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ROI Calculator

Calculate return on investment and profit

By UtilityKit Team · Reviewed for accuracy by UtilityKit Editors · Updated May 2026

About ROI Calculator

Return on Investment (ROI) is the universal yardstick for measuring whether money deployed in a project, asset, or campaign generated a worthwhile return. Expressed as a percentage, ROI is calculated as (Net Gain ÷ Cost) × 100, where net gain equals the final value minus the initial cost. A positive ROI means you came out ahead; a negative ROI means you lost money. This calculator handles two closely related metrics in one tool. Simple ROI gives you the total percentage return over the holding period — useful for quick comparisons where the time dimension does not matter. CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) annualises a multi-year return so that a 40% total gain over five years is correctly comparable to an alternative that returned 8% per year — they are mathematically equivalent. Optional net-of-fees input lets you subtract commissions, platform charges, or tax to see the true.

Why use ROI Calculator

Simple ROI Percentage

The most widely used investment metric: (Final − Initial) ÷ Initial × 100. Works for stocks, real estate, equipment, or any asset. Positive is a gain, negative is a loss — instantly understandable.

CAGR for Fair Multi-year Comparison

CAGR smooths out total return over years, giving a per-year equivalent that makes a 5-year investment comparable to a 3-year one. It is the honest metric for any holding period longer than one year.

Net-of-fees Return

Enter brokerage fees, platform charges, advisory costs, or tax to convert gross ROI into the actual money that lands in your pocket. Headline returns without fees systematically overstate real performance.

Multi-cashflow Support

Model staggered investments — an initial purchase followed by additional capital deployed at intervals — to understand the blended return across a series of cash flows rather than just a single entry point.

Side-by-side Scenario Comparison

Pin one scenario's result and run a second to compare two assets, strategies, or campaigns on the same screen. Eliminates the need to write numbers down and recalculate to make relative judgements.

No Tracking

Investment amounts and financial performance data are private. All calculations run entirely in your browser using JavaScript — nothing is sent to a server, stored, or associated with your identity.

How to use ROI Calculator

Enter the initial cost or investment amount in the cost field
Enter the final value or total revenue received
Optionally enter any fees, commissions, or taxes incurred to calculate net ROI
Set the holding period in years if you want the annualised CAGR figure
Click Calculate to see simple ROI percentage, net gain amount, and CAGR
Pin the result and enter a second set of inputs to compare two scenarios side-by-side

When to use ROI Calculator

When comparing two investment options — say stocks versus bonds — on a fair per-year return basis using CAGR
When evaluating a marketing campaign by dividing total revenue generated by total spend to get ROAS or ROI
When assessing whether a piece of equipment or software purchase pays back its cost within the expected useful life
When preparing an investment proposal or pitch deck that needs to show the projected return in percentage terms
When reviewing past investments to calculate actual realised return including fees and tax before filing taxes
When comparing the net return on two savings products — one with higher headline rate but higher charges versus one with lower rate and no fees

Examples

Simple ROI

Input: Initial cost: $10,000, Final value: $13,500

Output: ROI: 35.0% — Net gain: $3,500

CAGR over 10 years

Input: Initial: $10,000, Final: $19,672, Holding period: 10 years

Output: CAGR: 7.0% per year

Marketing campaign ROAS

Input: Ad spend: ₹50,000, Revenue attributed: ₹2,00,000

Output: ROI: 300% — ROAS: 4.0x

Tips

Always compare investments using CAGR rather than total return when the holding periods differ — a 5-year return and a 10-year return are not comparable without annualising
Subtract every fee, transaction cost, and tax before presenting ROI as a final performance figure — net return is the only number that actually matters
ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) is revenue divided by ad cost; ROI accounts for the full cost stack. Use ROI for CapEx decisions and ROAS for advertising channels
Inflation erodes nominal ROI by roughly 2–4% per year — subtract expected inflation to get a real return figure for long-term planning
ROI does not measure risk — two investments can have identical ROI while one is 10x more volatile. Always pair return metrics with a risk or volatility measure

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the formula for ROI?▾

ROI (%) = [(Final Value − Initial Cost) ÷ Initial Cost] × 100. If you invested $10,000 and the final value is $13,500, ROI = (3,500 ÷ 10,000) × 100 = 35%. This does not account for the time over which the return was achieved.

What is the difference between ROI and CAGR?▾

ROI measures total return without regard to time. CAGR — Compound Annual Growth Rate — converts total return into a per-year equivalent, making it possible to fairly compare investments held for different durations. A 35% ROI over 2 years and a 35% ROI over 10 years are very different in annualised terms; CAGR reveals the difference.

How do I annualise a multi-year ROI?▾

CAGR = (Final Value ÷ Initial Value)^(1 ÷ Years) − 1. For $10,000 growing to $19,672 over 10 years, CAGR = (19,672 ÷ 10,000)^(0.1) − 1 ≈ 7.0% per year. This tells you the investment grew at the equivalent of 7% compounding annually.

Should ROI be net of fees and taxes?▾

For any decision-making purpose, yes. Gross ROI shows the headline performance; net ROI shows what you actually keep. Fees, commissions, and taxes can reduce real returns by 1–3 percentage points annually — a difference that compounds dramatically over long horizons.

What is a good ROI for stocks versus real estate?▾

Long-run average real (inflation-adjusted) equity returns have been approximately 5–7% per year in major markets. Real estate direct investment returns vary widely by market, location, and whether rental income is included. Benchmarks only matter relative to the risk taken — comparing to a risk-free rate is a useful baseline.

How does ROI differ from ROAS?▾

ROAS (Return on Ad Spend) is specific to advertising and equals revenue generated divided by advertising spend, usually expressed as a ratio (4x = £4 revenue per £1 spent). ROI is a broader metric that accounts for all costs — not just the ad spend — and is expressed as a percentage gain or loss.

Can ROI be negative?▾

Yes — a negative ROI means you lost money. If you invested $10,000 and the final value is $7,000, ROI = (−3,000 ÷ 10,000) × 100 = −30%. Negative ROI is common in start-up investments, failed equipment purchases, and loss-making campaigns.

Why is CAGR more honest than total return?▾

Total return ignores time. A fund that returns 100% over 20 years sounds impressive until you calculate the CAGR: approximately 3.5% per year — less than inflation in many periods. CAGR forces comparisons to be on an equal per-year basis, preventing misleading framing of long-period gains.

Explore the category

Glossary

Return on Investment (ROI): A performance metric expressing the net gain or loss of an investment as a percentage of its initial cost. Calculated as (Final Value − Cost) ÷ Cost × 100. Positive values indicate profit; negative values indicate loss.
CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate): The smoothed annualised rate at which an investment grows from its initial value to its final value over a specified number of years, assuming reinvestment of returns. Formula: (Final ÷ Initial)^(1/years) − 1.
ROAS (Return on Ad Spend): A marketing-specific metric equal to revenue generated divided by advertising spend, expressed as a ratio. ROAS of 4x means $4 in revenue for every $1 spent on ads. Unlike ROI, it does not account for non-ad costs.
Net Profit: Revenue minus all costs, including cost of goods, operating expenses, fees, and taxes. Net profit is the true economic gain from an activity and the basis for a meaningful net ROI calculation.
Holding Period: The length of time an investment is held before it is sold or valued. CAGR normalises returns across different holding periods, making a 3-year and a 10-year investment directly comparable.
Annualised Return: A return expressed as a yearly equivalent regardless of the actual holding period. Calculated using CAGR for compound growth or simple division for linear returns. Essential for fair cross-investment comparisons.