March 28, 20265 min read

Mutual Fund Return Calculator — CAGR, Absolute Return & XIRR

Calculate mutual fund returns using CAGR, absolute return, or XIRR for SIP. Compare asset class performance over 5, 10, and 15 years. Includes inflation-adjusted returns.

mutual fund return calculator CAGR calculator XIRR calculator mutual fund CAGR calchub

"My mutual fund gave 25% returns" — but over how long? Return percentages without time context are meaningless. A 25% return over 10 years is terrible. Over 1 year, it's excellent. The metric that makes apples-to-apples comparison possible is CAGR — Compounded Annual Growth Rate.

The CalcHub Mutual Fund Return Calculator computes CAGR, absolute return, and XIRR (for SIP investments) from your input.

Three Return Metrics Explained

1. Absolute Return — Simple percentage gain, no time factor.

Absolute Return = (Current Value – Invested Amount) / Invested Amount × 100

Invested ₹1,00,000, now worth ₹1,60,000 → 60% absolute return. Useless without knowing the period.

2. CAGR — Compounded Annual Growth Rate. The standard metric for lump sum investments.

CAGR = (Ending Value / Beginning Value)^(1/years) – 1

₹1,00,000 → ₹1,60,000 over 5 years: CAGR = (1.6)^(1/5) – 1 = 9.86% p.a.

3. XIRR — Extended Internal Rate of Return. The correct metric for SIP investments, because each instalment has a different time period. Use XIRR when comparing any investment with irregular cash flows.

Historical Returns by Mutual Fund Category

India — average category returns (approximate, as of early 2026):

Category	1 Year	3 Years (CAGR)	5 Years (CAGR)	10 Years (CAGR)
Large Cap Equity	12–18%	13–17%	14–18%	13–16%
Mid Cap Equity	15–35%	18–28%	18–25%	16–22%
Small Cap Equity	20–60%	20–35%	20–30%	18–28%
Flexi Cap / Multi Cap	12–22%	14–20%	14–20%	13–18%
ELSS (Tax Saving)	12–25%	14–20%	14–20%	13–18%
Debt (Short Duration)	7–8%	6–7%	6–7%	7–8%
Hybrid (Balanced)	10–16%	11–15%	11–15%	11–14%
Index Fund (Nifty 50)	10–14%	12–15%	13–16%	12–15%
International (US)	-5–15%	8–12%	10–15%	12–16%

Ranges indicate year-to-year variation. Past performance ≠ future results.

₹1 Lakh Lumpsum — Growth at Various CAGRs

CAGR	5 Years	10 Years	15 Years	20 Years
8% (conservative)	₹1,47,933	₹2,15,892	₹3,17,217	₹4,66,096
10%	₹1,61,051	₹2,59,374	₹4,17,725	₹6,72,750
12%	₹1,76,234	₹3,10,585	₹5,47,357	₹9,64,629
15%	₹2,01,136	₹4,04,556	₹8,13,706	₹16,36,654

SIP Returns — XIRR vs Absolute Return

₹10,000/month SIP in a large-cap fund, ~13% XIRR, 10 years:

Total invested: ₹12,00,000
Maturity value: ~₹23,39,431
Absolute return: 95%
XIRR: 13% p.a.

The absolute return (95%) sounds impressive, but the XIRR (13%) is the meaningful number — because your last instalment only has 1 month of growth while the first has 10 years.

Inflation-Adjusted Real Returns

Nominal returns look great until you account for inflation. At 5–6% average inflation in India:

Asset	Nominal Return	Real Return (after 6% inflation)
Savings account	3–4%	-2 to -3%
FD (post-tax, 30% bracket)	5–5.5%	-0.5 to -1%
PPF	7.1%	1.1%
Index Fund (Nifty 50)	12–14%	6–8%
Mid Cap Equity	16–18%	10–12%

Equity is the primary instrument available to most Indians for generating real (inflation-beating) returns at scale.

Comparing Two Funds

Use the calculator to compare: enter both funds' CAGRs, same investment amount and duration. The difference between 12% and 14% CAGR over 20 years on ₹10 lakh is the difference between ₹96.5 lakh and ₹1.37 crore. That 2% gap matters enormously at scale.

What is a good CAGR for a mutual fund?

For equity funds: 12–15% over 5–10 years is solid, anything above 15% consistently is excellent. For debt funds: 7–8% is good. Compare against the benchmark — if a large-cap fund delivers 12% but the Nifty 50 delivered 14%, you'd have been better off in an index fund.

Is XIRR always the right metric for SIP?

Yes, for any investment with multiple cash flows at different times (SIPs, partial withdrawals, STPs), XIRR is the accurate metric. CAGR works only for single investments at a single point. Most fund houses and apps now show XIRR automatically — but verify how they're calculating it if you want to compare across platforms.

My fund shows 200% absolute return. What's the CAGR?

Depends entirely on the duration. 200% absolute over 20 years = ~5.6% CAGR (bad). Over 7 years = ~17% CAGR (excellent). Enter the start value, end value, and duration in the CAGR calculator to convert any absolute return to annualised.

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