Financial

Sum of Years Digits Depreciation

SYD depreciation method. Free online Sum of Years Digits Depreciation. Calculate sum of years digits depreciation online — fast, accurate, mobile-friendly, no s

Depreciation
$3,000.00

Derivation

  1. ├── 01Givencost = 10000, salvage = 1000, life = 5, year = 1
  2. ├── 02Formula{let t=e.cost,a=e.salvage,n=e.life;return(t-a) × (n-e.year+1) / (n × (n+1) / 2)}
  3. ├── 03Substitute{let t=e.10000,a=e.1000,n=e.5;return(t-a) × (n-e.1+1) / (n × (n+1) / 2)}
  4. └── 04Compute Depreciation$3,000.00
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§01What is

Understanding the Sum of Years Digits Depreciation

The Sum of Years Digits Depreciation computes Depreciation from 4 inputs: cost ($), salvage ($), life (years), year. SYD depreciation method.

Quick calculators for the math that shouldn’t need a notepad — instant, accurate, private to your browser. The Sum of Years Digits Depreciation sits in that toolkit — it SYD depreciation method. Enter your numbers above and the result updates instantly; every step of the math is shown in the Derivation panel so you can see exactly how the answer was reached.

§02The Formula

How it’s calculated

{let t=e.cost,a=e.salvage,n=e.life;return(t-a) × (n-e.year+1) / (n × (n+1) / 2)}

Where

cost
Cost ($)
salvage
Salvage ($)
life
Life (years)
year
Year
§03Practical Example

Step-by-step walkthrough

Scenario

Apply the formula to a realistic set of inputs: Cost ($) = 10000, Salvage ($) = 1000, Life (years) = 5, Year = 1.

  1. 01Start by noting the input — Cost ($): 10000.
  2. 02Start by noting the input — Salvage ($): 1000.
  3. 03Start by noting the input — Life (years): 5.
  4. 04Start by noting the input — Year: 1.
  5. 05Substitute these values into the formula: {let t=e.cost,a=e.salvage,n=e.life;return(t-a) × (n-e.year+1) / (n × (n+1) / 2)}
  6. 06Compute Depreciation: the calculator returns 3000.
  7. 07Cross-check the answer by opening the Derivation panel above — every line of math is shown so you can follow the computation end-to-end.
§04Variants

Common Sum of Years Digits Depreciation Problems

The formula gets rearranged depending on which variable you need. Here are the patterns you’ll run into in the real world — find the one that matches your problem and follow the worked steps.

01 · PATTERN

Cost ($) halved

cost = 5000 (from 10000)

Keep every other input at its default and halve the cost ($). See how depreciation responds.

  1. 01New Cost ($): 5000
  2. 02Baseline Depreciation: 3000
  3. 03New Depreciation: 1333.33
  4. 04Depreciation decreases by 55.6% → use this sensitivity to plan for real-world variation.
02 · PATTERN

Cost ($) doubled

cost = 20000 (from 10000)

Keep every other input at its default and double the cost ($). See how depreciation responds.

  1. 01New Cost ($): 20000
  2. 02Baseline Depreciation: 3000
  3. 03New Depreciation: 6333.33
  4. 04Depreciation increases by 111.1% → use this sensitivity to plan for real-world variation.
03 · PATTERN

Salvage ($) halved

salvage = 500 (from 1000)

Keep every other input at its default and halve the salvage ($). See how depreciation responds.

  1. 01New Salvage ($): 500
  2. 02Baseline Depreciation: 3000
  3. 03New Depreciation: 3166.67
  4. 04Depreciation increases by 5.6% → use this sensitivity to plan for real-world variation.
04 · PATTERN

Salvage ($) doubled

salvage = 2000 (from 1000)

Keep every other input at its default and double the salvage ($). See how depreciation responds.

  1. 01New Salvage ($): 2000
  2. 02Baseline Depreciation: 3000
  3. 03New Depreciation: 2666.67
  4. 04Depreciation decreases by 11.1% → use this sensitivity to plan for real-world variation.
§05FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Yes. The calculator implements the standard formula as documented and returns exact floating-point results. No approximations are used unless noted in the formula.
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