Free calculator
NPV calculator
Enter an investment and the cash flows it brings in, or paste them from a spreadsheet. You get net present value, IRR, payback and the Excel formulas that give the same answer.
Project
Your required return or cost of capital, for one period.
Enter it as a positive number; it's treated as cash out.
Use a minus sign for a cash outflow, such as a later reinvestment.
MIRR rates (optional)
Blank uses the discount rate.
Blank uses the discount rate.
Discounted cash flows
| Year | Cash flow | Present value | Cumulative PV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | (100,000.00) | (100,000.00) | |
| 1 | 25,000.00 | (77,272.73) | |
| 2 | 30,000.00 | (52,479.34) | |
| 3 | 35,000.00 | (26,183.32) | |
| 4 | 30,000.00 | (5,692.92) | |
| 5 | 25,000.00 | 9,830.12 | |
| Net present value | 9,830.12 | ||
Check it in Excel or Google Sheets
With the initial investment in B2 as a negative number and the cash flows in B3:B7:
=NPV(10%, B3:B7) + B2- $9,830.12
=IRR(B2:B7)- 13.75%
Leave B2 out of the NPV range. Excel’s NPV function discounts the first value it’s given by one full period, so including today’s investment understates the result.
The NPV formula
C₀ is the investment today, C₁ to Cₙ the cash flows at the end of each period, and r the discount rate per period. The calculator’s starting example, a $100,000 investment returning $25,000, $30,000, $35,000, $30,000 and $25,000 over five years, has an NPV of $9,830.12 at 10% and an IRR of 13.75%. It pays back in 3.33 years before discounting.
The measures, side by side
| Measure | What it tells you | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| NPV | Value added at your discount rate, in dollars. | Only as good as the discount rate and cash flow estimates. |
| IRR | The discount rate at which NPV is zero. | More than one answer when cash flows change sign more than once. |
| MIRR | A return using explicit finance and reinvestment rates. | Depends on the rates you choose. |
| Payback | How long until cumulative cash flow turns positive. | Ignores the time value of money and cash after payback. |
| Discounted payback | Payback using present values. | Still ignores cash after payback. |
| Profitability index | Present value of later cash flows per dollar invested. | Above 1.0 when NPV is positive; useful to compare projects of different size. |
NPV and IRR in Excel
Excel’s NPV discounts the first value in its range by a full period, so add today’s cash flow outside the function. Enter the investment as a negative number. =IRR(C₀:Cₙ) takes the whole range, investment included. The calculator prints both formulas with the results they should return.
For uneven dates rather than regular periods, Excel has XNPV and XIRR. For lease cash flows under ASC 842, use the lease liability calculator. If the rate or the time to recover matters more than the amount, the IRR calculator and the payback period calculator lead with those results.
NPV: questions
- What does a positive NPV mean?
- The cash flows, discounted at your rate, are worth more than the investment, so the project earns more than the discount rate. A negative NPV means it earns less. At exactly zero, the return equals the discount rate, which is the IRR.
- What's the difference between NPV and IRR?
- NPV is an amount: the value the project adds at your discount rate. IRR is a rate: the discount rate at which NPV is zero. They usually agree on whether to accept a single project, but they can rank two projects differently when the projects differ in size or timing.
- Why does Excel's NPV give a different answer?
- Excel's NPV function treats the first value in its range as one period away. Put today's investment in that range and it gets discounted too. For the example below, the correct formula returns $9,830.12; including the investment in the range returns $8,936.47.
- When can a project have more than one IRR?
- When the cash flows change sign more than once, such as an investment, then income, then a large cleanup cost. The calculator flags it. NPV at your discount rate gives a single, reliable answer in those cases.
- What is MIRR?
- Modified IRR assumes cash coming in is reinvested at a reinvestment rate and cash going out is financed at a finance rate, instead of both at the IRR. It returns a single rate even when the cash flows change sign more than once. Both rates default to your discount rate.
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Sources
Official documents read on October 29, 2026. Vendor facts are sourced on each listing.