Raising-a-child fund

We wanted saving for a child to come down to one simple move: open a dedicated account, and know how much has to go into it. That's less obvious than it sounds, because the spending isn't flat - childcare-heavy early years, calmer school years, pricier teens - and an invested balance grows while inflation pushes every future year's cost the other way.

This calculator combines those forces. It takes age-banded yearly costs, applies inflation to future spending and an expected return to the account balance, and answers the question two ways: the lump sum that would fund the whole journey if invested today, or the level monthly contribution that keeps the account solvent until the child turns 18. Adjust the assumptions to match your family and see how sensitive the answer is.