Compound interest can help turbocharge your savings and investments, or it can quickly lead to an unruly balance, keeping you stuck in a cycle of debt. Its magic can help you earn more — or owe more.

Elvis Picardo is a regular contributor to Investopedia and has 25+ years of experience as a portfolio manager with diverse capital markets experience. Suzanne is a content marketer, writer, and ...

The Rule of 72 is a shortcut or rule of thumb used to estimate the number of years required to double your money at a given annual rate of return and vice versa.