Frequently Asked Questions

A Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) lets you invest a fixed amount in a mutual fund every month automatically. You benefit from rupee cost averaging — buying more units when prices fall and fewer when they rise — without needing to time the market.

Diversified equity funds have historically delivered 10–14% annually over 10+ year periods. Large-cap funds average 10–12%, mid/small-cap 12–16% with higher volatility. Use 10–12% for conservative long-term planning.

The calculator uses the standard future-value formula: Corpus = SIP × [(1+r)ⁿ − 1] / r × (1+r), where r = monthly return rate and n = total months. This assumes end-of-month investments and monthly compounding.

When markets fall, your fixed SIP buys more units at lower NAV. When markets rise, you buy fewer. Over time this averages your cost per unit, reducing the impact of market volatility compared to investing a lump sum at one point.

Yes. ELSS funds have a 3-year lock-in. Use the basic calculator with 3-year tenure and 10–12% return. ELSS investments qualify for deduction under Section 80C (up to ₹1.5L per year).

Step-Up (or top-up) SIP increases your monthly investment by a fixed percentage each year — typically matching your salary hike. A ₹10,000/mo SIP with 10% annual step-up becomes ₹25,937/mo after 10 years, dramatically boosting your final corpus.

You invest a one-time lump sum at the start, which begins compounding immediately. Monthly SIPs continue alongside it. The calculator shows both the Lumpsum+SIP corpus and a pure-SIP corpus side by side so you can see the benefit of the head-start.

The expense ratio is the annual fee (% of assets) a fund charges for management. Direct plans charge 0.1–1%, regular plans 1–2.5%. A 1% difference over 20 years can reduce your final corpus by 15–20%. The calculator deducts expense ratio from the annual return before computing.

Long-Term Capital Gains tax applies to equity fund gains held over 1 year. As per Budget 2024: gains above ₹1.25L per year are taxed at 12.5% (no indexation). The first ₹1.25L annually is tax-free. The calculator applies this at the end of the tenure.

A one-time fee charged when you redeem before a specified period — usually 1% if redeemed within 12 months. Most equity funds have zero exit load after 1 year. The calculator applies it as a percentage reduction on the final corpus.

Your corpus in nominal terms may be ₹1 Cr, but at 6% inflation over 20 years, its real purchasing power is only ~₹31L in today's money. The real corpus column shows what your money will actually buy, helping you plan more accurately.

A Systematic Withdrawal Plan lets you withdraw a fixed amount monthly from your mutual fund corpus while the remaining balance continues earning returns. It is the standard structure for generating retirement income from investments.

Each month: (1) the corpus grows by monthly return, (2) the fixed withdrawal is deducted. The calculator tracks the cost-basis ratio to estimate what portion of each withdrawal is gain (taxable) vs principal (non-taxable), then applies LTCG at the ₹1.25L annual exemption level.

The globally cited '4% rule' suggests withdrawing 4% of corpus per year (≈0.33%/mo) for indefinite income. The SWP calculator shows your specific sustainable withdrawal rate based on your corpus and expected return. The green/yellow/red health indicator tells you instantly if your rate is safe.

When you withdraw more per month than the portfolio earns, you're dipping into principal. The corpus shrinks year over year and eventually reaches zero. The calculator predicts exactly which year the fund exhausts and suggests the maximum sustainable withdrawal to prevent this.

If your monthly withdrawal is less than the monthly portfolio return (corpus × monthly rate), the corpus grows even while you withdraw. This is the ideal retirement scenario — your wealth increases and you still receive regular income.

Enabling withdrawal inflation increases your monthly withdrawal each year by the inflation rate. ₹15,000/mo today needs to be ₹26,860/mo in 10 years at 6% inflation to maintain the same lifestyle. This more accurately models real retirement spending.

It inverts the standard SIP formula: Required SIP = Target × r / [(1+r)ⁿ − 1] / (1+r), where r is monthly rate and n is months. Enter your target corpus, tenure, and expected return — the calculator outputs the exact monthly SIP needed.

There's no closed-form reverse formula for step-up SIP. The calculator uses binary search — it simulates thousands of scenarios to find the starting SIP that, when increased annually by your step-up rate, exactly reaches your goal at the end of the tenure.

If you want ₹1 Cr in today's purchasing power, you actually need more in future rupees due to inflation. At 6% inflation over 20 years you need ₹3.2 Cr nominally. Enabling this toggle auto-scales your target, so the required SIP accounts for inflation from day one.

Small differences in return rate create very different SIP requirements. The table shows required SIPs at 8%, 10%, 12%, 14%, and 16% so you can see how fund selection affects how much you need to save monthly.

It shows how far along you are toward your target each year. You can see exactly when your corpus crosses 50%, 75%, and 100% of goal — useful for tracking progress and deciding if you're on course.

Mathematically exact for the inputs given. Projections assume a constant annual return — actual mutual fund returns fluctuate. Use results as a planning guide, not a guarantee. Market conditions, fund selection, and timing all affect real outcomes.

No. All calculations run entirely in your browser using JavaScript. No investment amounts, SIP values, or personal data are sent to any server. The only cookies we use are for analytics (Google Analytics) and ads (Google AdSense) — both require your consent via the cookie banner.

No. This tool is for educational and planning purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice. Consult a SEBI-registered investment advisor before making investment decisions.

The Rule of 72 is a quick mental math trick: divide 72 by your expected return to estimate how many years it takes to double your money. At 12%, money doubles every 6 years. It helps build intuition for what compounding actually means over long periods.