Payback Period Calculator
How long an investment takes to pay for itself from yearly or monthly cash it generates.
Payback period
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Cash generated in 5 years—
How to use the Payback Period calculator
- Enter investment, cash it generates each month and yearly growth in that cash.
- Read the payback period at the top of the result, with cash generated in 5 years underneath. It updates as you type.
- Change one input at a time to see what moves the answer most, then save the result with Copy link or Download PDF.
About this tool
A quick test for equipment, solar panels or a new outlet. It ignores what happens after payback, so pair it with ROI or NPV for big decisions.
Worked example
With investment of ₹6,00,000 and cash it generates each month of ₹25,000:
| Payback period | 2 yrs |
| Cash generated in 5 years | ₹15,00,000 |
Built and reviewed by Savitar Finance (savitarfinance@gmail.com). Rules and rates last checked October 2026. How we calculate · Report a problem
Questions people ask
What is a good payback period?
For small-business equipment, under 2–3 years is usually considered good.
What is discounted payback?
The same idea but with future cash discounted for time value; the NPV calculator covers that.