Skip to content
Moneyplain
Moneyplain
All tools

T/06Tool

Goal planner

Pick a goal, a price in today's money, and a date. See how much to invest every month to get there, with inflation included.

Your goal

How much you need, in today's money

A house deposit, a child's education, a car. Price it at what it costs today.

Years until you need it

Under 3 years? Keep the money in savings or a fixed deposit, not the stock market.

Already saved for it
Expected yearly return

Stock index funds have averaged more over long periods, but with big swings. Savings pay less.

Assumed inflation

Invest each month

$368

Your $50,000 goal will cost about $67,196 in 10 years. Investing this much every month gets you there.

Per month
$368
Goal in future money
$67.2K
After 3% inflation
You put in
$44.1K
Growth adds
$23.1K

The path to your goal

  • Contributions
  • Growth
Starting sooner lowers the monthly amount: more years means growth does more of the work.

01Method

How this works.

First the goal is grown by inflation: goal × (1 + inflation)^years. Then the monthly amount is solved so that savings × (1 + r ÷ 12)^months plus every monthly deposit, grown the same way, adds up to that future goal.

What it assumes

  • A constant yearly return. Real returns swing, so leave some slack or aim a little higher.
  • Deposits land at the end of each month and are never skipped.
  • No fees or taxes. Both reduce what you keep.
  • For goals under three years away, stock-market returns are too unpredictable; use savings rates instead.

Worked example

A goal that costs $50,000 today will cost about $67,196 in 10 years at 3% inflation. Starting from zero and assuming 8% a year, you need to invest about $368 a month to get there.

A goal that costs ₹25,00,000 today will cost about ₹33,59,791 in 10 years at 3% inflation. Starting from zero and assuming 8% a year, you need to invest about ₹18,365 a month to get there.

Learn the idea behind it

Terms used here: SIP, Compound interest, Inflation, Time horizon.

Every number here is a simplified illustration based on the inputs you choose. Returns are not guaranteed and real markets vary — sometimes a lot — year to year. This is education, not financial advice.