Cash-on-Cash Return Calculator
Enter NOI, your mortgage payment, and cash invested below to instantly get your cash-on-cash return.
Down payment + closing costs + rehab -- not the full price.
What Is Cash-on-Cash Return?
Cash-on-cash return measures your actual annual return on the actual cash you put into a deal -- not the full property price, and not the property's unlevered performance the way cap rate does. It's Annual Pre-Tax Cash Flow ÷ Total Cash Invested, where cash flow is NOI minus your annual debt service.
Worked example
$31,200/year NOI, a $2,000/month mortgage payment, and $90,000 in total cash invested (down payment + closing + rehab).
Annual cash flow = $31,200 − ($2,000 × 12) = $7,200
Cash-on-Cash Return = $7,200 ÷ $90,000 = 8.0%
The same property with a larger, $2,500/month payment instead:
Annual cash flow = $31,200 − ($2,500 × 12) = $1,200, so Cash-on-Cash Return = 1.3% -- a much smaller return on the same cash invested, purely from a larger loan payment.
Common mistake
Dividing cash flow by the full purchase price instead of the actual cash invested. That produces a number close to cap rate, not cash-on-cash return, and understates the real effect leverage has on your personal return.
Keep going
- Cash-on-cash return needs your actual annual cash flow as an input; the rental cash flow calculator gets you that number from NOI, debt service, and a CapEx reserve. Rental Cash Flow Calculator
- Cash-on-cash return only counts cash flow; the real estate ROI calculator adds in appreciation and equity gain for the fuller picture over a holding period. Real Estate ROI Calculator
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as "total cash invested"?
Your down payment, closing costs, and any initial rehab spent before renting the property -- the cash that actually left your pocket to acquire and prepare the deal. It is deliberately NOT the full purchase price, since most of that is covered by the mortgage.
Is cash-on-cash return the same as ROI?
No -- cash-on-cash return only counts cash flow, ignoring any change in the property's value. Real estate ROI (a separate calculator on this site) adds appreciation and equity gain on top of cash flow, so it's usually a bigger, broader number over a multi-year hold.
Why can cash-on-cash return be higher than cap rate on the same property?
Leverage. Cap rate ignores financing entirely; cash-on-cash return only counts the cash you personally put in. If the property's return exceeds your loan's interest rate, financing amplifies your cash-on-cash return above the unlevered cap rate -- and amplifies it downward just as fast if the numbers go the other way.
Can cash-on-cash return be negative?
Yes -- if annual debt service exceeds NOI, pre-tax cash flow is negative, and so is cash-on-cash return. That's a real, valid result meaning the property costs you money every year on a cash basis, whatever its cap rate or long-run appreciation might look like.
Does this include taxes?
No -- this is pre-tax cash-on-cash return, the standard way the metric is quoted. Real after-tax return depends on your personal tax situation, depreciation, and other deductions, which this calculator doesn't attempt to model.
This is a neutral calculation based on the numbers you enter -- not investment advice.
Related Calculators
- Cap Rate Calculator — Return Metrics
- Rental Yield Calculator — Return Metrics
- Real Estate ROI Calculator — Return Metrics
- NOI Calculator — Income & Cash Flow