Savings Goal Calculator

Find the monthly deposit needed to hit a savings goal, or see what a monthly deposit grows to over time.

How it works

Pick which question you're asking. If you know what you're saving for, use "how much to save per month for my goal": enter the goal amount, how many months you have, and the APY on the account, and the calculator works backward to find the monthly deposit that gets you there, assuming interest compounds monthly and each deposit lands at the end of the month. If instead you already know how much you can set aside each month and want to see where it lands, switch to the other mode.

Worked example: say you want $10,000 in 24 months and your savings account pays 4% APY. The calculator says you need to deposit $400.92 a month, a bit less than the flat $416.67 you'd need with no interest at all, because the interest does some of the work for you. Flip it around: put away $200 a month for 120 months (10 years) at 5% APY and it grows to $31,056.46, more than the $24,000 you actually deposited.

FAQ

Why does the monthly amount change so little with interest over a short goal?

Interest needs time to compound, and over a year or two the difference between 0% and a typical high-yield savings rate is small in dollar terms. The gap gets much bigger over longer horizons, which is why interest matters more for a 10-year goal than a 6-month one.

What if my account doesn't compound monthly?

Most savings and high-yield savings accounts compound daily but credit interest monthly, which is close enough to this calculator's monthly-compounding assumption that the numbers will be very close. For a goal this size, the difference is usually a few cents to a few dollars, not enough to change your plan.

Should I use my APY or the advertised interest rate?

Use the APY (annual percentage yield), not a plain interest rate, since APY already accounts for compounding and is what your bank actually pays out. It's printed right next to the account on your bank's website or your statement.

What if I miss a deposit some months?

This calculator assumes a steady monthly deposit, so missing months means you'll fall short of the goal or the projected balance. If your income is irregular, run the numbers with a lower, more realistic monthly amount instead of the ideal one so the plan actually matches what you can do.

For more on building savings toward a specific goal, see sinking funds for big expenses, how high-yield savings accounts work, and the 52-week money saving challenge.