What is your impulse spending actually costing you?
The average American spends about $3,500 a year on unplanned purchases. This calculator shows what that money would be worth by age 65 if it were invested instead. Set your annual impulse spend and your age; the projection updates as you move the sliders.
Your numbers at age 65
Total actually spent (inflation-adjusted)
$365K
Portfolio value at age 65
$6.01M
Growth multiplier
16.4×
Spent vs. invested, year by year
Adjust the inputs
$3,500 / year
Assumptions
- $3,500 / year on impulse spending — the U.S. average per Capital One Shopping research.
- Investments compound annually at the historical S&P 500 return of 10.5%.
- Your annual spend grows with inflation each year — we use 3%, in line with the long-run U.S. average since 1913 (~3.1%).
Frequently Asked Questions
Enter how much you spend on unplanned purchases in a typical year and your current age. The calculator grows that amount with inflation each year, then shows what the same money would be worth at 65 if it had been invested instead, using the historical average return of the S&P 500. The gap between the two lines is the opportunity cost of impulse spending.
It is the U.S. average annual impulse spend reported by Capital One Shopping Research, which works out to roughly $290 a month. Move the slider to match your own habits; most people land somewhere between $500 and $10,000 a year.
Total actually spent is everything you would hand over between now and 65, adjusted for 3% inflation. Portfolio value at 65 is what that money would have grown to if invested at 10.5% a year. The growth multiplier is the second number divided by the first: how many times over the spending would have paid for itself.
No. The calculator is an educational tool built on long-run historical averages, not a forecast and not a recommendation to buy any investment. Real returns vary year to year and can be negative. Use it to make the cost of a habit visible, then decide what to do with that information.