Dollar-cost averaging calculator: gold, S&P 500 and crypto
See what a fixed amount every month could become in gold, the S&P 500 or Solana. Always a range, never a promise.
What is dollar-cost averaging?
Dollar-cost averaging, or DCA, means putting the same amount into an investment on a schedule, every month for example, whatever the price that day. You buy more when prices are low and less when they are high, and you never have to guess the right moment.
It suits a savings habit: a small, steady amount that keeps going for years. That is why the calculator asks two things, how much and for how long, and why it shows the cost of waiting. Time in the plan does more of the work than the amount.
How the numbers work
The calculator uses explained return assumptions: a fixed yearly range for each asset, written down here, not a prediction of any year.
- Gold: 4% to 7% a year. A conservative long-run assumption for gold priced in dollars.
- S&P 500: 7% to 10% a year. Broad US stocks with dividends reinvested, over the long run.
- Solana (SOL): -10% to +25% a year. Deliberately wide: SOL is young and very volatile, so the range spans a losing decade to strong growth. Treat it as the weakest of the three assumptions.
A mix blends the three by its weights. Your amount goes in once a month and compounds monthly. The calculator runs the low and the high rate and leads with the middle, never the best case. No fees or taxes are taken off.
Common questions
Plain answersWhat is dollar-cost averaging (DCA)?
Putting the same amount into an investment on a schedule, say every month, whatever the price that day. When prices are low your money buys more, when they are high it buys less, and you never have to pick the right moment.
How does this DCA calculator work?
It adds your amount every month and grows it at a fixed yearly rate, compounded monthly. It runs twice, once at the low end and once at the high end of each asset's range, and shows the middle with the full range beside it. The rates are explained return assumptions, set out under How the numbers work, not a forecast.
What return does it assume for gold, the S&P 500 and Solana?
Gold 4% to 7% a year, the S&P 500 7% to 10%, and Solana (SOL) -10% to +25%, the widest because it is the most volatile. A mix blends them by its weights: Careful is 50% gold, 40% stocks and 10% crypto; Balanced 30/50/20; Bold 10/55/35.
What is the cost of waiting to invest?
What you give up by starting later. The calculator keeps the same end date and starts the plan today, or 1, 3 or 5 years from now. A later start puts in less and gives every dollar fewer years to grow, so the gap is usually bigger than the money you did not put in.
What can $1 a day become?
A dollar a day is about $30 a month, or $365 a year. Put into the S&P 500 for 20 years, on the calculator's assumptions it could become around $18,600, somewhere between $15,400 and $21,800, from $7,300 put in. Hypothetical, not a guarantee.
Can I invest in gold, the S&P 500 and Solana with Sproot?
Yes. Sproot is a monthly plan from $50 a month: pick an amount and a mix, approve once from your wallet, and it buys on the same day every month, straight into your own wallet. Gold is bought as GLDx, the S&P 500 as SPYx (tokenized, issued by Backed) and crypto as SOL. Residents of the US, the UK, Australia and Canada can only buy crypto on Sproot.
Is this investment advice?
No. The figures are hypothetical, not a guarantee, and not investment advice. Prices go down as well as up, and you could get back less than you put in.
Hypothetical, not a guarantee. These figures come from fixed return assumptions, not from how any asset will actually perform. Prices go down as well as up, and you could get back less than you put in. Nothing on this page is investment advice.
Residents of the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada can only buy crypto (SOL) on Sproot; gold and stocks aren't available to them.