Savings Goal Calculator

Find how much to save each month to reach a goal or build an emergency fund by a date, or how long a set monthly deposit takes, with interest at your account's APY. Your inputs stay in your browser.

Your goal and plan

Your goal

What are you saving for?

Housing, utilities, food, insurance, transport and minimum debt payments.

Three to six months is a common rule of thumb; more if your income is irregular.

The annual percentage yield your account pays. Enter 0 to leave out interest.

Your plan

What do you want to know?
Time to save

Save $465.38/month for 3 years. See full results

Example: a $20,000.00 goal with $2,000.00 saved so far, 4% APY and 3 years to save (illustrative figures, not current rates). Enter your numbers to update.

Your savings plan

Save each month
$465.38
To reach the goal in 3 years
Goal
$20,000.00
Your savings goal
Interest earned
$1,246.16
At 4% APY
Your deposits
$16,753.84
Plus $2,000.00 saved so far

Deposits are made at the end of each month and interest is credited monthly at the rate that compounds to your APY over a year. Rates on savings accounts can change.

Faster or slower

Monthly amount to reach the goal by…

TimeSave each month
1 year $1,466.64
2 years $715.60
3 years $465.38
5 years $265.44

How the balance grows

Balance year by year

YearDeposits to dateInterest to dateBalance
1 $5,584.61$181.66$7,766.27
2 $11,169.23$593.97$13,763.20
3 $16,753.84$1,246.16$20,000.00

How much to save each month

Without interest, the monthly amount is simply what is left to save divided by the months you have: $18,000.00 ÷ 36 = $500.00. Interest lowers it: at 4% APY the example needs $465.38 a month, because the balance earns $1,246.16 along the way. More time lowers it further: over 5 years it is $265.44 a month.

Sizing an emergency fund

An emergency fund is cash set aside for unplanned costs such as car or home repairs, medical bills or a loss of income (CFPB: building an emergency fund). Choose An emergency fund and the goal becomes your essential monthly expenses times the months you want covered. With $3,500.00 a month and 6 months, that is $21,000.00, or $491.60 a month over 3 years from the example's starting balance. Three to six months of expenses is a common rule of thumb, not a requirement; even a small fund helps, and a specific goal with automatic transfers makes it easier to keep saving.

How the calculation works

  1. APY is the yearly return including compounding (Truth in Savings definition). The monthly rate is r = (1 + APY)1/12 − 1, so a balance left alone for a year grows by exactly the APY. Our compound interest calculator shows how that growth builds over many years.
  2. Monthly amount to reach goal G in n months from savings S: (G − S × (1 + r)n) × r ÷ ((1 + r)n − 1), or (G − S) ÷ n with no interest.
  3. Time with a set deposit: the balance is grown month by month, with the deposit added at the end of each month, until it reaches the goal.

What this calculator does not include

  • Changes in your account's rate. Savings rates are variable; the result assumes today's APY for the whole period. To lock in a rate for a set term, see what a CD earns with our CD calculator.
  • Taxes on interest, fees, withdrawals and inflation.
  • Investment returns. For money in the market, returns are not guaranteed and can be negative.

Results are estimates, not financial advice.

Methodology and testing

Automated tests compare the monthly amounts with an independent implementation of the closed form, check that a balance at the APY grows by exactly that rate in a year, and check for 300 varied plans that the solved deposit reaches the goal in exactly the chosen month. How we build and test calculators.

Sources

  • CD Calculator

    Maturity value and interest from APY or rate, compounding comparison, after-tax interest and the early-withdrawal penalty.

  • Credit Card Payoff Calculator

    Months to pay off, total interest, extra-payment savings, the payment needed for a debt-free date, and a payoff schedule.

  • Loan Payoff Calculator

    Payoff date and interest saved with monthly, yearly or lump-sum extras, and the extra needed to be debt-free by a set time.

  • Home Affordability Calculator

    Maximum home price from income, debts and down payment, the debt-to-income limit that binds, and the price at other rates.