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Dollar-Cost Averaging Calculator

Enter a fixed investment amount for each round and the price that round, and see your true DCA average price, total shares, and total invested, instantly.

Open CalculatorHow it works

    Investment Rounds

    Add each time you invested a fixed amount, at that period's price.

    3 entries
      DCA avg. cost / share
      $0.00

      Add a round on the left to see your results.

      Breakdown
      Total shares bought
      0
      Total invested
      $0.00
      Simple average price
      $0.00
      Profit / Loss Calculator
      $
      $
      $0.00(0.00%)
      Getting Started

      What Is Dollar-Cost Averaging?

      Dollar-cost averaging (DCA) means investing a fixed amount of money on a fixed schedule, regardless of the price at the time, rather than trying to time the market with a single lump-sum purchase. Buy $500 of a stock every month, for example, whether the price is high or low that particular month.

      The effect: a fixed dollar amount buys more shares when the price is low and fewer shares when the price is high. Over time, this tends to pull your average cost per share below the simple average of the prices you bought at, which is the core mathematical case for DCA as a strategy.

      The Math

      The DCA Average Price Formula

      Each round, the number of shares you receive is your fixed investment amount divided by that round's price. Your overall DCA average price is your total money invested divided by the total shares you ended up with, not a simple average of the prices.

      Shares per round = Amount invested ÷ Price that round

DCA Average Price = Total Amount Invested ÷ Total Shares Owned

Simple Average Price = (P1 + P2 + ... + Pn) ÷ n   (not the same number)

      Notice the DCA average price formula is mathematically identical to the weighted average formula used for any set of stock purchases. DCA is really just a specific, disciplined pattern of purchases (same amount, regular schedule) rather than a different formula.

      Worked Example

      Real Numbers, Step by Step

      Investing $500 a Month for Three Months

      RoundAmount InvestedPrice / ShareShares Bought
      Month 1$500$5010.00
      Month 2$500$4012.50
      Month 3$500$62.508.00
      Total$1,500N/A30.50

      DCA average price = $1,500 ÷ 30.50 shares = $49.18 per share

      The simple average of $50, $40, and $62.50 is $50.83. Your actual DCA average price, $49.18, is lower, because Month 2's low price bought you 12.50 shares (the most of any round), pulling the weighted result down.

      Related Strategy

      DCA vs. Averaging Down: They're Not the Same

      Dollar-cost averaging is a pre-committed, scheduled strategy: you invest the same amount on the same cadence no matter what the price does. Averaging down is a reactive, discretionary decision, buying more of something specifically because its price dropped, which only makes sense if your reasons for owning it in the first place still hold true.

      Our Stock Average Calculator covers averaging down and up in depth, including when averaging down can be a value trap rather than a bargain. If you're deciding between a scheduled DCA plan and a one-off averaging-down purchase, that's the right place to think it through.

      Questions

      Frequently Asked Questions

      Is dollar-cost averaging better than investing a lump sum?

      It depends on what you're optimizing for. Historically, investing a lump sum immediately has outperformed DCA more often than not, simply because markets tend to rise over time and DCA delays some of your money entering the market. DCA's real advantage is behavioral: it removes the pressure of picking a single entry price and smooths out the emotional impact of a bad-timed lump sum.

      How often should I dollar-cost average?

      There is no single correct schedule. Weekly and monthly are the most common choices because they line up naturally with a paycheck. What matters more than the exact frequency is sticking to whatever schedule you pick, since the strategy only works as intended if you keep investing through both price drops and rises.

      Does DCA guarantee a lower average price?

      No. DCA tends to produce a lower average price than a simple average of the prices you bought at when the price fluctuates up and down, because a fixed amount buys more shares when it's cheap. If the price only ever goes up, a lump sum invested on day one would have outperformed DCA.

      Can I use this calculator for crypto or ETFs, not just stocks?

      Yes. The same fixed-amount, weighted-average math applies to any asset you can buy in fractional or whole units at a changing price, including ETFs, index funds, and cryptocurrency.

      What's the difference between this and the Stock Average Calculator?

      This calculator assumes you invest the same dollar amount each round and solves for how many shares that bought you. The Stock Average Calculator assumes you already know the share count for each purchase. Use whichever matches how you actually track your buys.