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Growth Rate Calculator: CAGR and Total Growth
Calculate total growth, compound growth rate, annualized equivalent growth, absolute growth, and doubling time from a starting value, ending value, and number of periods.
Growth Inputs
Growth Results
Moderate growth
Compound rate
14.47%
per year
- Total growth
- 50.0%
- Annualized equivalent
- 14.47%
- Absolute growth
- 50,000
- Average growth per period
- 16,667
What Is a Growth Rate Calculator?
A growth rate calculator turns two values and a time span into comparable growth metrics. It is commonly used for revenue, profit, users, subscribers, traffic, portfolio value, market size, and other business or investment metrics that move over time.
How to Calculate Growth Rate
| Metric | Formula | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Total growth | (Final value - Initial value) / Initial value | The full percentage change across the whole measurement window. |
| Compound growth rate | (Final value / Initial value)^(1 / periods) - 1 | The smoothed growth rate per selected period. |
| Annualized equivalent | (1 + period growth rate)^(periods per year) - 1 | The estimated annual rate if the selected-period growth continued at the same pace. |
| Absolute growth | Final value - Initial value | The raw increase or decrease in the same unit as the input values. |
Worked Example
Inputs
Initial value: 100,000
Final value: 150,000
Periods: 3 years
Total growth
(150,000 - 100,000) / 100,000 = 50.0%
Compound rate
(150,000 / 100,000)^(1 / 3) - 1 = 14.47% per year
When to Use or Skip CAGR
Use it when
- You need one comparable rate for a multi-period change.
- The beginning and ending values are measured consistently.
- You want to compare scenarios with different time spans.
Be careful when
- The path was volatile or affected by one-time events.
- The starting value is zero or close to zero.
- You need a forecast rather than a historical summary.
Formula Notes
This calculator uses standard percentage-change and compound-growth formulas. Results are rounded for display, but calculations use the unrounded input values. The annualized equivalent assumes the selected-period compound rate continues for a full year, which may not reflect real business seasonality or investment risk.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between total growth and CAGR?
Total growth measures the full percentage change from the initial value to the final value. CAGR converts that change into a smoothed compound rate per year when the period type is years, or per selected period when you choose months or quarters.
What formula does this calculator use?
Total growth equals (final value minus initial value) divided by initial value. Compound growth rate equals (final value divided by initial value) raised to 1 divided by the number of periods, minus 1.
Can I use this for revenue growth?
Yes. Enter starting revenue, ending revenue, and the number of periods. The result is useful for comparing revenue, users, subscribers, portfolio value, market size, or any positive metric measured on the same basis.
Why can CAGR be misleading?
CAGR smooths the path between the starting and ending values. It does not show volatility, interim declines, seasonality, one-time events, churn, or whether the same trend is likely to continue.
What happens if the initial value is zero?
Percentage growth and CAGR require a positive initial value. If the starting value is zero, use absolute growth, a cohort-based metric, or enter the first nonzero period as the initial value.
About This Calculator
Calculate total growth, compound growth rate, annualized equivalent growth, absolute growth, and doubling time from an initial value, final value, and number of periods.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between total growth and CAGR?
Total growth measures the full percentage change from the initial value to the final value. CAGR converts that change into a smoothed compound rate per year when the period type is years, or per selected period when you choose months or quarters.
What formula does this calculator use?
Total growth equals (final value minus initial value) divided by initial value. Compound growth rate equals (final value divided by initial value) raised to 1 divided by the number of periods, minus 1.
Can I use this for revenue growth?
Yes. Enter starting revenue, ending revenue, and the number of periods. The result is useful for comparing revenue, users, subscribers, portfolio value, market size, or any positive metric measured on the same basis.
Why can CAGR be misleading?
CAGR smooths the path between the starting and ending values. It does not show volatility, interim declines, seasonality, one-time events, churn, or whether the same trend is likely to continue.
What happens if the initial value is zero?
Percentage growth and CAGR require a positive initial value. If the starting value is zero, use absolute growth, a cohort-based metric, or enter the first nonzero period as the initial value.
Mike is a software engineer with a background in applied mathematics. He develops and maintains SuperCalc's engineering, conversion, and math utility calculators.
- M.S. in Applied Mathematics, MIT
- Former quantitative developer
- 6 years building computational tools