest cover the compounding model, the federal deposit insurance standing behind the balance, the tax reporting that reduces what you keep, and the inflation series that decides whether a positive nominal return is a real gain. Links open in a new tab.
This calculator is for educational and estimation purposes only. It is not financial, tax, legal, or investment advice. Projections are based on the assumptions you enter — savings rates can change at any time, tax rules vary by country and account type, inflation is an assumption, and actual bank APY, fees, minimum-balance rules, and withdrawal limits may differ. Use the current rate quoted by your bank, and verify important numbers with a qualified professional before making decisions.