Dollar cost averaging (DCA) in DUOL means investing a fixed amount at regular intervals, regardless of share price. This strategy reduces timing risk and builds wealth steadily through market ups and downs.
How This Calculator Works
Our DCA calculator simulates real market conditions using historical price data. It accounts for dividend reinvestment (DRIP), where each dividend payment automatically purchases additional shares. You can adjust the investment amount, frequency, time period, and compare against benchmarks like the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100.
Same amount invested each month — only the day of purchase changes. How much does intra-month timing actually matter?
Best Timing DCA
StrategyBuy on monthly low
Total Return-20.4%
Final Value$31.0K
Perfectly timed — impossible in practice
Your DCA
StrategyBuy on 1st of month
Total Return-26.7%
Final Value$28.2K
Consistent — no timing needed
Worst Timing DCA
StrategyBuy on monthly high
Total Return-32.6%
Final Value$26.3K
Worst possible — still beats not investing
Best vs Worst gap12.2 pp
Your timing vs best-6.3%
Your timing vs worst+5.9%
If You Keep Investing…
Based on this stock's historical CAGR of -6.3%/yr — put in vs. walk away with.
Your Plan
At $500/mo, this could grow into:
3 Years$18K~1.0x your moneyfrom $18K invested
5 Years$30K~1.0x your moneyfrom $30K invested
10 Years$60K~1.0x your moneyfrom $60K invested
20 Years$120K~1.0x your moneyfrom $120K invested
Compare Other Monthly Amounts
Same CAGR assumption. Use this to pressure-test different monthly commitments.
Monthly
3 Years~1.0x your money
5 Years~1.0x your money
10 Years~1.0x your money
20 Years~1.0x your money
$100/mo
$4K+$0 est. gain
$6K+$0 est. gain
$12K+$0 est. gain
$24K+$0 est. gain
$250/mo
$9K+$0 est. gain
$15K+$0 est. gain
$30K+$0 est. gain
$60K+$0 est. gain
$500/mo
$18K+$0 est. gain
$30K+$0 est. gain
$60K+$0 est. gain
$120K+$0 est. gain
$1,000/mo
$36K+$0 est. gain
$60K+$0 est. gain
$120K+$0 est. gain
$240K+$0 est. gain
* Projection assumes historical CAGR of -6.3% continues. Actual returns will vary.
Your DCA Results by Date
58 purchases
Date
Price
Invested
Portfolio Value
% Gain
Gain ($)
Jul 28, 2021
$139.01
$10,000
$10,000
+0.00%
$0
Aug 30, 2021
$128.70
$10,500
$9,758
-7.06%
$-742
Sep 28, 2021
$171.73
$11,000
$13,521
+22.92%
$2,521
Oct 28, 2021
$172.83
$11,500
$14,108
+22.67%
$2,608
Nov 29, 2021
$119.37
$12,000
$10,244
-14.64%
$-1,756
Dec 28, 2021
$108.11
$12,500
$9,778
-21.78%
$-2,722
Jan 28, 2022
$91.83
$13,000
$8,805
-32.27%
$-4,195
Feb 28, 2022
$86.29
$13,500
$8,774
-35.01%
$-4,726
Mar 28, 2022
$93.06
$14,000
$9,962
-28.84%
$-4,038
Apr 28, 2022
$92.33
$14,500
$10,384
-28.39%
$-4,116
May 31, 2022
$83.61
$15,000
$9,903
-33.98%
$-5,097
Jun 28, 2022
$91.47
$15,500
$11,334
-26.87%
$-4,166
Jul 28, 2022
$94.95
$16,000
$12,266
-23.34%
$-3,734
Aug 29, 2022
$92.61
$16,500
$12,463
-24.46%
$-4,037
Sep 28, 2022
$98.33
$17,000
$13,733
-19.22%
$-3,267
Oct 28, 2022
$83.15
$17,500
$12,113
-30.78%
$-5,387
Nov 28, 2022
$66.56
$18,000
$10,196
-43.35%
$-7,804
Dec 28, 2022
$65.38
$18,500
$10,516
-43.16%
$-7,984
Jan 30, 2023
$91.76
$19,000
$15,258
-19.69%
$-3,742
Feb 28, 2023
$90.79
$19,500
$15,597
-20.01%
$-3,903
Mar 28, 2023
$136.90
$20,000
$24,018
+20.09%
$4,018
Apr 28, 2023
$136.16
$20,500
$24,389
+18.97%
$3,889
May 30, 2023
$150.06
$21,000
$27,378
+30.37%
$6,378
Jun 28, 2023
$143.34
$21,500
$26,652
+23.96%
$5,152
Jul 28, 2023
$150.96
$22,000
$28,569
+29.86%
$6,569
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Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about DCA investing in DUOL
Investing $500 per month in Duolingo, Inc. (DUOL) over the past 5 years would be worth approximately $28K today. That's -26.7% total return on $39K invested, with a -6.3% compound annual growth rate (CAGR).