Do you know the Rule of 72? 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.
As you can see, a one-time contribution of $10,000 doubles six more times at 12 percent than at 3 percent.
| Years | 3% | 6% | 12% |
| 0 | $10,000 | $10,000 | $10,000 |
| 6 | | | $20,000 |
| 12 | | $20,000 | $40,000 |
| 18 | | | $80,000 |
| 24 | $20,000 | $40,000 | $160,000 |
| 30 | | | $320,000 |
| 36 | | $80,000 | $640,000 |
| 42 | | | $1,280,000 |
| 48 | $40,000 | $160,000 | $2,560,000 |
How many doubling periods do you have in your life?
This table serves as a demonstration of how the Rule of 72 concept works from a mathematical standpoint. It is not intended to represent an investment. The chart uses constant rates of return, unlike actual investments which will fluctuate in value. It does not include fees or taxes, which would lower performance. It is unlikely that an investment would grow 10% or greater on a consistent basis.
FAQs
Do you know the Rule of 72? 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.
What is the Rule of 72 in simple terms? ›
What Is the Rule of 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.
Is the Rule of 72 still accurate? ›
The Rule of 72 works best in the range of 5 to 12 percent, but it's still an approximation. To calculate based on a lower interest rate, like 2 percent, drop the 72 to 71; to calculate based on a higher interest rate, add one to 72 for every three percentage point increase.
Does the Rule of 72 always work? ›
It's worth noting, the “rule of 72” definition isn't necessarily perfectly accurate because past market results do not predict future market behavior. However, it's a “back of the napkin” way to determine where your portfolio might potentially be in the years ahead.
What is the Rule of 72 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 to double $2000 dollars in 24 hours? ›
Try Flipping Things
Another way to double your $2,000 in 24 hours is by flipping items. This method involves buying items at a lower price and selling them for a profit. You can start by looking for items that are in high demand or have a high resale value. One popular option is to start a retail arbitrage business.
Why is it Rule of 72? ›
The value 72 is a convenient choice of numerator, since it has many small divisors: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, and 12. It provides a good approximation for annual compounding, and for compounding at typical rates (from 6% to 10%); the approximations are less accurate at higher interest rates.
What is the golden Rule of 72? ›
1) Rule of 72
The 'Rule of 72' gives you an estimate of the number of years it will take to double your money in a particular investment tool. You need to divide the rate of returns by 72 to know the time it would take you to double your investments.
What is rule of 73? ›
Lower or higher rates outside of this range can be better predicted using an adjusted Rule of 71, 73 or 74, depending on how far they fall below or above the range. You generally add one to 72 for every three percentage point increase. So, a 15% rate of return would mean you use the Rule of 73.
How do you apply the Rule of 72? ›
Do you know the Rule of 72? 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.
The magic number
The premise of the rule revolves around either dividing 72 by the interest rate your investment will receive, or inversely, dividing the number of years you would like to double your money in by 72 to give you the required rate of return.
What is the limitation of Rule 72? ›
It is not an exact value and can only provide a general estimate of the time required to double the investment. If the interest rate changes due to some factor, the Rule of 72 becomes null and void. The Rule of 72 does not apply to changing interest rate investments or basic interest investments.
What is the rule 72 for 401k? ›
Rule 72(t) allows penalty-free early withdrawals from retirement accounts, but comes with major restrictions. While avoiding the 10% penalty, you still owe income taxes on distributions. Payments are fixed for 5+ years and can't be changed without penalty. You lose tax-deferred growth and can't contribute anymore.
What is the rule of 144? ›
The formula for the Rule of 144 is, 144 divided by the interest rate equal to the number of years it will take to quadruple your money. For instance: If you invest Rs 1,00,000 with a 12% annual expected return, then the time by which it will gain four times is 144/12 = 12 years.
What is the rule of 70? ›
The rule of 70 is used to determine the number of years it takes for a variable to double by dividing the number 70 by the variable's growth rate. The rule of 70 is generally used to determine how long it would take for an investment to double given the annual rate of return.
Can the Rule of 72 be applied to debt? ›
Yes, the Rule of 72 can apply to debt, and it can be used to calculate an estimate of how long it would take a debt balance to double if it's not paid down or off.
What is the Rule of 72 and give an example? ›
For instance, if you were to invest $100 at 9% per annum, then your investment would be worth $200 after 8.0432 years, using an exact calculation. The rule of 72 gives 72/9 = 8 years, which is close to the exact answer. See time value of money. The same applies to exponential decay.
What are three things the Rule of 72 can determine? ›
dividing 72 by the interest rate will show you how long it will take your money to double. How many years it takes an invesment to double, How many years it takes debt to double, The interest rate must earn to double in a time frame, How many times debt or money will double in a period of time.
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%.
How long does it take to double 1 million dollars? ›
The amount of time it takes to double a million dollars depends on the annual return of the investment. The rule of 72 states that it takes 72 divided by the annual return to double your money. For example, if you can achieve an annual return of 10%, it will take 72/10=7.2 years to double your million dollars.
