Dividend Calculator
Enter an investment and a yield to see your dividend income today, how it grows with reinvestment and dividend increases, and your yield on cost over time.
Annual dividends ÷ price. The S&P 500 yields roughly 1–2%; many dividend ETFs 3–4%.
How fast the payout per share rises each year.
Expected yearly price change, excluding dividends.
New money added each year, spread across the payouts.
- Dividend income now (year 1 rate)
- $400.00
- Income in year 20
- $2,320.16
- Total dividends over 20 years
- $22,000.07
- Ending portfolio value
- $51,782.71
- Yield on cost in year 20
- 23.2%
- Total invested (excl. reinvested dividends)
- $10,000.00
| Year | Income | Cumulative | Value | Yield on cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $406 | $406 | $10,816 | 4.1% |
| 2 | $443 | $849 | $11,703 | 4.4% |
| 3 | $484 | $1,334 | $12,668 | 4.8% |
| 4 | $530 | $1,863 | $13,717 | 5.3% |
| 5 | $579 | $2,442 | $14,859 | 5.8% |
| 6 | $633 | $3,076 | $16,102 | 6.3% |
| 7 | $693 | $3,769 | $17,457 | 6.9% |
| 8 | $759 | $4,527 | $18,932 | 7.6% |
| 9 | $831 | $5,358 | $20,541 | 8.3% |
| 10 | $910 | $6,268 | $22,295 | 9.1% |
| 11 | $998 | $7,266 | $24,209 | 10% |
| 12 | $1,094 | $8,360 | $26,298 | 10.9% |
| 13 | $1,200 | $9,559 | $28,580 | 12% |
| 14 | $1,317 | $10,876 | $31,072 | 13.2% |
| 15 | $1,445 | $12,322 | $33,796 | 14.5% |
| 16 | $1,588 | $13,909 | $36,775 | 15.9% |
| 17 | $1,744 | $15,654 | $40,034 | 17.4% |
| 18 | $1,918 | $17,571 | $43,600 | 19.2% |
| 19 | $2,109 | $19,680 | $47,505 | 21.1% |
| 20 | $2,320 | $22,000 | $51,783 | 23.2% |
How this was calculated
- Starting income: $10,000.00 × 4% yield = $400.00 a year, paid as 4 payments of about $100.00.
- Each payment is reinvested at the share price of the day, so the share count rises after every payout (year 1: 100 → 104 shares) and the next payment is a little larger. Year-1 income with reinvestment: $406.00.
- Every year the dividend per share grows 5% and the share price 4%, so the yield on the current price drifts up while the yield on your cost rises.
- Year 20: 236.33 shares × $10.1078 per share = $2,320.16 of dividends. Yield on cost = $2,320.16 ÷ $10,000.00 invested = 23.2%.
- Ending value = 236.33 shares × $219.11 = $51,782.71. Total dividends received over 20 years: $22,000.07.
Projections assume constant growth rates and no taxes, fees or dividend cuts. Dividends are never guaranteed. Not financial advice.
How this dividend calculator works
Dividend income depends on three things that move at different speeds: how many shares you own, how much each share pays, and what you do with the cash. This dividend calculator tracks all three. It starts with your investment and yield, pays out dividends on your chosen schedule, optionally reinvests each payment at the current share price (a DRIP, or dividend reinvestment plan), raises the dividend per share once a year by your growth rate, and lets the share price drift at the appreciation rate. If you only know a dollar amount, the tool uses a notional share price behind the scenes; every result is in dollars, so it cancels out.
The basic formula is simple: annual income = shares × annual dividend per share, or equivalently investment × yield. The interesting part is what happens over time. Yield on cost, the number long-term dividend investors watch, is this year's dividends divided by the money you originally put in.
Worked example: $10,000 at a 4% yield
Invest $10,000 in a fund yielding 4%, with dividends growing 5% a year and the price rising 4% a year. In year one you collect $400, paid quarterly as roughly $100 a time. Take the cash, and after 20 years the dividend has grown to about $1,011 a year (that is the 5% growth compounding), you have collected $13,226 in total, and the shares are worth $21,911.
Reinvest instead, and each $100 buys a few more shares, which pay a slightly bigger next dividend, which buys more shares. After 20 years the income is about $2,320 a year, more than double the cash version, you have received $22,000 of dividends in total, and the holding is worth $51,783. Yield on cost has climbed from 4% to 23%: the original $10,000 now pays back nearly a quarter of itself every year. That is what dividend growth investors mean by "the snowball".
Yield vs. dividend growth
A high starting yield wins in the short run; a high growth rate wins in the long run. A 6% yield growing 2% pays more than a 3% yield growing 10% for about the first nine years, then loses badly. Very high yields (8%+) are often a warning that the market expects a cut. Use the growth field to compare, and remember that a company's dividend growth is tied to its earnings growth over long periods.
Common mistakes
- Entering the quarterly dividend as the annual one. The per-share field wants the full year's payout (quarterly dividend × 4).
- Expecting price appreciation to change income. Without reinvestment, a rising price only changes the value of your shares and the current yield, not what they pay you.
- Ignoring taxes. In a taxable account, qualified dividends are taxed every year even if reinvested, which trims the compounding.
When the projection is misleading
Dividends are not guaranteed. In 2020 dozens of S&P 500 companies cut or suspended theirs, and a single cut resets the whole growth path. The calculator also assumes a smooth price, when in reality reinvesting during a crash buys more shares (good) and reinvesting at a peak buys fewer. Treat the 20-year figure as a reasonable middle case, and run a lower growth rate to see a pessimistic one.
Frequently asked questions
›How is dividend income calculated?
Annual dividend income = investment × dividend yield, or shares × annual dividend per share. $10,000 at a 4% yield pays $400 a year, usually as four quarterly payments of $100.
›What does reinvesting dividends (DRIP) do?
Each payment buys more shares, which pay more dividends next time. $10,000 at 4% with 5% dividend growth produces about $1,011 a year after 20 years without reinvesting and about $2,320 with it.
›What is yield on cost?
This year's dividends divided by what you originally paid. If a $10,000 investment now pays $800 a year, the yield on cost is 8%, even if the current yield on today's price is lower.
›Does share price appreciation affect my dividend income?
Only if you reinvest. Without reinvestment a higher price changes what your shares are worth, not what they pay. With reinvestment a higher price means each dividend buys fewer shares.
›Are dividends guaranteed?
No. Companies can cut or suspend dividends at any time, and a high yield is often a sign the market expects a cut. The projection assumes the dividend grows steadily.