What does a negative NPV mean?

A negative NPV means the project's discounted cash inflows are worth less than the initial investment at your chosen discount rate — the project would destroy value at that rate and, all else equal, should be rejected in favor of alternatives with a positive NPV.

Why might IRR not exist or return multiple values?

IRR is found by bisection search for the rate where NPV = 0. If your cash flows change sign more than once, for example negative, then positive, then negative again, there can be multiple mathematically valid IRRs or none in a reasonable range, in which case NPV at your actual discount rate is the more reliable metric.

NPV & IRR Calculator

Calculate the net present value and internal rate of return of a cash flow series.

How this is calculated

NPV = Σ cashFlow ÷ (1+r)ᵗ. IRR = rate where NPV = 0 (found via bisection)

Assumptions used in this calculation

Discount rate and cash-flow timing: Assumes the first entry is the initial outlay at time 0 and each following entry occurs at the end of one period, all discounted at a single constant rate.

About this calculator

Calculates Net Present Value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) from a series of cash flows, consolidating the master prompt's separate NPV and IRR calculators, since both operate on the identical cash-flow series.

Worked example

-1000, 500, 500, 500 at 10% discount

Result: NPV ≈ ₹243, IRR ≈ 23.4%

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About this calculator

Frequently asked questions

What does a negative NPV mean?

Why might IRR not exist or return multiple values?

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