Understand annualized growth without confusing it with yearly performance.
Compound annual growth rate is the annualized rate that connects one beginning value to one ending value across a period. It is frequently used for investments, business revenue, users, sales, profit, market size and other values that grow or decline over time.
CAGR formula
Example
If a value grows from $10,000 to $18,000 in five years, CAGR is the constant annual rate that would reproduce that change through compounding.
CAGR versus total return
Total return measures the complete percentage change over the entire period. CAGR converts that change into a smoothed annual rate. They answer different questions.
CAGR versus arithmetic average
An arithmetic average adds annual percentage changes and divides by the number of observations. CAGR uses geometric compounding and is tied directly to the beginning and ending values.
When CAGR is useful
- Comparing growth over periods of different lengths
- Summarizing multi-year revenue or user growth
- Comparing an investment with a benchmark
- Creating a smooth projection from a historical rate
- Estimating the rate needed to reach a target
When CAGR is incomplete
- When there are deposits or withdrawals during the period
- When volatility and drawdowns matter
- When fees, taxes or distributions are omitted
- When the beginning or ending value is zero or negative
- When a smooth projection is mistaken for a forecast
