Finance calculator (TVM)
Solve any time value of money problem: future value, present value, payment, periods or rate.
About this calculator
This finance calculator works like the TVM keys of a financial calculator. Enter any four of N, I/Y, PV, PMT and FV, and it solves for the fifth.
Use it for loans, savings, annuities and investments, with payments at the start or end of each period, and see the balance year by year.
How it works
Every time value of money problem follows one equation: PV × (1 + i)ⁿ + PMT × ((1 + i)ⁿ − 1) ÷ i + FV = 0, where i is the rate per period and n the number of periods. Give any four values and the fifth follows.
Last reviewed:
Worked example
- Solve for: Future value (FV)
- Number of periods (N): 120
- Interest rate (I/Y): 6% a year
- Present value (PV): -10,000
- Payment (PMT): -100
- Periods per year: Monthly
- Payments made: At the end of each period
Future value (FV): $34,581.90
Common questions
What do N, I/Y, PV, PMT and FV mean?
The number of periods, the yearly interest rate, the present value, the payment each period and the future value: the five keys of a financial calculator.
Why are some values negative?
Cash flows have a direction. Money you pay out, such as a deposit or a loan payment, is negative; money you receive is positive.
How do I find a loan payment?
Enter the loan as a positive PV, 0 as FV, the term in months as N and the rate, then solve for PMT. A $200,000 loan at 6.5% over 360 months needs $1,264.14 a month.
Sources and further reading
The story behind it
Where the idea came from: The HP-12C financial calculator, launched in 1981, made the five time value of money keys, n, i, PV, PMT and FV, standard in finance.
It is still on sale today, one of the longest-running electronic products ever made. Its sign convention, with money paid out as negative, is the one this calculator follows.
Why you can trust this calculator
- It runs in your browser. Nothing you type into it is sent anywhere.
- The method is explained on this page, so you can check it yourself.
- Free to use, with no sign-up.
- Results are estimates, not financial advice.
- Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we'll look into it.
After 15 years as a mathematics educator, I built CalculStore to give students, teachers, professionals and anyone working with numbers simple, reliable tools.
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