FV calculates the future value of an investment based on a constant interest rate and regular payments — the basis of savings and retirement projections.
FV calculates what a series of regular payments (or a lump sum) will grow to by a future date, given a constant interest rate.
It is the standard formula behind savings goal projections, retirement planning, and any "if I save $X per month at Y% for Z years" question.
=FV(rate, nper, pmt, [pv], [type])| Argument | Description |
|---|---|
| rate required | The interest rate per period. |
| nper required | The total number of payment periods. |
| pmt required | The payment made each period. Entered as negative since it represents money leaving your hand. |
| pv optional | The present value or lump sum already invested. Defaults to 0. |
| type optional | 0 = payments at end of period (default), 1 = payments at start. |
FV treats money leaving you (deposits, payments) as negative and money you receive (the result) as positive — entering pmt as positive will throw off the sign of the result.
=FV(0.05/12,36,-200)Saving $200/month for 36 months at 5% annual interest (divided by 12 for monthly) grows to about $7,750.67.
=FV(0.05/12,36,-200,-1000)Same plan, but starting with an additional $1,000 already invested.
=FV(0.06,10,-5000)Saving $5,000/year for 10 years at 6% annual interest.
=FV(0.05/12,36,-200,0,1)Same monthly plan, but assuming deposits happen at the start of each month rather than the end — results in a slightly higher total.
If pmt is monthly, rate must also be a monthly rate — divide the annual rate by 12.
This flips the sign of the whole result and can confuse interpretation — always enter outgoing payments as negative.
ExcelPro has hands-on FV exercises built into real job scenarios — free to start.
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