13 Personal Finance Calculators Everyone Should Use

by Richard Moore

There are so many free financial calculators online. It would be silly not to use them. Here are thirteen personal finance calculators that we all should use to help us make better financial decisions.

Money is about the numbers.

A prudent person should understand that he or she would be better off using calculators rather than making decisions based on assumptions and intuition.

The benefit of online personal finance calculators is that they can help you analyze your options and determine which is most prudent for you. Moreover, a majority of these online calculators are free, so there is no reason why you shouldn’t use them. Here are 13 personal finance calculators that everyone should use.

1. Home Affordability Calculator

This calculator helps you determine how much you can spend when acquiring a home. It considers several factors like estimated monthly income, existing debts, etc. in order to arrive at an accurate estimate of exactly how much you have available to finance your mortgage payment.

The Home Affordability Calculator is available and free to use at Money.CNN.com.

Related: How Not to Become House Poor

2. Home Rent Versus Buy Calculator

There are times when it is more convenient and less expensive to rent a house instead of buying one.

This calculator helps you make the right choice by considering several factors like how long you intend to stay in the home, taxes, and mortgage details among others. It compares and contrasts the common expenses associated with owning a home and renting one. It then applies this information to your situation. The end result of using this calculator is that you get a good idea of which option is best for you.

This calculator available and free to use at nerdwallet.com.

Expert Interview: Rent or Buy in Retirement?

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3. Retirement Savings Calculator

How much money do you need to retire? The answer to this question is not so far-fetched with the retirement savings calculator.

This calculator will help you estimate the future value of your retirement savings. It will also help you determine how much you need to save each month in order to reach your retirement goal.

The retirement savings calculator is available and free to use at Kiplinger.com.

Expert Interview: You Didn’t Save Enough for Retirement and You’re 55+

4. Budget Calculator

This calculator enables you to take control of your spending. The purpose of budgeting is to help you allocate your income between your estimated expenses. Budgeting is an essential tool on the path to financial freedom and this calculator helps you to do it better.

It is available and free to use at smartasset.com.

Related: The No-Budget Spending Plan

5. Life Insurance Calculator

A life insurance calculator will provide you with an idea of how much insurance you need to protect and provide for your survivors. If you have loved ones who count on you to care for them, then you should carry life insurance.

The life insurance calculator will provide you with an estimate of how much life insurance coverage would be ideal for your situation. The life insurance calculator is available and free to use at Bankrate.com.

6. Wage Calculator

The wage calculator can convert hourly wage to annual wage and vice versa. It can also factor in your job costs and other work related expenses in order to figure out the real hourly pay.

This calculator is available and free to use at FinancialMentor.com.

7. Net Worth Calculator

A person’s net worth is the total value of his assets minus his liabilities.

The net worth calculator enables you to know where you stand financially. It is available and free to use at FinancialMentor.com.

8. Drive Versus Fly Calculator

The decision between driving and flying is a difficult one to make. This is because at times driving can be less expensive than flying.

On the other hand, if you factor in the cost of hotel stays and meals, it can be the other way around. The benefit of using this calculator is that it enables you to ascertain the best option for you.

The calculator is available and free to use at BeFrugal.com.

9. Investment Growth Calculator

Instead of waiting for years to see how your investment is growing, this calculator simply gives you an estimate based on compound interest.

It is available and free to use at Investor.gov.

10. Savings Account Calculator

This calculator enables a person to calculate the amount of time it will take to reach a savings goal.

The calculator works with only four parameters, which are current savings balance, future savings goal, amount to be added each month, and annual interest rate. The calculator is available and free to use at FinancialMentor.com.

11. Bond Calculator

The bond calculator is designed to help a person calculate bond prices and yields. This calculator is available and free to use at CalculatorWeb.com.

12. Present Value Calculator

The present value calculator helps a person calculate the current worth of a future sum of money or stream of cash flows given a specified rate of return. The calculator is available and free to use at Investopedia.com.

13. Future Value Calculator

The future value calculator helps to calculate the value of an asset or cash at a specified date in the future that is equivalent in value to a specified sum today. The future value calculator is free to use and available at Investopedia.com.

Reviewed May 2021

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