In Google Sheets, the "Future Value" refers to the value of an investment at a specified date in the future, accounting for factors like periodic payments, interest rates, and the total number of payment periods. It's a key concept in finance and investment planning, helping to predict how investments will grow over time.
You can calculate the Future Value in Google Sheets using the FV function. The syntax for the FV function is:
FV(rate, nper, pmt, [pv], [type])
Follow the steps below to use the Future Value formula in Google Sheets.
First, know your variables: interest rate (rate), number of periods (nper), periodic payment (pmt), present value (pv), and when payments are made (type). For our example, we have the Annual Interest Rate (5%), Number of Years (10), Annual Payment (-$500), Present Value (-$1,000), and Payment Type (0) laid out in the spreadsheet.
Click on the cell where you want to display the Future Value result. This is where the calculation will appear.
In the selected cell, type =FV( to start your formula. Google Sheets will help by showing hints for each parameter as you go. Using the dataset, fill in the parameters directly from your table. Assuming your values start from cell C2 to C6, your formula will look like this: =FV(C2, C3, C4, C5, C6). This incorporates all your variables directly into the calculation.
Hit Enter after typing in your formula. Google Sheets will process the information and output the future value of your investment considering the annual payments, interest rate, and time period.
The selected cell will now display the future value of your investment. For this example, the result is $7,917.84. This means after making annual payments of $500 for 10 years, with an initial investment of $1,000 and an annual interest rate of 5%, the total amount of your investment will grow to $7,917.84 by the end of the period.
If you wish to explore different scenarios, such as changing the interest rate, the number of years, or the payment amount, simply adjust the values in cells C2 to C6. After each change, press Enter again to recalculate the future value.
We hope that you now have a better understanding of how to use the Future Value formula in Google Sheets. If you enjoyed this article, you might also like our article on how to insert Greek letters in Google Sheets or our article on how to use PERCENTRANK in Google Sheets.
