What Will Today's Dollars Be Worth in the Future
Results
Visualization
How It Works
Real value discounts nominal money by inflation: Real = Amount / (1 + inflation)^years. The nominal line stays flat at the original amount, while the real line falls as compounding inflation erodes buying power. The calculator reports the real value at your chosen horizon plus snapshots at 10, 20, and 30 years. The chart makes the gap between nominal and real visually obvious.
What Should You Do?
Plan goals in today's dollars, then make sure your portfolio's real return beats inflation. Cash loses purchasing power fastest, so long-term money should sit in assets with some inflation protection like equities or inflation-linked bonds. When setting a retirement target, inflate your future expenses before discounting, so the number you save reflects real costs. Revisit the inflation assumption every few years since it shifts with the economy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a normal inflation rate?
Many central banks target about 2%; periods of 3-8% occur. The U.S. has seen both higher and lower over decades.
Why does cash lose the most?
Cash earns little and faces the full inflation drag, so its real value falls year after year.
How do I protect purchasing power?
Broad equities and inflation-protected bonds have historically outpaced inflation better than cash.
Is my investment return real or nominal?
Market quotes are nominal; subtract inflation to get the real growth that affects what you can buy.
Should retirement targets use real dollars?
Yes. Plan spending needs in today's dollars and let real returns do the work.