How Investing Just $10 a Day Could Make You a Millionaire by Retirement
Investment
The Motley Fool

How Investing Just $10 a Day Could Make You a Millionaire by Retirement

July 26, 2025
05:27 AM
4 min read
AI Enhanced
investmenteconomymoneywealthstocksfinancialtechnologyhealthcare

Key Takeaways

Consistent, small actions add up to huge sums over time.

Article Overview

Quick insights and key information

Reading Time

4 min read

Estimated completion

Category

investment

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Published

July 26, 2025

05:27 AM

Source

The Motley Fool

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Key Topics
investmenteconomymoneywealthstocksfinancialtechnologyhealthcare

What stands out here is Preparing for retirement can feel daunting, and that is perfectly normal

Additionally, Don't worry; nobody climbs mountains in a single leap, they do it by stepping over small rocks, one by one

Works the same way, especially when your goal is to up enough money to pay your bills for years after you're too old to continue working for a paycheck

Anyone can retire a millionaire from their retirement savings in the stock market, amid market uncertainty

Furthermore, It can take as little as $10 a day

Additionally, Here's how that's possible, along with two fantastic investment ideas to help you achieve your retirement goals

Image source: Getty Images

Here is where you may want to invest your retirement savings Life guarantees nothing except death and taxes, but the U

Stock market comes as close to a sure thing as it gets in

In contrast, Economy has continued to grow for many decades, resulting in substantial stock market returns over time

On the other hand, It's not a straight line; the market goes through ups and downs

Nevertheless, Sometimes, it takes years to recover from a severe downturn (noteworthy indeed)

However, But it has always reached new highs eventually, and it's hard to bet against that for as long as America remains a global economic superpower, in today's financial world

Instead of trying to pick individual stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) offer straightforward and diversified exposure to the U

You can invest in an index of over 3,500 U

Additionally, Companies of all industries and sizes with the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF

Additionally, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF is an excellent way to track the S&P 500, a world-renowned index comprising 500 of the most minent U

Moreover, Enough time and compounding can turn a daily $10 investment into a fortune Both of these ETFs have very low fees and a minimum investment of just $1, so yes, you can invest $10 (or less) daily into these funds

But how long will that take to make you a millionaire

The data indicates that Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF has generated annualized returns of apximately 9% since its inception in 2001 (which is quite significant)

Meanwhile, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF has averaged an annual return of 14. 5% since 2010

The S&P 500 has returned apximately 10% annually over the past 50 years, so this most recent 15-year stretch has been better than average

To be conservative, I'll assume in both funds generates an annual average return of 9%

Meanwhile, Daily Investment Average Annual Return How Long to Reach $1 Million $10 9% 38 Years Data source: Calculations by author via a handheld investment calculator

A daily $10 investment totals $3,650 in annual savings contributions

Nevertheless, As you can see, doing so would take apximately 38 years to reach the million-dollar milestone (noteworthy indeed)

Compounding is increasingly effective over time, so it's a tremendous advantage to start at a young age

Furthermore, But what if that can't be your path

Don't worry, here are some other scenarios If you don't have enough time to sit and wait for nearly four decades, don't worry

You can still accumulate quite a bit of wealth in most scenarios

Furthermore, Here are some hypothetical numbers

Note that the less time you give for compounding, the more you must to achieve a similar result

Daily Investment Total Annual Contribution How Long to Reach $1 Million $20 $7,300 30 years $30 $10,950 26 years $40 $14,600 23 years $50 $18,250 21 years Data source: Calculations by author via a handheld investment calculator

Meanwhile, You can see how jacking up your savings rate can shave years off your retirement-planning journey

Now, $18,250 annually isn't easy for most; it works out to $1,520 per month

Yet it may not be impossible

Some people earn enough to afford similar-sized truck or car payments, but forgo saving for retirement

Furthermore, That said, the idea should be to prioritize saving and enough money for your retirement goals, without sacrificing your quality of life along the way

Market analysis shows 's striking that healthy balance (an important development)

Additionally, Do that, and you'll be ahead of the game, amid market uncertainty.