How to project the real-terms value of money after N years

1. Enter the starting amount

   "Amount" is the present-day value you want to project — a salary, a savings balance, a quoted price. Currency-neutral; just be consistent in your interpretation.

2. Annual inflation %

   "Annual inflation %" is the average yearly rate. The Fed's long-run target is 2; recent US prints have been higher (5-9 in 2022, ~3 in 2024). Pick a number you can defend if asked.

3. Years

   "Years" is the projection horizon. The tool compounds the loss annually — `Amount × (1 + rate/100)^years`. That `^years` factor is what makes inflation eat way more than the headline rate suggests over a decade.

4. Press Run

   Result returns a single `futureValue` (what the same amount needs to be in N years to keep the same purchasing power), rounded to 2 decimals. If you wanted today's value of a future amount, invert: divide rather than multiply.