You would put in $130,000. The other $185,670 is growth, including $86,817 of dividends that were reinvested.
$10,310 a year in dividends by year 20, about $859 a month.
In today's dollars at 2.5% inflation, that is about $192,644 and $6,292 a year.
Reinvesting leaves the portfolio $111,837 larger than taking the dividends as cash, before counting that cash.
- With DRIP
- Without DRIP (dividends paid out)
- Money you put in
| Measure | With DRIP | Without DRIP |
|---|---|---|
| Portfolio value | $315,670 | $203,832 |
| Dividends received | $86,817 | $64,933 |
| Dividends in year 20 | $10,310 | $6,766 |
| Portfolio plus cash received | $402,486 | $268,765 |
| Yield on cost | 4.75% | 5.2% |
Yield on cost is the dividends paid in year 20 divided by what was paid for the shares: your own money, plus the dividends that bought shares when reinvested.
Year by year, dividends reinvested
| Year | Put in | Value | Dividends and total paid | Total paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $16,000 | $16,983 | $467$467 total | $467 |
| 2 | $22,000 | $24,497 | $715$1,183 total | $1,183 |
| 3 | $28,000 | $32,581 | $981$2,164 total | $2,164 |
| 4 | $34,000 | $41,280 | $1,268$3,432 total | $3,432 |
| 5 | $40,000 | $50,639 | $1,576$5,009 total | $5,009 |
| 6 | $46,000 | $60,710 | $1,908$6,917 total | $6,917 |
| 7 | $52,000 | $71,546 | $2,265$9,182 total | $9,182 |
| 8 | $58,000 | $83,205 | $2,650$11,832 total | $11,832 |
| 9 | $64,000 | $95,750 | $3,063$14,895 total | $14,895 |
| 10 | $70,000 | $109,248 | $3,508$18,403 total | $18,403 |
| 11 | $76,000 | $123,771 | $3,986$22,389 total | $22,389 |
| 12 | $82,000 | $139,399 | $4,501$26,890 total | $26,890 |
| 13 | $88,000 | $156,213 | $5,055$31,945 total | $31,945 |
| 14 | $94,000 | $174,305 | $5,651$37,597 total | $37,597 |
| 15 | $100,000 | $193,772 | $6,293$43,890 total | $43,890 |
| 16 | $106,000 | $214,717 | $6,983$50,873 total | $50,873 |
| 17 | $112,000 | $237,254 | $7,726$58,598 total | $58,598 |
| 18 | $118,000 | $261,504 | $8,525$67,123 total | $67,123 |
| 19 | $124,000 | $287,595 | $9,384$76,507 total | $76,507 |
| 20 | $130,000 | $315,670 | $10,310$86,817 total | $86,817 |
All 20 years are listed; scroll the table to see them.
This used the numbers you typed. Nimblewit shows what your own holdings pay, month by month: the dividend calendar by payment date, income by account, and your real yield on cost.
$10,000 and $500 a month, for 20 years.
These are the calculator's starting numbers: a 3.5% yield paid quarterly, dividends growing 4% a year, the price growing 4% a year, and $500 added at the end of every month. The “without DRIP” column takes every dividend as cash, so its value is the shares alone.
| After | You put in | With DRIP | Without DRIP | Dividends that year (DRIP) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 years | $40,000 | $50,639 | $45,256 | $1,576 |
| 10 years | $70,000 | $109,248 | $88,150 | $3,508 |
| 15 years | $100,000 | $193,772 | $140,338 | $6,293 |
| 20 years | $130,000 | $315,670 | $203,832 | $10,310 |
Over the 20 years the plan received $86,817 in dividends with DRIP, all reinvested, or $64,933 without it, paid out as cash. Yield on cost at the end is 4.75% with DRIP and 5.2% without. In today's dollars at 2.5% inflation, the DRIP value is about $192,644.
What reinvesting changes, and what it doesn't.
- With DRIP, each dividend buys more shares, so the next dividend is paid on a bigger share count. Growth compounds on the dividends as well as on your own money.
- Without DRIP, the shares stay the same except for what you add yourself, and the dividends reach you as cash. You can spend them or invest them elsewhere; here they are counted as received and nothing more.
- Yield on cost can rise even when you add nothing, because the dividend per share grows while what you paid does not. Reinvesting adds to the cost, which is why the DRIP figure can look lower than the cash one even though the income is higher.
- Neither is better in every case. Reinvesting puts more of your money in one holding, and the cash is useful if you need the income now.
What the calculator assumes.
- Every payout is modelled. The price rises a little each month, a dividend is paid in each payout month on the shares held, and your monthly amount buys shares at that month's price, after any dividend that month.
- Dividend per share. It starts at the yield times the starting price and is raised once a year by the dividend growth rate. Because the price grows at its own rate, the yield on today's price drifts over the years.
- Example rates. In the example, price growth and dividend growth are the same, so the yield on the price stays near where it began. Set them apart and the yield drifts over the years.
- Steady rates. Real prices and dividends rise and fall, and dividends can be cut. Steady growth shows the shape of the plan, not a forecast.
- Fractional shares. Reinvested dividends and contributions buy any amount of a share, with no leftover cash.
- Cash is not reinvested. Without DRIP the dividends are counted as received but earn nothing while you hold them.
- No taxes, fees or withholding tax. Currency is only a label: CAD and USD change how amounts are written, not the maths.
- Future or today's dollars. Amounts are in future dollars unless you switch to today's dollars, which divides each year's figures by that many years of inflation.
- Up to 30 years. Growth rates are limited to 0% to 15% a year and the yield to 0% to 15%.
Dividend and DRIP questions, answered.
What is a DRIP?
DRIP stands for dividend reinvestment plan. Instead of receiving a dividend as cash, the dividend is used to buy more shares of the same holding, usually including fractions of a share. Those extra shares then pay dividends too, which is why the effect builds over time.
How is dividend income calculated here?
Each payout is the dividend per share divided by the number of payouts a year, times the shares held on that date. The dividend per share starts at the yield times the starting price and is raised once a year by the dividend growth rate. In the example it is paid quarterly, and with DRIP it buys shares at that month's price, so later payouts are on more shares.
How much difference does reinvesting make?
It depends on the yield, how long the money is invested and how fast the price and dividend grow. In the example, reinvesting for 20 years leaves the portfolio at $315,670, compared with $203,832 when the dividends are taken as cash. The cash plan also received $64,933 in dividends along the way, which this calculator counts but does not reinvest or earn interest on. Set the yield to 0% and the two plans match.
What is yield on cost?
Yield on cost is the dividends paid in a year divided by what you paid for the shares, not by today's price. It rises when the dividend grows faster than your cost. This calculator measures it at the end of the plan using the dividends paid in the last year, and counts both your own money and any dividends that bought shares as the cost. In the example it is 4.75% with dividends reinvested and 5.2% without.
What yield and growth rates should I use?
Use figures you can support from the holdings you have in mind, and try a lower case as well. A yield is the dividend over the current price and changes as the price moves. Dividends can be cut or stopped, and growth rates in the past may not repeat. The sliders let you test how sensitive the result is: a plan that still works with lower growth is sturdier.
Why show amounts in today's dollars?
A dividend result 20 or 30 years out is in future dollars, which buy less than dollars do now. Switch to today's dollars and every amount is divided by the inflation rate for that many years, so it reads like money you could compare with today's prices. At 2.5% inflation, the example's $315,670 after 20 years is about $192,644 in today's dollars. Your monthly additions are entered as level amounts, not raised with inflation.
Does this include tax or withholding tax?
No. The calculator leaves out all taxes, including withholding tax on foreign dividends, as well as fees and currency effects. Dividends are taxed differently depending on the account and the country, so check the rules that apply to you with a tax professional.
Are the numbers I enter saved or sent anywhere?
No. The calculation runs in your browser and the numbers you type are not saved or sent to Nimblewit. Like the rest of this site, the page may count that a visit happened or that the calculator was used, never what you entered.
See what your own holdings pay, month by month.
A calculator works from a yield you pick. Nimblewit reads your statements, CSV exports or screenshots, then shows the dividends you have received, a calendar of what is expected by payment date, income by account and your real yield on cost. Free to start, no bank passwords.
Track my dividends freeWritten and checked by the Nimblewit team. Last reviewed November 5, 2026.
Nimblewit doesn't give investment, tax or retirement advice. This calculator is an illustration based only on the numbers you enter and the assumptions listed above; real returns, spending, taxes and pensions will differ. Terms
Published November 5, 2026. The figures in the example are made up to show the arithmetic.