Annuity Calculator

Name: Annuity Calculator
Author: Jitendra Kumar

Calculate the future value, present value, required payment, or payout capacity of equal recurring payments using ordinary annuity or annuity due timing.

Last Updated: May 2026

Fixed-Rate Annuity Estimate

This calculator uses fixed time-value-of-money formulas. It does not model taxes, insurer guarantees, surrender charges, market volatility, or variable payment changes.

Annuity Planning

Value equal recurring payments over time

Pick a common scenario, then adjust the payment amount, rate, term, payment frequency, compounding, and payment timing.

Annuity Inputs

Primary Question

Project what recurring payments and a starting balance may grow into.

Present Value / Starting Balance

Use zero if there is no starting balance.

Periodic Payment

Target Future Value

Used for the required-payment result.

Annual Rate

Time Period

Compounding Frequency

Payment Frequency

Payment Timing

Enter a payment stream, rate, timeline, and timing to calculate annuity value, required payment, or payout capacity.

Annuity Calculator Disclaimer

This calculator is an educational planning tool, not financial, investment, tax, insurance, or legal advice. Actual annuity products and investment accounts can differ because of fees, taxes, surrender charges, guarantees, market risk, mortality credits, and contract terms.

Reviewed For Methodology, Labels, And Sources

Every CalculatorWallah calculator is published with visible update labeling, linked source references, and founder-led review of formula clarity on trust-sensitive topics. Use results as planning support, then verify institution-, policy-, or jurisdiction-specific rules where they apply.

Reviewed By

Jitendra Kumar, Founder & Editorial Standards Lead, oversees methodology standards and trust-sensitive publishing decisions.

Review editor profile

Topic Ownership

Sales tax and tax-sensitive estimate tools, Education and GPA planning calculators, Health, protein, and screening-formula pages, Platform-wide publishing standards and methodology

See ownership standards

Methodology & Updates

Page updated May 2026. Trust-critical pages are reviewed when official rates or rules change. Evergreen calculator guides are checked on a recurring quarterly or annual cycle depending on topic volatility.

Sources & methodology About the review process

How to Use This Calculator

Step 1: Choose the annuity question
Select whether you want future value, present value, required savings payment, or payment supported by a lump sum.
Step 2: Enter present value and payments
Use present value for the starting balance or lump sum, and periodic payment for the recurring deposit or income amount.
Step 3: Add the target future value
Enter a future target when the goal is to find the recurring payment needed to reach it.
Step 4: Set rate, time, and frequency
Choose the annual rate, compounding frequency, payment frequency, and number of years.
Step 5: Pick ordinary annuity or annuity due
Use end-of-period payments for an ordinary annuity and beginning-of-period payments for an annuity due.

How This Calculator Works

The calculator converts the annual rate into an effective growth path, then translates that growth into the selected payment interval. That creates a payment-period rate used for future value, present value, and payment formulas.

For ordinary annuities, each payment is treated as if it occurs at the end of the period. For annuities due, payments are treated as if they occur at the beginning of the period, so the annuity factor is multiplied by one extra period of growth.

The required-payment result first grows any starting balance forward, subtracts that amount from the target future value, and divides the remaining need by the annuity future-value factor.

What You Need to Know

1) Annuity Formulas

An annuity formula values a steady payment stream. The rate per payment period is the key input: it needs to match the timing of the payments, not just the quoted annual rate.

Formula	Expression	Use
Future value of annuity	PMT x [((1 + i)^n - 1) / i]	Projects what recurring payments grow into.
Present value of annuity	PMT x [(1 - (1 + i)^-n) / i]	Discounts a payment stream back to today.
Annuity due adjustment	Ordinary annuity factor x (1 + i)	Applies when payments happen at the beginning of each period.
Required payment	Target future value / annuity FV factor	Finds the recurring payment needed for a future target.

2) Ordinary Annuity vs Annuity Due

An ordinary annuity assumes each payment happens at the end of the period. Many loan, lease, and income examples use this structure. An annuity due assumes each payment happens at the beginning of the period, which makes the stream more valuable when the rate is positive.

3) Common Use Cases

Use case	Calculator setup	Planning note
Retirement deposits	Use future value mode with monthly payments and a long timeline.	Compare conservative and optimistic rates before relying on one result.
Education savings	Use required-payment mode with a target future cost.	Beginning-of-period deposits can fit plans where money is saved at the start of each month.
Income stream valuation	Use present value mode with the expected payment amount.	The discount rate should reflect opportunity cost and risk.
Payout planning	Use payment-supported-by-present-value mode with a lump sum.	This is formula-based and does not replace product quotes or retirement income advice.

4) Where to Go Next

Use the Present Value / Future Value Calculator when you want broader time-value-of-money scenarios with both lump sums and recurring payments. Use the Compound Interest Calculator for a contribution-focused growth projection.

Keep the research moving with Present Value / Future Value Calculator, Compound Interest Calculator, Savings Calculator, and Retirement Calculator.

Frequently Asked Questions

An annuity is a series of equal payments made at regular intervals. The payments may be deposits into an investment, loan or lease payments, or withdrawals from a lump sum.

An ordinary annuity assumes payments happen at the end of each period. An annuity due assumes payments happen at the beginning of each period, so each payment has one extra period to earn interest or reduce discounting.

Yes. Choose the required-payment question, enter your starting balance, future target, rate, timeline, frequency, and payment timing. The calculator estimates the recurring payment needed to reach the target.

Yes. Enter the periodic payment, rate, timeline, and payment timing to estimate the present value of that payment stream.

Beginning-of-period payments are worth more than end-of-period payments when the rate is positive because each payment compounds for one additional period.

No. This calculator uses fixed time-value-of-money formulas. Real insurance annuity quotes can include mortality assumptions, surrender charges, guarantees, insurer expenses, taxes, and contract-specific terms.