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Watch Your Money Compound
Time in the market beats timing the market. See how consistent investing builds wealth at different return rates.
Compound Growth Visualizer
How This Visualizer Works
The Model
This tool projects portfolio growth under three return scenarios, Conservative (5%), Moderate (7%), and Aggressive (9%), to illustrate how compound interest works over time. Each scenario starts with the same initial amount and receives the same monthly contributions.
Key Calculations
- Annual compounding: Each year, Balance = Previous Balance × (1 + Annual Return Rate) + Annual Contribution
- Monthly to annual: Monthly contributions are multiplied by 12 and added at year-end for simplicity
- Growth vs. contributions: The difference between your final balance and total contributions is your investment growth, the money your money earned
Assumptions
- Returns are constant each year (no market volatility or negative years)
- Contributions remain the same every month for the entire period
- No taxes, advisory fees, or inflation adjustment are included
- All returns are reinvested (no withdrawals)
- The 5/7/9% rates approximate long-term historical averages for conservative, balanced, and growth portfolios
Interpreting Your Results
- The gray dashed line at the bottom shows your total contributions over time
- The colored lines show how each scenario grows, the widening gap between contributions and returns is compound growth in action
- The results cards show the final balance for each scenario and how much came from investment growth vs. your contributions
- A steeper curve later in the chart illustrates how compounding accelerates over time
Tips for Using This Tool
- Extend the time horizon to see how dramatically compounding accelerates in later years
- Notice that doubling the time horizon more than doubles the growth, that is the power of compound returns
- Even small monthly contributions matter over 20-30 years, try increasing your monthly contribution by $100-200
- The difference between 5% and 9% grows exponentially over time, which is why asset allocation matters
- In reality, returns vary year to year, use this as a directional guide, not a precise prediction
Growth at Different Return Rates
Conservative
$529,456
$239,456 in growth
Moderate
$685,430
$395,430 in growth
Aggressive
$894,142
$604,142 in growth
The power of compounding. With $290,000 in total contributions, the moderate scenario grows your money to $685,430 , earning $395,430 in investment returns alone. That’s your money working for you.
This visualizer is for illustrative purposes only. It assumes constant annual returns with no fees, taxes, or inflation adjustment. Actual investment returns vary year to year and can be negative. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Rubric Advisors, LLC accepts no liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of this tool.
All computation happens in your browser. No data leaves your device.
This visualizer is provided for educational and informational purposes only. It assumes constant annual returns with no fees, taxes, or inflation adjustment. Actual investment returns vary year to year and can be negative. Past performance does not guarantee future results. This tool does not constitute personalized investment advice. Rubric Advisors, LLC accepts no liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of this tool. All computation happens entirely in your browser and no data is transmitted or stored.
Brought to you by Rubric Advisors
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