How do I use the XIRR calculator?

1. Pick the input mode: Use SIP mode if you invested a fixed amount every month. Use Cash flows mode if the amounts or dates were irregular, or if you are copying rows from a statement. 2. Enter the money that went out: In SIP mode, set the monthly amount and the month the SIP started. In Cash flows mode, enter every investment as a negative amount on the date it was debited. 3. Enter the money that came back: Add redemptions and dividends as positive amounts on the dates they were credited. Money coming back to you is always positive. 4. Add the current value as the last row: The final row is today's portfolio value on today's date, entered as a positive amount. Without it the series has nothing to return, and XIRR cannot be solved. 5. Read XIRR next to the lump sum CAGR: The calculator shows both. The gap between them is the effect of staggered investing, and it is the reason a SIP with a modest absolute return can still show a healthy XIRR.

What is the difference between XIRR, CAGR and absolute return?

Absolute return is the total gain divided by the total invested, with no reference to time. CAGR annualises a single lump sum from one start value to one end value. XIRR annualises a series of dated cash flows, so it is the only one of the three that handles SIPs, top-ups and partial withdrawals correctly.

Why does my broker or fund house show a different XIRR?

Usually because the inputs differ, not the mathematics. Platforms vary on whether dividends, switches, and STP legs are treated as cash flows, whether the closing value is the NAV date or the settlement date, and whether units transferred in from another folio carry their original cost dates. Compare the underlying transaction list before assuming either figure is wrong.

Can XIRR be negative?

Yes. A negative XIRR means the money returned is worth less than the money invested once the dates are taken into account, which happens whenever the portfolio is below cost. A −12% XIRR is an annualised rate, not a total loss of 12%, so a short holding period can produce a large negative number from a small fall.

How should I read XIRR for a SIP that is only three months old?

With caution. Annualising a three-month result multiplies whatever happened in that quarter by roughly four, so a 3% move becomes a 12% headline. For a SIP younger than about a year, the absolute gain in rupees is the more honest number, and XIRR only becomes stable once several instalments have compounded.

What is a reasonable XIRR to expect from an equity SIP in India?

Over long periods, diversified equity funds have generally delivered high single-digit to mid-teens annualised returns, while debt funds and fixed deposits sit closer to inflation. Any single realised XIRR depends on the exact entry and exit dates, so treat historical ranges as context rather than as a forecast.

Should the closing value be before or after exit load and tax?

The calculator uses whatever you enter. Entering the statement value gives a pre-tax, pre-exit-load XIRR that is comparable with published fund returns. Entering the amount you would actually receive after exit load and capital gains tax gives a lower, more personal figure. Use the same basis whenever you compare two investments.

Does XIRR work for an SWP or for a portfolio I am drawing down?

Yes, and this is where it is most useful. Enter each withdrawal as a positive amount on its date and the remaining balance as the final positive row. The rate returned is the annualised return the portfolio earned while it was being drawn down.

Why does XIRR change when I add a new instalment even though the NAV has not moved?

A fresh instalment adds money that has been invested for almost no time, which changes the time-weighting of the whole series and pulls the annualised rate toward zero. The rupee gain is unchanged; only the rate at which that gain is expressed moves.

Tools/

XIRR Calculator

Calculate the annualised return of a SIP or any set of dated cash flows, the way fund houses and brokers report it.

Input Mode

Monthly Instalment

₹500₹1,00,00,000

SIP Started

Valued In

Current Value

₹0₹1,00,00,00,000

Annualised Return (XIRR)

13.96%

across 33 cash flows over 2.7 years

Total Invested

₹3.2 L

Total Value

₹3.9 L

Absolute Gain

₹65,000

Absolute Return

20.31%

Total gain over total invested, ignoring dates entirely.

Lump Sum CAGR

7.18%

What the same money would show if every rupee had gone in on day one. XIRR differs because each instalment was invested for a different length of time.

Invested vs Value

About the XIRR calculator

XIRR (Extended Internal Rate of Return) is the annualised return of an investment whose money went in and came out on irregular dates. It is the single rate at which every dated cash flow, discounted back to the first date, sums to zero.

This is the right measure for a SIP. Each instalment has been invested for a different length of time, so the first instalment has compounded for years while the most recent one has barely been invested. CAGR cannot see that difference because it only looks at a start value, an end value, and a duration. XIRR weights every rupee by how long it actually stayed invested.

Use it for SIPs, top-ups, partial redemptions, SWP withdrawals, staggered stock purchases, or any portfolio where money moved on dates that were not neat anniversaries. Mutual fund houses, CAS statements, and most broker reports use XIRR for exactly this reason.

Frequently Asked Questions

Pick the input mode
Use SIP mode if you invested a fixed amount every month. Use Cash flows mode if the amounts or dates were irregular, or if you are copying rows from a statement.
Enter the money that went out
In SIP mode, set the monthly amount and the month the SIP started. In Cash flows mode, enter every investment as a negative amount on the date it was debited.
Enter the money that came back
Add redemptions and dividends as positive amounts on the dates they were credited. Money coming back to you is always positive.
Add the current value as the last row
The final row is today's portfolio value on today's date, entered as a positive amount. Without it the series has nothing to return, and XIRR cannot be solved.
Read XIRR next to the lump sum CAGR
The calculator shows both. The gap between them is the effect of staggered investing, and it is the reason a SIP with a modest absolute return can still show a healthy XIRR.

Σ [ CFᵢ ÷ (1 + XIRR)^(dᵢ ÷ 365) ] = 0

CFᵢ is the i-th cash flow, negative when money is invested and positive when money is returned
dᵢ is the number of actual days between the first cash flow and the i-th cash flow
365 converts the day count into years, so the exponent is a fraction of a year
XIRR is the annual rate that makes the whole sum equal zero

There is no closed-form solution, so the rate is found numerically. This calculator brackets the root by scanning for a sign change in the net present value, then refines it with Newton–Raphson iterations fenced by bisection. Day counts are actual/365, the same convention spreadsheets use for XIRR.

Worked example

A SIP of ₹10,000 on the 1st of every month runs from January 2024 to August 2026, which is 32 instalments. On 1 September 2026 the folio is worth ₹3,85,000.

Monthly instalment: ₹10,000
Instalments paid: 32
Total invested: ₹3,20,000
Value on 1 Sep 2026: ₹3,85,000
Absolute gain: ₹65,000
Absolute return: 20.31%
Period covered: 2.67 years
CAGR if it were one lump sum: 7.18%
XIRR: 13.96%

The absolute return is 20.31%, but that number says nothing about time. Treating the same ₹3,20,000 as a single lump sum invested on day one gives a CAGR of 7.18%, which understates the result because most instalments were not invested for the full 2.67 years. XIRR dates every instalment and returns 13.96%, which is the rate an equivalent fixed deposit would have had to pay.

XIRR needs at least one negative and one positive cash flow. A series of investments with no closing value has no rate to solve for, and the calculator will say so rather than guess.
Short periods exaggerate. A SIP that is three or four months old can show an XIRR of 40% or −40% because a small move is being annualised. XIRR becomes meaningful only after roughly a year of cash flows.
The result is pre-tax and after whatever costs are already reflected in the NAV. Exit load, stamp duty, STT, and capital gains tax are not deducted unless you enter a post-tax closing value.
Dates matter more than you expect. Moving an instalment by a fortnight changes the day count and shifts the answer, so use the credited dates from your statement rather than approximate month-ends.
A portfolio-level XIRR mixes funds with different risk. Two portfolios with the same XIRR can have had very different drawdowns along the way, so read it alongside allocation and volatility rather than on its own.
Very unusual series, where money goes in and out repeatedly, can mathematically admit more than one rate. The calculator returns the first root in the −99.99% to +2000% range, which is the economically sensible one for ordinary portfolios.

Get XIRR across every fund and broker, automatically

Import your mutual fund and broker statements and Finest rebuilds every dated cash flow, so portfolio XIRR stays current without a spreadsheet.

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XIRR Calculator

Inputs

Results

Invested vs Value

About the XIRR calculator

Frequently Asked Questions

Get XIRR across every fund and broker, automatically

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