
Basic Functions
The beauty of the calculators is that they work and function as a unit. If you open up any of the calculators, say Present Value, you’ll notice at the bottom that there are four tabs for Calc 1-Calc 4. These tabs will allow you to make side-by-side comparisons of your data. And not only does the information stay saved within that calculator (until cleared), but when you open another calculator, the information from each tab carries over. That means you can input some data into Present Value, hop over to Payments, and your variables will still be filled out. Unlike a simple handheld calculator, the variables never disappear. The logic is easy to follow, whether you’re a financial professional or not. This offers a new way to educate clients and can add a new layer of depth to your advisor-client relationship.
Rate Calculator
Let’s take a closer look at just one way you could use the calculators. We’ll start with the Rate calculator, which is a great tool for determining what rate you would have to achieve in order to reach a desired financial outcome. Say your client had an account with $100,000 and they were adding $10,000 in a lump sum every year. You can input 100,000 into “Present Value” (what your client already has), and 10,000 into “Periodic Deposit” (what your client will deposit). Then, tap “Beginning” and scroll to “Annual” in the menu at the bottom of the screen. This indicates that the client will be making deposits at the beginning of each year, once a year. In ten years, your client wants to have $1,000,000. Input that value into “Future Value,” and put 10 into “Num of Periods.” (Note: pay close attention to this, as the number of periods will vary depending on the frequency of payments: i.e. 10 periods for annual payments, 120 periods for monthly payments, etc.) You get this result:
Copy Function
If you navigate back to the Present Value calculator, you’ll notice that the data is stored in the “Calc 1” file, so you don’t need to start from scratch. The interest rate, however, will not be filled out. Since you copied the rate beforehand, simply paste the interest rate in, and everything will check out. If you merely input the rounded interest rate, your answer will be about $32 off the mark. Maintain accuracy by using the copy function.
When the interest rate is copied & pasted, the results are correct.

If you just type in the rounded answer, you risk a number that’s a little “off.”
Payment Calculator
Because the calculators can hold four different sets of data, it’s an ideal vehicle for comparing interest rates, repayment schedules, and more. For this, we’ll start with the Payment calculator. This is because the variables needed are usually the ones readily available to you and/or your client. For instance, you can input “0” as the future value, because the goal is to end with a loan balance of zero. Additionally, you can identify a loan amount, an interest rate, and often a time frame. For this example, we’ll look at a $200,000 loan over 15 years, with an interest rate of 5%. The client will make their payments at the end of each month. NOTE: When you’re working with a loan balance you must make the balance a negative number. Otherwise, the answer will not accurately reflect the truth. So remember, debt is reflected in the calculators as a negative number. Below, you’ll see that the monthly payment $1,581.59. From here, your client can compare other interest rates in the other tabs.
