When it comes to building wealth, understanding how your money grows over time is crucial. The Fidelity Investment Growth Calculator is a simple yet powerful tool designed to help you forecast the potential value of your investments. By factoring in your initial investment, monthly contributions, annual return rate, investment period, and compounding frequency, this tool gives you a clear picture of how your money could grow in the future.

Whether you’re planning for retirement, saving for a house, or just curious about the power of compound interest, this calculator can be an essential part of your financial planning.

How to Use the Fidelity Investment Growth Calculator

Using the calculator is straightforward and only takes a few steps:

1. Enter Initial Investment Amount
   • Input how much money you’re starting with. This is your principal or the base of your investment.
2. Add Monthly Contribution
   • Enter the amount you plan to add each month to grow your investment over time.
3. Set Annual Rate of Return (%)
   • Provide an expected annual return percentage. A typical stock market return averages around 7–8% annually, but you can adjust based on your expectations.
4. Choose Investment Period (Years)
   • Specify how long you plan to keep the money invested. The longer you invest, the more compound growth you’ll enjoy.
5. Select Compounding Frequency
   • Choose whether compounding occurs monthly, quarterly, or annually. More frequent compounding typically results in higher growth.
6. Click “Calculate”
   • The calculator will simulate growth, showing your Future Value, Total Contributions, and Total Interest Earned.
7. Reset Anytime
   • If you want to try a new scenario, simply click the reset button, and the form will refresh instantly.

Example: How Your Money Can Grow

Let’s say you:

• Start with an initial investment of $5,000
• Contribute $300 per month
• Expect an annual return of 7%
• Invest for 20 years
• Compound monthly

The calculator shows that after 20 years:

• Future Value: $157,000+
• Total Contributions: $77,000
• Total Interest Earned: $80,000+

This demonstrates the magic of compounding — your earnings on interest alone exceed your contributions.

Benefits of Using the Fidelity Investment Growth Calculator

• Visualize Long-Term Growth – See how your contributions and returns build wealth over time.
• Make Informed Decisions – Compare different contribution amounts and timeframes.
• Plan for Retirement or Major Goals – Use projections to guide financial strategies.
• Understand Compound Interest – Learn how frequent compounding impacts your future value.
• User-Friendly – Simple inputs and instant results make financial planning accessible.

Features That Make This Tool Stand Out

• Calculates future value based on compound interest.
• Breaks down results into contributions, interest, and total growth.
• Offers reset, copy, and share options for easy comparison and sharing.
• Works with monthly, quarterly, or annual compounding.
• Designed for quick, accurate, and educational use.

Practical Use Cases

• Retirement Planning – Estimate how much you’ll have at retirement based on savings and returns.
• College Savings – Forecast the value of a 529 plan or education fund.
• Home Down Payment – Plan how much you’ll save for a home within a set period.
• Wealth Building – Understand how consistent investing builds long-term wealth.
• Comparing Investment Options – Test different scenarios with various return rates.

Tips for Using the Calculator Effectively

• Be realistic with your annual return; use historical averages.
• The longer your investment horizon, the more growth potential.
• Even small monthly contributions add up significantly over time.
• Run multiple scenarios to compare short-term vs. long-term results.
• Remember: results are estimates — actual returns may vary.

FAQs – Fidelity Investment Growth Calculator

Here are 20 frequently asked questions to help you make the most of this tool:

1. What is the Fidelity Investment Growth Calculator?
It’s an online tool that estimates how your investments grow over time using compound interest.

2. Is this calculator free to use?
Yes, it’s completely free and accessible anytime.

3. Do I need a Fidelity account to use it?
No. The calculator is for educational purposes and works independently.

4. How accurate are the results?
The results are estimates based on your inputs and the compound interest formula. Actual market returns may differ.

5. What does “Future Value” mean?
Future Value represents how much your investment may be worth at the end of your chosen period.

6. What are “Total Contributions”?
This is the sum of your initial investment plus all monthly contributions made during the investment period.

7. What is “Total Interest Earned”?
It shows how much money you earned from growth beyond your contributions.

8. How does compounding frequency affect results?
The more frequently your returns compound, the higher your investment grows.

9. Can I use decimals for amounts?
Yes, the calculator allows cents and decimal entries.

10. What’s a good annual return percentage to enter?
Historically, stock markets average 7–8% annually, but safer investments like bonds may yield less.

11. Can I calculate without monthly contributions?
Yes, you can set monthly contributions to zero to see how a lump sum grows.

12. Does inflation factor into results?
No, the calculator does not account for inflation. You may want to adjust returns manually.

13. Can I use it for short-term goals?
Yes, even a 1–5 year investment can be calculated.

14. What if I invest for 30 years?
The calculator works for long-term projections and will show significant compound growth.

15. Does the tool save my data?
No, it doesn’t store personal inputs. Each session is private.

16. Can I share my results?
Yes, the built-in share feature lets you copy or share results easily.

17. What’s the reset button for?
It clears your inputs and refreshes the calculator for a new scenario.

18. Is this tool suitable for retirement planning?
Yes, it’s an excellent way to project potential retirement savings.

19. Do I pay taxes on the projected earnings?
The calculator does not account for taxes. Real-world returns may differ after tax deductions.

20. Why should I use this instead of a spreadsheet?
This tool is faster, easier, and automatically calculates results with no formulas needed.

Conclusion

The Fidelity Investment Growth Calculator is a must-have tool for anyone serious about planning their financial future. By simply entering your initial investment, contributions, expected return, and time horizon, you can gain valuable insights into how your wealth may grow.

Whether you’re saving for retirement, college, or simply building wealth, this calculator empowers you to make smarter financial decisions today — and enjoy the rewards tomorrow.