Pound Cost Averaging Calculator
Compare pound cost averaging (regular investing) vs lump sum across top 20 FTSE 100 stocks
What is Pound Cost Averaging?
Regular Investing (Pound Cost Averaging)
Invest a fixed amount at regular intervals (e.g., £500/month), regardless of share price. Buy more shares when prices are low, fewer when high. This smooths out market volatility over time.
Lump Sum Investing
Invest your entire amount at once, getting all your money working in the market immediately. Maximises time in market but requires larger upfront capital.
Our analysis: We compared £500/month regular investing vs investing the same total upfront for each stock over 3, 5, and 10 year periods.
5-Year Summary: Which Strategy Wins?
Research shows lump sum investing outperforms regular investing approximately two-thirds of the time in rising markets.
All Stocks: Regular vs Lump Sum Results (5-Year)
£500/month regular investing vs £30,000 lump sum | Sorted by lump sum return
| Stock | Regular Value | Regular Return | Lump Sum Value | Lump Sum Return | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RR Rolls-Royce Holdings plc | £204,313 | +581.0% | £346,317 | +1054.4% | Lump Sum |
| BA BAE Systems plc | £74,054 | +146.8% | £137,247 | +357.5% | Lump Sum |
| STAN Standard Chartered PLC | £66,798 | +122.7% | £93,014 | +210.0% | Lump Sum |
| HSBA HSBC Holdings plc | £58,546 | +95.2% | £83,905 | +179.7% | Lump Sum |
| NWG NatWest Group plc | £58,740 | +95.8% | £80,428 | +168.1% | Lump Sum |
| SHEL Shell plc | £45,266 | +50.9% | £71,592 | +138.6% | Lump Sum |
| CRH CRH plc | £48,574 | +61.9% | £66,713 | +122.4% | Lump Sum |
| LLOY Lloyds Banking Group plc | £53,822 | +79.4% | £66,593 | +122.0% | Lump Sum |
| BARC Barclays PLC | £58,704 | +95.7% | £62,414 | +108.0% | Lump Sum |
| AZN AstraZeneca PLC | £41,010 | +36.7% | £59,601 | +98.7% | Lump Sum |
| GLEN Glencore plc | £39,598 | +32.0% | £54,858 | +82.9% | Lump Sum |
| BP BP p.l.c. | £38,962 | +29.9% | £54,531 | +81.8% | Lump Sum |
| BATS British American Tobacco p.l.c. | £45,842 | +52.8% | £49,043 | +63.5% | Lump Sum |
| NG National Grid plc | £40,190 | +34.0% | £47,823 | +59.4% | Lump Sum |
| GSK GSK plc | £40,374 | +34.6% | £47,050 | +56.8% | Lump Sum |
| CPG Compass Group PLC | £33,915 | +13.0% | £46,667 | +55.6% | Lump Sum |
| REL RELX PLC | £28,313 | -5.6% | £42,408 | +41.4% | Lump Sum |
| LSEG London Stock Exchange Group plc | £30,890 | +3.0% | £37,828 | +26.1% | Lump Sum |
| RIO Rio Tinto Group | £38,510 | +28.4% | £36,186 | +20.6% | Regular |
| ULVR Unilever PLC | £32,387 | +8.0% | £33,506 | +11.7% | Lump Sum |
Stocks Where Regular Investing Won (5-Year)
These stocks had enough volatility that pound cost averaging outperformed lump sum
Top Stocks for Lump Sum Investing (5-Year)
Stocks with the largest advantage for lump sum over regular investing