Saving & Investing
See how your investment has actually performed.
Measure the gain or loss on an investment you already hold, including income and costs, then estimate its average annual return over the time you have owned it.
Investment Return Calculator
Analyse the performance of a completed or current investment.
Compare the original amount invested with the net value created or lost.
Illustrative return path
This smooth line shows the annualised path between the original investment and the final net proceeds. It is not a record of actual market movements.
Try adding investment income and costs, or changing the holding period, to see how they affect the total and annualised return.
The annualised figure assumes the final net proceeds grew at a constant compounded rate over the full holding period. Income may have been received at different times, so this is an estimate rather than a precise money-weighted return. Tax is not included.
What determines your investment return?
The calculator measures performance using the amount originally invested, the current or sale value, any income received, costs paid and the length of time the investment has been held.
Starting and ending value
The original investment and its current or sale value establish the main change in value over the period.
Income and costs
Income received can increase the overall return, while fees and costs reduce the amount ultimately retained.
Time held
The holding period allows the calculator to estimate an annualised return as well as the total return.
How an investment return is built
Investment return is more than the difference between two account values. Income and costs can change the result, so the calculator brings those parts together before expressing performance as a percentage.
Start with the original investment
The amount originally invested provides the baseline against which performance is measured.
Add the current or sale value
The ending value captures what the investment is worth now or what was received when it was sold.
Include income and deduct costs
Income received is included in total proceeds, while fees and costs reduce the net result.
Express the outcome as a return
The net gain or loss is compared with the original investment, and the holding period is used to estimate an annualised return.
This calculator is designed for a simple investment with one original amount and no later deposits or withdrawals. Its annualised figure is an estimate because income may have been received at different times during the holding period.
Investment value and investment return are not the same thing
The amount an investment is worth tells you its value. Return measures how that value, together with income and costs, compares with the money originally invested.
Investment value
The cash value of the investment at a particular point in time.
Gain or loss
The monetary difference after allowing for the current or sale value, income received and costs.
Investment return
The gain or loss expressed relative to the original amount invested.
Total return can include more than price growth
An investment can produce a return through a change in its value, through income, or through a combination of both. Costs can reduce the amount retained.
Capital change
The investment may be worth more or less at the end of the period than it was at the beginning.
Investment income
Dividends, interest or other distributions can contribute to the overall amount received.
Total return
The calculator combines the net change in value with income and costs to estimate the overall return.
For the broader concepts, see What Is Total Return? and Capital Growth vs Investment Income.
Total return and annualised return answer different questions
Both figures describe past performance, but they summarise it in different ways.
Understand annualised return →Total return
Shows the overall percentage gain or loss across the full period the investment was held.
Annualised return
Expresses that overall performance as an equivalent compounded yearly rate over the holding period.
Why the distinction matters
Annualising can make periods of different lengths easier to compare, but it does not mean the investment actually earned the same return in every year.
A past return is not a future return
The calculator helps measure what has already happened. It does not tell you what the same investment, or another investment, will return next.
Why investment returns change →
Why past performance is not a guarantee →
Returns can be positive or negative
An investment can gain value, lose value or move between the two during the period measured.
Returns vary over time
A strong or weak result over one period does not mean the same pattern will continue in another period.
Annualised return smooths the history
The annualised figure is an equivalent compounded rate. The actual return may have varied considerably from year to year.
Past performance describes the past
Use the result to understand historical performance rather than as a forecast or guarantee of future returns.
Explore your next question
Choose the question that best matches what you want to understand next.
Go deeper
Continue with the concepts that most directly strengthen your understanding of investment returns.
What Is an Investment Return?
Build a clear understanding of what an investment return measures before exploring total return, annualised performance and why results vary over time.
Read the guide →Common questions about investment returns
Short answers to questions that often arise when interpreting past investment performance.
What does the Investment Return Calculator calculate?
It estimates the net gain or loss, total return and annualised return from an original investment using its current or sale value, income received, total fees and costs, and the time held.
What is an investment return?
An investment return measures the gain or loss produced by an investment relative to the amount originally invested. It can include changes in value and investment income, depending on the calculation used.
What is the difference between investment value and investment return?
Investment value is how much the investment is worth. Investment return measures how the investment performed relative to the amount originally invested.
Can an investment return be negative?
Yes. A negative return means the investment produced a loss over the period measured after the items included in the calculation are taken into account.
What is total return?
Total return combines the change in investment value with income received and, where relevant, costs, so performance is not judged only by price movement.
Does investment income count towards total return?
Yes in this calculator. The income received input is added to the current or sale value before costs are deducted and the overall return is calculated.
What is an annualised return?
An annualised return expresses the overall result as an equivalent compounded yearly rate over the holding period. It does not mean the investment actually earned that same percentage every year.
Why do investment returns change from year to year?
Market prices, investment income and wider economic conditions can vary, so real investment performance rarely follows a constant annual path.
Does a strong past return mean an investment will perform well again?
No. A past return describes historical performance and does not predict or guarantee what will happen in future.
What is the difference between the Investment Return Calculator and Investment Growth Calculator?
The Investment Return Calculator measures the performance of an investment you already hold or have sold. The Investment Growth Calculator projects how an investment could grow in future using assumed returns and contributions.