Compound Interest Formula With Examples

By Alastair Hazell | Last update: 14 September 2019

Compound interest, or 'interest on interest', is calculated with the compound

interest formula. Multiply the principal amount by one plus the annual interest
rate to the power of the number of compound periods to get a combined figure
for principal and compound interest. Subtract the principal if you want just the
compound interest.

The above assumes interest is compounded once per period (yearly). When incorporating multiple
compounds per period (monthly compounding or quarterly compounding, etc), the formula changes. It
looks like this:
The concept of compound interest is that interest is added back to the principal sum so that interest
is gained on that already-accumulated interest during the next compounding period. How important is
it? Just ask Warren Buffett, one of the world's most successful investors:

"My wealth has come from a combination of living in America, some lucky
genes, and compound interest."

Warren Buffett, 2010

In this article, we'll take a look at the compound interest formula in more depth, go through an
example and examine other versions of the formula that can help you calculate the interest rate and
time factor and incorporate additional regular contributions.

Skip to section:
How to use the formula
Formula to calculate interest rate (%)
Formula to calculate principal
Formula to calculate time factor
Regular contributions formulae

How to use the compound interest formula

To use the compound interest formula you will need figures for principal amount, annual interest rate,
time factor and the number of compound periods. Once you have those, you can go through the
process of calculating compound interest.
 The formula for compound interest, including principal sum, is:
A = P (1 + r/n) (nt)

Where:

A = the future value of the investment/loan, including interest

P = the principal investment amount (the initial deposit or loan amount)
r = the annual interest rate (decimal)
n = the number of times that interest is compounded per unit t
t = the time the money is invested or borrowed for

It's worth noting that this formula gives you the future value of an investment or loan, which is
compound interest plus the principal. Should you wish to calculate the compound interest only, you
need to deduct the principal from the result. So, your formula looks like this:

Compounded interest only (without principal): P (1 + r/n) (nt) - P

Let's look at an example

If an amount of $5,000 is deposited into a savings account at an annual interest rate of 5%,
compounded monthly, the value of the investment after 10 years can be calculated as follows...

P = 5000.
r = 5/100 = 0.05 (decimal).
n = 12.
t = 10.

If we plug those figures into the formula, we get the following:

A = 5000 (1 + 0.05 / 12) (12 * 10) = 8235.05.

So, the investment balance after 10 years is $8,235.05.

Methodology

A few people have written to me asking me to explain step-by-step how we get the 8235.05. This all
revolves around BODMAS / PEMDAS and the order of operations. Let's go through it:

A = 5000 (1 + 0.05 / 12) ^ (12(10))

(note that ^ means 'to the power of')

Using the order of operations we work out the totals in the brackets first. Within the first set of
brackets, you need to do the division first and then the addition (division and multiplication should
be carried out before addition and subtraction). We can also work out the 12(10). This gives us...

A = 5000 (1 + 0.00416) ^ 120

(note that the over-line in the calculation signifies a decimal that repeats to infinity. So, 0.00416666666...)

Then:
 A = 5000 (1.00416) ^ 120

The exponent goes next. So, we calculate (1.00416) ^ 120.

This means we end up with:

5000 × 1.6470095042509848

= 8235.0475.

You may have seen some examples giving a formula of A = P ( 1+r ) t . This simplified formula
assumes that interest is compounded once per period, rather than multiple times per period.

The benefit of compound interest

I think it's worth taking a moment to examine the benefit of compound interest using our example. The
benefit hopefully becomes clear when I tell you that without compound interest, your investment
balance in the above example would be only $7,500 ($250 per year for 10 years, plus the original
$5000) by the end of the term. So, thanks to the wonder of compound interest, you stand to gain an
additional $735.05.

To give a graphical example, the graph below shows the result of $1000 invested over 20 years at an
interest rate of 10%. The principal figure is in green. The blue part of the graph shows the result of 10%
interest without compounding. Finally, the purple part demonstrates the benefit of compound interest
over those 20 years.

You can read more about the benefits of compound interest in our article, what is compound interest?
Interactive compound interest formula
I have created the calculator below to show you the formula and resulting accrued investment/loan
value (A) for the figures that you enter. Note that this calculator requires JavaScript to be enabled in
your browser.

Principal amount (P): 5000

Annual rate (r): 0.05 decimal

Compounds per year (n): 12

Years (t): 10 calculate

r (n t)

( )
A
P 1+
n =
For a comprehensive set of tools for calculating compound interest on your savings, please use the
compound interest calculators.

Formulae to find compound interest rate, time and principal

It may be that you want to manipulate the compound interest formula to work out the interest rate or
principal investment/loan figure. Here are the formulae you need.

Formula for interest rate (r)

Should you wish to work out the average yearly interest rate you're getting on your savings,
investment, personal loan or car loan, this formula can help. Note that you should multiply your result
by 100 to get a percentage figure (%)

Formula for principal (P)

This formula is useful if you want to work backwards and find out how much you would need to start
with in order to achieve a chosen future value.
Example: Let's say your goal is to end up with $10,000 in 5 years, and you can get an 8% interest rate
on your savings, compounded monthly. Your calculation would be: P = 10000 / (1 + 0.08/12)(12×5) =
$6712.10. So, you would need to start off with $6712.10 to achieve your goal.

Formula for time (t)

This variation of the formula works for calculating time (t), by using natural logarithms. You can see
how this formula was worked out by reading this explanation on [Link].

t = ln(A/ P ) / n[ln(1 + r/ n) ]

Where:
 A = the value of the accrued investment/loan
P = the principal amount
r = the annual interest rate (decimal)
n = the number of times that interest is compounded per unit t
t = the time the money is invested or borrowed for

Compound interest formula (with regular contributions)

A lot of people have asked me to include a single formula for compound interest with monthly
additions. Believe me when I tell you that it isn't quite as simple as it sounds. In order to work out
calculations involving monthly additions, you will need to use two formulae - our original one, listed
above, plus the 'future value of a series' formula for the monthly additions.
At the request of readers, I've adapted the formula explanation to allow you to calculate periodic
additions, not just monthly (added May 2016). These formulae assume that your frequency of
compounding is the same as the periodic payment interval (monthly compounding, monthly
contributions, etc). If you would like to try a version of the formula that allows you to have a different
periodic payment interval to the compounding frequency, please see the ' periodic payments' section
below.

If the additional deposits are made at the END of the period (end of month, year, etc), here are the two
formulae you will need:

Compound interest for principal:

P (1+r/ n) ( n t )

Future value of a series:

P MT × {[(1 + r/ n) ( n t ) - 1] / (r/ n) }

If the additional deposits are made at the BEGINNING of the period (beginning of year, etc), here are
the two formulae you will need:

Compound interest for principal:

 P (1+r/ n) ( n t )

Future value of a series:

P MT × {[(1 + r/ n) ( n t ) - 1] / (r/ n) } × (1+r/ n)

Where:

A = the future value of the investment/loan, including interest

P = the principal investment amount (the initial deposit or loan amount)
PMT = the monthly payment
r = the annual interest rate (decimal)
n = the number of times that interest is compounded per unit t
t = the time (months, years, etc) the money is invested or borrowed for

Example

If an amount of $5,000 is deposited into a savings account at an annual interest rate of 5%,
compounded monthly, with additional deposits of $100 per month (made at the end of each month).
The value of the investment after 10 years can be calculated as follows...

P = 5000. PMT = 100. r = 5/100 = 0.05 (decimal). n = 12. t = 10.

If we plug those figures into the formulae, we get:

 Total = [ Compound interest for principal ] + [ Future value of a series ]
Total = [ P(1+r/n)^(nt) ] + [ PMT × (((1 + r/n)^(nt) - 1) / (r/n)) ]
Total = [ 5000 (1 + 0.05 / 12) ^ (12 × 10) ] + [ 100 × (((1 + 0.00416)^(12 × 10) - 1) / (0.00416)) ]
Total = [ 5000 (1.00416) ^ (120) ] + [ 100 × (1.00416)^(120) - 1) / 0.00416) ]
Total = [ 8235.05 ] + [ 100 × (0.647009497690848 / 0.00416) ]
Total = [ 8235.05 ] + [ 15528.23 ]
Total = [ $23,763.28 ]

So, the investment balance after 10 years is $23,763.28.

You can learn more about this future value of a series formula, and use an interactive formula for it, in
the future value formula article.

One thing you might notice is that this figure may differ slightly from the figure you get from the
compound interest calculator. The reason for this is that the compound interest formula above
assumes that the interest calculation occurs before the regular deposit is added on. The calculator,
conversely, adds the deposit in first before calculating the interest. Both are legitimate ways of
calculating.

Different periodic payments

A few people have requested a version of the above formula that takes into account the number of
periodic payments (both formulae above assume your periodic payments match the frequency of
compounding). For example, your money may be compounded quarterly but you're making
contributions monthly. In this case, you may wish to try this version of the formula, originally
suggested by Darinth Douglas, and then expanded upon by Jean-Baptiste Delaroche. I'm most grateful
for their input.
 Compound interest for principal:

P (1+r/ n) ( n t )

Future value of a series:

P MT × p {[(1 + r/ n) ( n t ) - 1] / (r/ n) }

(With 'p' being the number of periodic payments in the compounding period)

Important note: this compound interest formula for different periodic payments only works if the
number of compounds per year is equal to or greater than the number of contributions per year. For
more information about what to do when the payment period doesn't match the compound period, see
this useful page from Jon Wittwer.

Example

An amount of $100 is deposited quarterly into a savings account at an annual interest rate of 10%,
compounded monthly. The value of the investment after 12 months can be calculated as follows...

PMT = 100. r = 0.1 (decimal). n = 12. p = 4/n = 4/12 = 0.3333333.

If we plug those figures into the formula, we get the following:

Total = PMT × p {[(1 + r/n)(nt) - 1] / (r/n)}

Total = 100 × 0.3333333 × {[(1 + 0.1 / 12) ^ (12 × 1) - 1] / (0.1 / 12)}
Total = 100 × 0.3333333 × {[1.008333 ^ (12) - 1] / 0.008333}
 Total = 100 × 0.3333333 × {0.104709 / 0.008333}
Total = 100 × 0.3333333 × 12.565583
Total = 418.85

So, the investment balance after 12 months is $418.85.

Summing up
This article about the compound interest formula began fairly short and has expanded and evolved
based upon your requests for adapted formulae and examples. So, I appreciate it's now quite a lot
longer and more detailed. That said, I hope you've found it helpful. If you have, I would be very grateful
if you would consider sharing it on social media or on your website/blog. Thank you. Should you wish
to leave a comment, please do so below.