Present Value Calculator

Present Value Calculator discounts money that arrives later back to what it is worth now. The principle is simple: a sum you will receive in fifteen years is worth less than the same sum today, because today's version could be invested in the meantime. The discount rate is how much less, expressed per year.

The discount factor is the figure to look at. At six per cent over fifteen years it is about 0.42, which means every unit of future money is worth forty-two cents now. That single number is what makes a structured settlement, a pension transfer offer or a delayed payment comparable with cash in hand, and it is why those offers are so often worse than they appear.

Choosing the rate is the judgement call, and the comparison table exists because of it. There is no correct discount rate: it stands for what you could otherwise earn, plus the risk the money never arrives. Running two and twelve per cent on the same amount shows how much the answer rests on that choice, which is itself the most useful thing the calculator tells you.

This is arithmetic, not financial advice. It tells you what the numbers do; it cannot tell you whether a decision is right for your circumstances. Fees, taxes and local rules vary, so check anything that matters against the actual offer and speak to someone qualified before committing.

Everything is worked out inside your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded, logged or stored, which matters for the financial calculators in particular: the figures you put into them are nobody else's business.

• Shows present value, discounted away, discount factor, undiscounted total and present value as a share together, so you are not running it twice
• A results table you can read across
• Updates as you type, with no button to press and no page reload
• Copy the result in one click
• Free, no sign-up, and it runs entirely in your browser

The present value calculator is used by writers, developers, students, marketers and anyone else who needs the job done once without installing software. Common cases include:

• Valuing a lump sum offered instead of future payments
• Comparing a payout now with one in several years
• Discounting a stream of lease or rental payments
• Checking a settlement offer against its undiscounted total