Start with what you have, add a little every month, and drag the sliders. The numbers, chart, and breakdown update instantly, so you can feel how much of the final pile is money you put in, and how much is growth doing the heavy lifting.
There are two ways to grow what you invest over time, and they are alternatives. Pick one: set a specific dollar amount starting in a chosen year, or raise your monthly amount by a percentage each year. You do not need both.
Set a new monthly amount starting in a specific year. For example, from year 5 invest $2,000/mo instead of your base amount. Pick the starting year from the dropdown (years 1 to 50, every 5th year is tinted). The latest change at or before a year wins.
Stays flat the whole time. Drag up to model raises as your income grows. This is called a step-up plan.
How this works: Growth compounds monthly. Your monthly amount is added at the end of each month, and the balance earns the annual rate ÷ 12 each month. Use the step-up slider to raise that monthly amount each year. No taxes or fees are included. Turn on inflation above to see the result in today's purchasing power at 3% a year.
Same pile of money, honest purchasing power. At 3% inflation, prices roughly double every 24 years, so a future dollar buys less than a dollar today.
The gap between the two lines is pure growth. The longer you leave it, the wider that gap gets.
| Year | You invested | Pure growth | Balance |
|---|
This is a hypothetical illustration, not a prediction and not financial advice. Real returns vary year to year, sometimes sharply, and are never a smooth line like this. The point is the habit: start, keep adding, and give compounding time.