Choosing the rate
Use a rate consistent with your comparison and cash-flow risk. This calculator takes your entered rate rather than selecting a market rate.
Investing
Present Value Calculator
Find the present value of a future sum, an ordinary or due annuity, or a series of future cash flows at your entered discount rate.
Present value
$6,139.13
Undiscounted future total
$10,000.00
Difference from future total
$3,860.87
Result comparison
Present value: $6,139.13Present value · $6,139.13
Undiscounted future total: $10,000.00Undiscounted future total · $10,000.00
Difference from future total: $3,860.87Difference from future total · $3,860.87
Present valueDifference from future total
Present value by payment
Detailed values use the same assumptions as the summary above.
| Period | Future cash flow | Discount factor | Present value |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | $10,000.00 | 0.614 | $6,139.13 |
The discount rate is an assumption. The result does not assess credit risk, taxes or the chance that future cash flows will be paid.
Calculation method
Formula and method
The rate and periods must use the same unit. For monthly payments, enter a monthly discount rate. For annual payments, enter an annual effective rate.
Detailed guide
What is future money worth today?
Present value translates future money into an equivalent amount today at a chosen discount rate. Select a single future payment, equal annuity payments or an unequal series. A higher positive rate reduces present value.
A future 1,100 payment one year from now has a present value of 1,000 when discounted at 10%. The same method applies to each cash flow before the values are summed.
Formula and method
PV = FV / (1+r)^n; annuity PV = C × Σ (1+r)^−t
The rate and periods must use the same unit. For monthly payments, enter a monthly discount rate. For annual payments, enter an annual effective rate.
Single-value mode discounts to the entered period n. An ordinary annuity starts at period 1, an annuity due at period 0. Unequal future cash flows start at period 1, unlike the NPV calculator where the first row is time zero.
Using the results
Comparing PV and NPV
PV values future cash flows. NPV also includes current costs, commonly a negative initial investment. Use the NPV calculator to compare a complete project.
Frequently asked questions
Can I calculate the present value of an annuity?
Yes. Select equal periodic payments and choose end or beginning of period. Payment timing affects how many periods each payment is discounted.
What happens at zero discount rate?
Present value equals the sum of the future amounts; the timing no longer changes the value.
Can future cash flows be negative?
Yes in the unequal cash-flow mode. Negative values can represent future costs, while positive values represent receipts.
Updated: October 1, 2026
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