ROI Calculator

Calculate the return on investment (ROI) and annualized ROI for a purchase or project, from the amount invested, amount returned, and investment period.

Why ROI is popular despite being simple

ROI strips an investment down to one question: for every dollar in, how many dollars came out? That simplicity is exactly why it's so widely used — it works for a stock portfolio, a rental property, a marketing campaign, or a sheep farm, without needing any special financial modeling. The tradeoff is that plain ROI says nothing about how long the money was tied up, which is where annualized ROI comes in.

Why annualized ROI tells a different story

A 100% ROI sounds identical whether it took six months or twenty years — but those are wildly different outcomes. Annualized ROI converts the total return into an equivalent constant yearly rate, the same way IRR does, making it possible to fairly compare investments held for different lengths of time.

Plain ROI ignores the time value of money entirely — it's a useful first-pass filter, but for investments with cash flows spread across multiple points in time (not just a single start and end), IRR is the more accurate tool.

Common questions

Can ROI be negative?

Yes — if the amount returned is less than what was invested, both ROI and annualized ROI will be negative, reflecting a net loss.

Does ROI account for fees or taxes?

Not unless you build them into the "amount invested" or "amount returned" figures yourself — this calculator works purely from whatever two numbers you give it.

More Financial Calculators

Pick another financial tool to jump straight to it.