Financial

FV Function in Excel

Returns the future value of an investment based on periodic, constant payments and a constant interest rate.

Syntax

  • =FV(rate, nper, pmt, [pv], [type])

Arguments

  • rate (required): Interest rate per period
  • nper (required): Total number of payment periods
  • pmt (required): Payment made each period
  • pv (optional): Present value (default 0)
  • type (optional): 0=end of period, 1=beginning

Examples

  • =FV(5%/12, 120, -500) - Future value of $500/month for 10 years at 5% - Result: $77,641.14
  • =FV(7%, 20, 0, -10000) - Growth of $10,000 over 20 years at 7% - Result: $38,696.84

Excel FV function documentation

  • FV returns the future value of an investment based on periodic constant payments and a constant interest rate.
  • Syntax: =FV(rate, nper, pmt, [pv], [type]). Answers "how much will I have after N periods?"
  • Use for savings goals, retirement projections, and lump-sum growth with contributions.
  • Related: [PV](/functions/pv/), [PMT](/functions/pmt/), [NPER](/functions/nper/), [RATE](/functions/rate/).

FV syntax and cash flow signs

  • rate: per-period interest (annual / 12 for monthly contributions).
  • nper: number of periods contributions run.
  • pmt: payment each period — negative if money you deposit (outflow from your pocket).
  • pv (optional): lump sum starting balance — negative if deposit today.
  • type: 1 if payment at beginning of period (annuity due); 0 end of period.

Step-by-step: savings goal in 10 years

  • Step 1 — Monthly contribution $500, annual return 7% assumed constant.
  • Step 2 — rate =7%/12, nper =10*12, pmt =-500 (outflow).
  • Step 3 — Starting balance $10,000: pv =-10000.
  • Step 4 — =FV(7%/12, 120, -500, -10000) positive future nest egg.
  • Step 5 — Stress-test rate 5% and 9% in adjacent columns for sensitivity.

FV vs PV vs compound interest formula

  • FV — future value with payments + optional lump sum.
  • PV — present value of future cash flows (reverse direction).
  • Manual: =pv*(1+rate)^nper for lump sum only without periodic pmt.
  • Financial models: keep rate, nper, pmt, pv signs documented on Settings sheet.

Worked examples to copy

  • Lump sum only: =FV(6%/12, 60, 0, -10000) — $10k at 6% APR for 5 years monthly compounding.
  • Monthly savings: =FV(5%/12, 30*12, -200).
  • Beginning-of-month: =FV(rate, nper, pmt, pv, 1).
  • Display positive: =-FV(...) when inputs use mixed sign convention.

People also ask

  • FV negative result? — Check pmt/pv sign convention; flip inputs or negate FV.
  • FV vs compound interest? — FV handles periodic payments; compound formula is lump-sum only.
  • FV assume constant rate? — Yes. Variable returns need year-by-year simulation.
  • FV for retirement? — Common pattern; validate with professional planning tools for real advice.

Common errors

  • #NUM! with invalid arguments
  • Sign convention: payments out are negative

Use cases

  • Retirement planning
  • Savings goals
  • Investment growth

Frequently asked questions

  • What is the FV function in Excel? FV (Future Value) calculates how much an investment will be worth in the future based on periodic payments and a constant interest rate. The syntax is =FV(rate, nper, pmt, [pv], [type]). For example, =FV(5%/12, 120, -500) calculates the future value of investing $500/month for 10 years at 5% annual interest.
  • How do I calculate future value of monthly investments? Use =FV(annual_rate/12, months, -monthly_payment). Example: =FV(7%/12, 240, -500) calculates investing $500/month for 20 years at 7% = $260,464. The payment is negative because it's money going out. For lump sum growth without payments: =FV(rate, periods, 0, -initial_amount).
  • Why is FV returning a negative number? FV uses cash flow sign conventions. If payments (pmt) are negative (money out), FV returns positive (money you'll have). If payments are positive, FV returns negative. To get intuitive results, make payments negative: =FV(rate, nper, -payment). The result shows what you'll accumulate.
  • How do I calculate compound interest growth with FV? For compound interest on a lump sum (no additional payments): =FV(rate, periods, 0, -principal). Example: =FV(8%/12, 120, 0, -10000) shows $10,000 growing at 8% annually for 10 years = $22,196. Use monthly rate (8%/12) and monthly periods (120) for monthly compounding.
  • What is the difference between FV and PV in Excel? FV calculates future value (what you'll have later), PV calculates present value (what future money is worth today). FV answers: "If I invest $X, what will I have?" PV answers: "What's $X in the future worth today?" They're inverse functions. =FV(5%, 10, 0, -1000) and =PV(5%, 10, 0, -FV_result) return the original values.

Editorial review

  • Reviewed by Excel.Directory Editorial Team. Updated May 2026.

When to use FV

  • Retirement planning — common Financial scenario for FV.
  • Savings goals — common Financial scenario for FV.
  • Investment growth — common Financial scenario for FV.

FV in the Financial category

  • Browse all Financial functions at /categories/financial/ for related formulas.
  • FV syntax: =FV(rate, nper, pmt, [pv], [type])
  • rate (required): Interest rate per period
  • nper (required): Total number of payment periods
  • pmt (required): Payment made each period
  • pv (optional): Present value (default 0)
  • Confirm FV arguments match the syntax shown above before filling down.
  • Lock table and range references with $ when copying formulas across rows or sheets.

Formula checklist before you copy down

  • Confirm FV arguments match the syntax shown above before filling down.
  • Lock table and range references with $ when copying formulas across rows or sheets.
  • If results look wrong, check for text stored as numbers and invisible spaces with TRIM.
  • Spot-check three known input rows manually against expected output.

Related Excel functions

  • PV (/functions/pv/): Returns the present value of an investment - the total amount that future payments are worth now.
  • PMT (/functions/pmt/): Calculates the payment for a loan based on constant payments and a constant interest rate.
  • NPER (/functions/nper/): Returns the number of periods for an investment based on periodic payments and a constant interest rate.
  • RATE (/functions/rate/): Returns the interest rate per period of an annuity.

Errors to watch for

  • #NUM! with invalid arguments — review causes on linked error pages in the directory.
  • Sign convention: payments out are negative — review causes on linked error pages in the directory.

Copy-paste audit workflow

  • Enter FV on three test rows with known expected output documented on a QA tab.
  • Fill down only after absolute references are locked on lookup tables and rate tables.
  • Compare against manual calculation or a calculator for financial and statistical functions.
  • Search this directory for comparison guides when choosing between similar functions in the same category.

FV worked examples to copy

  • =FV(5%/12, 120, -500) — Future value of $500/month for 10 years at 5%. Expected result: $77,641.14.
  • =FV(7%, 20, 0, -10000) — Growth of $10,000 over 20 years at 7%. Expected result: $38,696.84.

FV reference summary for crawlers and offline review

  • FV belongs to the Financial category in Excel. Returns the future value of an investment based on periodic, constant payments and a constant interest rate.
  • Full syntax: =FV(rate, nper, pmt, [pv], [type]). Open /functions/fv/ for parameters, FAQs, and related pages.
  • Common mistakes: #NUM! with invalid arguments; Sign convention: payments out are negative
  • Pair this function with comparison guides when another Excel formula might fit the same task better.
  • Review fix-excel-formula-errors when unexpected errors appear after upgrading Excel or sharing across locales.