Forum Discussion
Andrés González Reynoso
Jun 07, 2018Copper Contributor
Use RATE to calculate rate of return on my savings?
Hello, I am trying to use the RATE function to calculate the rate of return on my savings but I keep getting an error. I am saving $100 every month and have been doing so for 14 months. I have cu...
Russell Proctor
Jun 13, 2018Brass Contributor
Hi,
The #NUM! error message you are seeing is because the PMT argument is not negative.
It is important to remember that the signs (plus or minus) are very significant:
A negative number represents any cash you pay out (for example a deposit).
A positive number represents any cash you receive, start with or end with.
A positive number represents any cash you receive, start with or end with.
Adding a minus sign before the PMT value will give you the monthly interest rate.
Multiplying this by 12 will give you the annual interest rate.
Multiplying this by 12 will give you the annual interest rate.
=RATE(14,-100,0,1450,1)*12
The monthly breakdown can be seen here
Hope this helps
Russell
https://bettersolutions.com/excel.htm