How It Works

Portfolio allocation shows what portion of your total investments is in each asset. This helps track diversification and identify when rebalancing is needed.

Formula

Allocation % = (Investment Value / Total Portfolio) × 100

In Google Sheets:

=A2/SUM($A$2:$A$10)*100

Using $ locks the total range when copying the formula.

Example

Portfolio Breakdown:

Investment	Value	Allocation
US Stocks	$45,000	45%
International Stocks	$20,000	20%
Bonds	$25,000	25%
Cash	$10,000	10%
Total	$100,000	100%

Formula for US Stocks: =45000/100000*100 = 45%

Common Scenarios

Three-Fund Portfolio

Track a simple Boglehead-style portfolio:

US Total Market:    =US_value/Total*100
International:      =Intl_value/Total*100
Bonds:              =Bonds_value/Total*100

401(k) Allocation

Calculate allocation across multiple funds in your retirement account using the same formula for each fund.

Real Estate in Net Worth

Include property in your overall allocation:

=home_equity / (investments + home_equity + cash) * 100

Variations

Auto-Calculate Total

=A2/SUM(A:A)*100

Automatically sums all values in column A.

Deviation from Target

=Actual_Allocation - Target_Allocation

Shows how far you’ve drifted from your plan.

Example: Target 60% stocks, actual 68% = +8% overweight

Format as Percentage

=A2/SUM($A$2:$A$10)

Format cell as percentage - cleaner than multiplying by 100.

Pro Tips

Use named ranges: =US_Stocks/Total_Portfolio is clearer than cell references
Create a pie chart from allocation data for visual review
Track quarterly to catch drift before it becomes significant
Include all accounts - combine 401k, IRA, taxable for true allocation

Target vs. Actual Table

Asset Class	Target	Actual	Difference	Action
US Stocks	50%	55%	+5%	Sell/rebalance
Int’l Stocks	20%	18%	-2%	Buy more
Bonds	25%	22%	-3%	Buy more
Cash	5%	5%	0%	On target

Age-Based Allocation Rule

Classic rule of thumb: Bond allocation = your age

=AGE & "% bonds, " & (100-AGE) & "% stocks"

At age 35: “35% bonds, 65% stocks”

Modern variation: Bond % = Age - 20 (more aggressive)