The Rule of 72 (with calculator) (2024)

Have you always wanted to be able to do compound interest problems in your head?Perhaps not... but it's a very useful skill to have because it gives you a lightning fast benchmark to determine how good (or not so good) a potential investment is likely to be.

The rule says that to find the number of years required to double your money at a given interest rate, you just divide the interest rate into 72.For example, if you want to know how long it will take to double your money at eight percent interest, divide 8 into 72 and get 9 years.

Y = 72 / r and r = 72 / Y

where Y and r are the years and interest rate, respectively.

Compound Interest Curve

Suppose you invest $100 at a compound interest rate of 10%.The rule of 72 tells you that your money will double every seven years, approximately:

YearsBalance
Now$100
7$200(doubles every
14$400 seven years)
21$800

If you graph these points, you start to see the familiar compound interest curve:

The Rule of 72 (with calculator) (1)

Practice using the Rule of 72

It's good to practice with the rule of 72 to get an intuitive feeling for the way compound interest works.So...

Why Stop at a Double?

There's nothing sacred about doubling your money.You can also get a simple estimate for other growth factors, as this calculator shows:

Why Does the Rule of 72 Work?

If you want to know more, see this explanation of why the rule of 72 works.(Brace yourself, because it's slightly geeked out.)

The Rule of 72 (with calculator) (2024)

FAQs

What is the Rule of 72 calculator? ›

The Rule of 72 predicts how long an investment will take to double based on a fixed annual interest rate. The rule is this: 72 divided by the interest rate number equals the number of years for the investment to double in size. For example, if the interest rate is 12%, you would divide 72 by 12 to get 6.

How to calculate 72? ›

The Rule of 72 is a simple way to determine how long an investment will take to double given a fixed annual rate of interest. Dividing 72 by the annual rate of return gives investors a rough estimate of how many years it will take for the initial investment to duplicate itself.

What is the Rule of 72 and give an example of how it is calculated? ›

The Rule of 72 is a calculation that estimates the number of years it takes to double your money at a specified rate of return. If, for example, your account earns 4 percent, divide 72 by 4 to get the number of years it will take for your money to double. In this case, 18 years.

What is 72 calculator? ›

Use the Rule of 72 to estimate how long it will take to double an investment at a given interest rate. Divide 72 by the interest rate to see how long it will take to double your money on an investment. Alternatively you can calculate what interest rate you need to double your investment within a certain time period.

What is the rule of 70 calculator? ›

The rule of 70 calculates the years it takes for an investment to double in value. It is calculated by dividing the number 70 by the investment's growth rate. The calculation is commonly used to compare investments with different annual interest rates.

How long will it take $1000 to double at 6% interest? ›

So, if the interest rate is 6%, you would divide 72 by 6 to get 12. This means that the investment will take about 12 years to double with a 6% fixed annual interest rate.

What equations make 72? ›

36 x 2 = 72, 24 x 3 = 72, 18 x 4 = 72, 12 x 6 = 72, 9 x 8 = 72. Since 2 and 3 are primary numbers, they have no further factors. 1 is of course a factor. So, we can multiply 1, 2 and 3 to get 72.

How to use Rule of 72 to calculate IRR? ›

Question: What is the IRR of an investment that doubles in 5 years? Answer: We simply take 72 and divide by 5, as the investment doubles over 5 years. The answer is 14% IRR. If you were to calculate this in Excel, you would realize the actual IRR is 15%.

How to calculate Rule of 72 in Excel? ›

Left click and hold on the bottom right corner of cell B2 and drag the cell down to cell B6. Now, use the rule of 72 to calculate the approximate number of years by entering "=72/A2" into cell C2, "=72/A3" into cell C3, "=72/A4" into cell C4, "=72/A5" into cell C5 and "=72/A6" into cell C6.

What are the 5 stages of investing? ›

  • Step One: Put-and-Take Account. This is the first savings you should establish when you begin making money. ...
  • Step Two: Beginning to Invest. ...
  • Step Three: Systematic Investing. ...
  • Step Four: Strategic Investing. ...
  • Step Five: Speculative Investing.

Why is it a good idea to know about the rule of 72? ›

The “rule of 72” is one milestone that lets you quickly assess the progress you're making toward big-picture financial goals. It is a mathematical formula that enables you to see how long it will take to double your money at a given rate of return.

What is the rule of 72 used to calculate quizlet? ›

The number of years it takes for a certain amount to double in value is equal to 72 divided by its annual rate of interest.

How is Rule 72 calculator? ›

It's an easy way to calculate just how long it's going to take for your money to double. Just take the number 72 and divide it by the interest rate you hope to earn. That number gives you the approximate number of years it will take for your investment to double.

How is calculator calculated? ›

Thus, when you input numbers into a calculator, the integrated circuit converts those numbers to binary strings of 0s and 1s. The integrated circuits then use those strings of 0s and 1s to turn transistors on and off with electricity to perform the desired calculations.

How long will it take to increase a $2200 investment to $10,000 if the interest rate is 6.5 percent? ›

Final answer:

It will take approximately 15.27 years to increase the $2,200 investment to $10,000 at an annual interest rate of 6.5%.

What is rule 72 and 69? ›

The Rule of 72 states that by dividing 72 by the annual interest rate, you can estimate the number of years required for an investment to double. ● The Rule of 69.3 is a more accurate formula for higher interest rates and is calculated by dividing 69.3 by the interest rate.

How many years would it take money to grow from $5000 to $10000 if it could earn 6% interest? ›

Dividing these values gives us: t ≈ 0.6931/0.0583 ≈ 11.9 So, approximately, it would take around 11.9 years for the money to grow from $5,000 to $10,000 with a 6% interest rate.

How to double $2000 dollars in 24 hours? ›

How To Double Money In 24 Hours – 10+ Top Ideas
  1. Flip Stuff For Profit.
  2. Start A Retail Arbitrage Business.
  3. Invest In Real Estate.
  4. Play Games For Money.
  5. Invest In Dividend Stocks & ETFs.
  6. Use Crypto Interest Accounts.
  7. Start A Side Hustle.
  8. Invest In Your 401(k)

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