How it works
Estimate annual distribution income and its monthly equivalent from editable per-share assumptions. Separate cash received, reinvestment and market value.
Buy shares using initial capital and beginning-of-month contributions. Apply price growth separately from distributions. Pay on explicitly hypothetical months, deduct optional tax, reinvest once or withdraw, then deduct additional advisory costs. Whole-share purchase residuals remain cash.
Annual run-rate = shares × distribution per payment × payments/year. Estimated yield = annual distribution per share ÷ share price.
Closing value = opening + contributions + price change + gross distributions − taxes − withdrawals − fees + disclosed rounding adjustment. Gross distributions = net reinvested + net withdrawn + taxes.
Real income = nominal income ÷ (1 + annual inflation)^years. Annual price changes compound monthly; distribution growth is applied at each anniversary.
Worked example
$10,000 ÷ $50 =200 shares. At $0.50 per share each quarter,200 × $0.50 ×4 =$400 annually; $400 ÷12 ≈$33.33 monthly equivalent. The hypothetical quarterly payment is $100 with unchanged shares and distribution. This is not an actual monthly payout or an issuer forecast.
Assumptions & sources
Income allocated to DRIP can remain as residual cash. DRIP purchases can also use earlier retained cash; they do not create more distribution income.
Historical entries remain user provided. No issuer amount or entitlement is verified here. Price change excludes distributions; advisory costs are additional, not another deduction of embedded fund expenses.
Illustrative assumptions, not guaranteed payments. Monthly equivalent is not a payment schedule. Taxes are excluded unless a hypothetical tax drag is supplied.
Distributions can change or stop. Funds may distribute dividends, capital gains or return of capital; not every ETF distribution is an ordinary or qualified dividend. No personalized advice or security recommendation.
Planning schedule only: no verified declaration, ex-dividend, record or payment dates. Eligibility is not established by this calculator. Beginning-month purchases are assumed eligible for the modeled payment.
Price growth excludes distributions and already reflects the modeled market price path; no second mechanical ex-dividend price deduction. No total-return input, live data, capital-gains tax, broker execution costs or voluntary share sales. Advisory fees may redeem fractional shares.
All financial entries stay in browser memory. Inspect issuer announcements for declared amounts and dates. Official websites may restrict access by network or location. U.S. accessibility is not verified.
- Fund distributions — SEC Investor.gov
- Ex-dividend dates — SEC Investor.gov
- Publication550 (2025) — IRS
- EDGAR — SEC
Context verified2026-10-31. No current issuer numerical observation is used.
- Registry method
- p4-f2-2-v1
- Source access / numerical verification
- Official documents accessible to research client; numerical observation not applicable.
FAQs
Is the monthly equivalent paid every month?
No. It is the annual run-rate divided by twelve. The payment table uses only the hypothetical months you select. Frequency alone does not identify actual payment dates.
How does DRIP change shares?
After optional tax, net distributions enter cash once and purchase shares at that month’s modeled price. Without fractional purchases, residual cash waits for later purchases. Withdrawn distributions leave the portfolio.
Can distributions stop or be cut?
Yes. Set a permanent percentage cut and month, or a suspension month that stops all later modeled payments. A −100% annual growth assumption sets subsequent annual distributions to zero.
What do declaration, ex-dividend, record and payment dates mean?
Declaration announces a distribution; the ex-dividend date governs purchase eligibility; record date identifies holders in company records; payment date is when funds are paid. Inspect the issuer announcement and current exchange rules. This planner does not verify entitlement.
Can historical yield be used as a forecast?
Historical annual distributions may be manually entered and are divided equally across the selected frequency as a planning convention. They are not verified issuer figures here. SEC yield, trailing distribution yield and total return are different metrics; future payments are uncertain.
Are taxes included?
Only if you provide an explicitly hypothetical effective tax percentage. Blank means taxes are omitted. No qualified-dividend eligibility, citizenship, residence or federal/state tax computation is assumed. Publication550 explains applicable U.S. distinctions.
Are the starting values official data?
No. They are illustrative defaults. No named security or current dividend is selected. Official references explain the methodology and tax context, not these numerical assumptions. Edits remain in browser memory; Reset restores the original example.
What are the model limits?
USD,1–40years, initial capital up to$100million, monthly contributions up to$1million, projected nominal/real value up to$1trillion. Microdollar cash and12-decimal shares have disclosed rounding adjustments. No cash interest, actual broker lots or confirmed future declarations.