Enter your budget at completion, planned value, earned value (or percent complete) and actual cost to see whether a project is on budget and on schedule. You get CV, SV, CPI, SPI, three EAC forecasts, ETC, VAC and TCPI, each with the formula worked out.
Last updated:
Budget & progress to date
$
Total approved budget for all the work.
$
Budgeted cost of the work scheduled by today.
Enter earned value as
$
Budgeted cost of the work actually completed.
%
EV = % complete × BAC
$
What has really been spent so far.
Forecast options
For a rough schedule forecast.
Enter your values to see the result.
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How to use the Earned Value Management Calculator
Enter the budget at completion (BAC), the total approved budget.
Enter planned value (PV), the budgeted cost of work that should be done by now.
Enter earned value (EV) as an amount, or switch to percent complete and let the tool multiply it by BAC.
Enter actual cost (AC) spent to date and pick an EAC method.
Read the EAC and the indexes: CPI or SPI below 1.00 means over budget or behind schedule. Compare the three forecasts in the table.
Earned value management formulas
Metric
Formula
What it tells you
Cost variance (CV)
EV − AC
Negative = spent more than the work done is worth
Schedule variance (SV)
EV − PV
Negative = less work done than planned by now
CPI
EV ÷ AC
Value earned per unit of money spent
SPI
EV ÷ PV
Rate of progress compared with the plan
EAC (typical)
BAC ÷ CPI
Forecast total cost if efficiency continues
EAC (atypical)
AC + (BAC − EV)
Forecast if the rest goes exactly to budget
EAC (cost and schedule)
AC + (BAC − EV) ÷ (CPI × SPI)
Forecast when both pressures persist
ETC
EAC − AC
Money still needed to finish
VAC
BAC − EAC
Expected overrun (negative) or underrun
TCPI
(BAC − EV) ÷ (BAC − AC)
Efficiency needed on remaining work to hit BAC
Worked example
A project has a $200,000 budget. By today it planned to complete $100,000 of work (PV), has completed work worth $90,000 (EV) and has spent $110,000 (AC).
EAC = 200,000 ÷ 0.818 = $244,444, so ETC = $134,444 and VAC = −$44,444
TCPI = 110,000 ÷ 90,000 = 1.22: the remaining work would need 22% better efficiency than planned to stay on budget, which is rarely realistic.
Reading CPI and SPI together
SPI ≥ 1 (on or ahead)
SPI < 1 (behind)
CPI ≥ 1 (on or under budget)
Healthy: keep monitoring
Cheap but slow: can you add resources?
CPI < 1 (over budget)
Fast but costly: check overtime and rework
Troubled: re-plan scope, budget or dates
Tip: measure EV with an objective rule (0/100, 50/50 or completed milestones) rather than gut feeling, or every index above inherits the guess.
Frequently asked questions
What are the basic earned value formulas?
Cost variance CV = EV − AC, schedule variance SV = EV − PV, cost performance index CPI = EV ÷ AC and schedule performance index SPI = EV ÷ PV. Positive variances and indexes above 1.0 are favorable; negative variances and indexes below 1.0 mean the project is over budget or behind schedule.
How is estimate at completion (EAC) calculated?
The most common formula is EAC = BAC ÷ CPI, which assumes the current cost efficiency continues. If the variance so far was a one-off, use EAC = AC + (BAC − EV). If both cost and schedule problems are expected to continue, use EAC = AC + (BAC − EV) ÷ (CPI × SPI). This tool shows all three.
What is the difference between ETC and VAC?
Estimate to complete (ETC = EAC − AC) is how much more money you expect to spend to finish. Variance at completion (VAC = BAC − EAC) is how far above or below the original budget the project is expected to end; a negative VAC is a forecast overrun.
What does TCPI mean?
The to-complete performance index is the cost efficiency the remaining work must achieve to finish on a target: TCPI = (BAC − EV) ÷ (BAC − AC) for the original budget. A TCPI well above the current CPI, roughly more than 1.1, is usually considered unrealistic, and the target should be replaced by the EAC.
How do I find earned value if I only know percent complete?
Multiply the percent complete by the budget at completion: EV = % complete × BAC. For example, 45% complete on a $200,000 budget gives an EV of $90,000. Choose the % complete option above to do this automatically.
Why can SPI be misleading near the end of a project?
SPI uses money, not time. When all the work is done, EV equals PV and SPI returns to 1.0 even if the project finished late. For late-stage schedule analysis, compare actual dates with the plan or use earned schedule methods.
Is anything I enter stored online?
No. The calculations run entirely in your browser and nothing is uploaded. Your last inputs are remembered only on this device.
Are all the tools on FreeToolCabin tested for quality and accuracy?
Yes! Every tool on our site undergoes automated Q/A testing in real browser environments to ensure high precision, correct output, and zero errors. If you happen to spot a bug or have a suggestion, please contact us at [email protected] and our team will review it right away.