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Money & planning

Payback period calculator

Estimate when an initial investment is recovered through a constant annual net benefit.

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01

Your inputs

The starting values are an example.

Decimals: 12.5 · Thousands: 1,234.56. Follow the field instructions for lists.

02

Your result

Enter your values and select Calculate.

Your calculation will appear here.

Your result will include the relevant values and units.

Understand the calculation

Formula and example

How it is calculated

Payback period = initial investment / annual net benefit

Worked example

A €5,000 investment with a €1,250 annual net benefit has a simple payback period of four years.

Things to check

  • This is simple, undiscounted payback. Use the annual savings after any additional ongoing costs.
  • Use one currency consistently. Examples use euros; the calculation works with any currency.