Calculating your return on investment is straightforward once you know the ROI formula and what each input means. This guide explains the method in plain language, walks through a manual calculation, and gives worked examples you can follow — then you can do it instantly with the ROI Calculator.
What is ROI?
The ROI calculation tells you your return on investment from a few simple inputs. The figure you are solving for here is the return on investment, expressed in percent.
The ROI formula
This calculation combines several inputs through a multi-step method rather than a single one-line formula. Enter the values below and the calculator resolves each step in order. The inputs it needs are:
- Amount invested — a money amount. Example: ₹1,00,000.
- Amount returned — a money amount. Example: ₹1,50,000.
How to calculate it step by step
- Write down the amount invested (for example, ₹1,00,000).
- Write down the amount returned (for example, ₹1,50,000).
- Apply the formula above to get your return on investment.
- Double-check the result with the ROI Calculator.
Worked examples
Example 1
| Input / Output | Value |
|---|---|
| Amount invested | ₹1,00,000 |
| Amount returned | ₹1,50,000 |
| Return on investment | 50.00% |
| Net gain | ₹50,000 |
With amount invested of ₹1,00,000 and amount returned of ₹1,50,000, the return on investment works out to 50.00%.
Example 2
With amount invested of ₹2,00,000 and amount returned of ₹1,50,000, the return on investment works out to -25.00%.
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Return on investment | -25.00% |
| Net gain | -₹50,000 |
Example 3
With amount invested of ₹50,000 and amount returned of ₹1,50,000, the return on investment works out to 200.00%.
| Result | Value |
|---|---|
| Return on investment | 200.00% |
| Net gain | ₹1,00,000 |
Tips for an accurate result
- Keep your units consistent — mixing, say, months with years or grams with kilograms is the most common source of error.
- Round only at the very end. Rounding inputs early can shift the final answer noticeably.
- Re-run the numbers whenever an input changes, rather than estimating from an old result.
Prefer not to do the maths by hand? — the ROI Calculator does it instantly, for free, with the formula and a worked example built in.
Related calculators
Continue exploring business calculators with these tools: Discount Calculator, Price Elasticity of Demand Calculator, Profit Margin Calculator, Gross Profit Calculator, Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) Calculator.