I bookmarked this article exactly a year ago, wanting to become a Couch Potato Investor but never got around to trying out the strategy. It still looks pretty interesting, and I want to do it – Child’s Play: Do the Couch Potato from MoneySense.

I put together this simple Excel spreadsheet, to analyze what would happen if I had invested $10,000 and $20,000 into a “Couch Potato” portfolio one year ago. Results are pretty good. Here’s a screenshot:

Click the image to enlarge

You can also download the spreadsheet, it’s easy enough to use and should work for any no-load fund. You just enter the 1) amount you want to invest, 2) share starting and 3) ending prices, 4) dividend amount per share, and 5) MER.
It doesn’t account for dividend reinvestments, taxes and initial purchase fee you pay to the broker.

Couch Potato investment calculator (Couch Potato.xls)
By downloading and/or using the file, you agree to hold me free and clear of any responsibility for results you get from the use of the file.