Free future value of an annuity calculator
See what regular contributions grow to. Enter a payment, an annual return, and a term, then pick monthly or annual contributions and ordinary or annuity-due timing. The calculator returns the future value, how much you contributed, and how much compounding earned — updated live, as you type.
On this page15 sections
Estimates only, based on a constant payment and return. Not financial advice.
Results are estimates. Consult a professional.
What is the future value of an annuity?
The future value of an annuity is what a series of equal, regular payments will be worth at a fixed date in the future, once every payment has earned compound interest. An annuity in this sense is simply any stream of identical contributions made at a steady interval — monthly retirement deposits, an annual savings transfer, a pension premium. This future value of an annuity calculator adds those payments together with the growth they earn and returns the single ending balance the moment you enter a payment, a rate, and a number of years.
The key idea is that each payment compounds for a different length of time. The first deposit you make has the most years to grow; the final one earns almost nothing. The future value adds up all of those individually-compounded payments. That is why the result is so much larger than the money you put in — and why starting earlier matters more than paying in more.
Future value of an annuity formula
For an ordinary annuity — payments made at the end of each period — the future value formula is:
Two adjustments matter. First, the rate and the period count must use the same frequency as the payments: for monthly contributions, divide the annual rate by 12 and multiply the years by 12. Second, when payments fall at the start of each period (an annuity due) every payment compounds one extra period, so you multiply the whole result by (1 + r) — covered in its own section below.
How to calculate the future value of an annuity
Whether you use the calculator or a spreadsheet, the future value of an annuity comes together in four steps:
- Set the periodic payment (PMT). The fixed amount you add each period — for example $500 every month.
- Find the periodic rate (r). Divide the annual return by the number of payments per year. A 7% annual return paid monthly is 7 ÷ 12 = 0.583% per month.
- Count the total periods (n). Multiply the number of years by payments per year. Thirty years of monthly deposits is 30 × 12 = 360 periods.
- Apply the formula. Raise (1 + r) to the n, subtract one, divide by r, and multiply by PMT. The calculator above does this live and also splits the result into what you contributed versus what compounding earned.
A worked example using the future value of an annuity calculator
Dana sets aside $5,000 at the end of every year into an account earning 5.5% a year. She wants to know what those ten contributions will be worth at the end of year 10. Here is how the calculator walks through it.
Step 1 — Enter the inputs
Dana sets the payment to $5,000, the annual rate to 5.5%, the term to 10 years, and the contribution frequency to annual. Because the deposits land at year-end, she leaves the type on ordinary annuity.
Step 2 — Apply the formula
Step 3 — Read the result
What if the deposits came at the start of each year instead? Switching the toggle to annuity due gives every payment one more year to grow, lifting the result to $67,917.49 — about $3,540 more for the exact same $50,000 in deposits. All figures here are computed by this calculator using the formula above.
How an annuity grows over time
Compounding is not linear — it accelerates. The table below follows $500 invested at the end of every month at a 7% annual return (about 0.583% a month), showing how the balance pulls away from the money actually contributed as the years pass.
| Years | Total contributed | Future value | Interest earned |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | $30,000 | $35,796 | $5,796 |
| 10 | $60,000 | $86,542 | $26,542 |
| 15 | $90,000 | $158,481 | $68,481 |
| 20 | $120,000 | $260,463 | $140,463 |
| 25 | $150,000 | $405,036 | $255,036 |
| 30 | $180,000 | $609,985 | $429,985 |
$500/month at 7% annual return, ordinary annuity. Figures computed by this calculator.
Ordinary annuity vs. annuity due
The single biggest switch on this calculator is payment timing. An ordinary annuity pays at the end of each period; an annuity due pays at the beginning. Because money received earlier has more time to earn interest, an annuity due always has a higher future value than an otherwise-identical ordinary annuity.
| Ordinary annuity | Annuity due | |
|---|---|---|
| Payment timing | End of period | Start of period |
| Future value | Lower | Higher (× 1 + r) |
| Common examples | Salary, mortgage payments, most savings deposits | Rent, insurance premiums, leases |
Same payments and rate; only the timing — and therefore the future value — differs.
Which should you pick? Match it to reality. Most savings and retirement contributions go in at month-end, so ordinary annuity is the default. Choose annuity due only when the money genuinely goes in at the start of each period — the difference is one extra period of compounding, which grows with the rate and the term.
Future value vs. present value of an annuity
These are two sides of the same coin. The future value answers “what will my stream of payments grow to?” The present value answers “what is a stream of future payments worth in today’s dollars?” Future value compounds payments forward; present value discounts them back.
- Use future value when you are saving toward a goal — projecting what monthly deposits become at retirement.
- Use present value when you are valuing an income stream you will receive — pricing a pension offer or a lottery payout against a lump sum.
The same payment stream produces two very different numbers depending on the direction. Take $5,000 a year for 10 years at 5.5%: its future value is about $64,377 — the balance after a decade of growth — while its present value is roughly $37,690, the lump sum you would accept today instead of the ten payments. Future value always exceeds present value for a positive rate, because compounding forward adds growth whereas discounting back strips it away.
To work the other direction, pair this with the present value calculator or model a starting balance plus contributions with the future value calculator.
What the future value of an annuity is used for
The future value of an annuity is one of the most practical numbers in personal finance because so much of saving is a steady, repeating contribution. Common uses include:
- Retirement planning — projecting what regular 401(k) or IRA contributions will be worth at retirement age.
- Savings goals — finding whether a monthly amount reaches a target sum by a chosen date.
- Fixed annuity accumulation — estimating the balance a deferred annuity reaches before payouts begin.
- Sinking funds — sizing the regular set-aside a business needs to replace equipment or retire a debt on schedule.
Each of these reduces to the same question: if I commit to putting in a fixed amount on a regular schedule, what will it be worth later? Reframing a goal as an annuity also makes the contribution itself the lever you control. You cannot dictate the market return, and the time horizon is often fixed by your age or a deadline — but the payment is a dial you can turn today, and the calculator shows immediately how much turning it moves the ending balance.
It does assume a constant payment and a constant rate. Real returns fluctuate, so treat the result as a planning estimate, not a guarantee — and revisit it whenever your contribution or expected return changes.
Assumptions and limitations
Every annuity future-value figure rests on a few simplifying assumptions worth keeping in mind:
- Equal payments. The formula assumes every contribution is identical. If yours rise over time, a growing-annuity model fits better.
- A fixed rate. One constant return is applied to every period. Market investments vary year to year, so the result is an average-case projection.
- Compounding matches the payment frequency. This calculator compounds each period a payment is made — monthly payments compound monthly.
- No taxes or fees. The figure is gross growth. Account fees and taxes on gains will reduce the amount you keep.
Formula sources and methodology
The ordinary-annuity future-value formula FV = PMT × [((1 + r)^n − 1) / r] and the annuity-due adjustment × (1 + r) are standard time-value-of-money results taught in every corporate finance curriculum. The calculator divides the annual rate by the payment frequency, multiplies the term by it, and applies the formula directly, so its output matches the standard reference implementations.
Corporate Finance Institute — Annuity Due (future value of an annuity due = FV ordinary × (1 + i)).CalculatorSoup — Future Value of Annuity Formulas.Frequently asked questions about the free future value of an annuity calculator
About this future value of an annuity calculator
This future value of an annuity calculator runs entirely in your browser. Every figure you enter stays on your device — nothing is sent to a server, logged, or shared. It converts your annual rate and term to the payment frequency, applies the standard ordinary-annuity formula, and multiplies by (1 + r) for an annuity due, updating instantly as you type.
Calculators Cloud offers 400+ free tools with no sign-up. The whole Finance calculators shelf includes Present value, Future value, and Annuity tools alongside this one. Or browse the full calculator directory.