Is the SIP return guaranteed?

No. The return is a number you type. A scheme’s NAV changes every day, and the value of a SIP can fall below the money put in, especially over short periods.

How is the maturity amount calculated?

Value = P × [((1 + i)^n − 1) ÷ i] × (1 + i), where P is the monthly amount, i the monthly rate (the yearly return ÷ 1,200) and n the number of months. ₹5,000 a month for 10 years at 12% gives ₹11,61,695.

What return should I type?

No scheme guarantees a return, and the calculator does not pick one. Many people test the same plan at 8%, 10% and 12% and plan around the lower result.

Does it include tax and charges?

No. The expense ratio is already inside a scheme’s published returns, but exit loads and tax on selling are not included. The text above lists the current tax rates.

Can I increase the SIP amount later?

Most schemes let you start another SIP or set a yearly step-up. The step-up SIP calculator on this site shows what a SIP rising every year grows to.

SIP Calculator: Monthly SIP Returns, With Inflation Adjustment

Type a monthly amount, an expected return and the number of years. See what you invest, what it grows to, and what that is worth in today’s money.

How to use it

Type the amount you put in every month, for example ₹5,000.
Type the return you want to test, as a percentage a year. It is your assumption, not a promise, and the calculator does not pick one for you.
Type the number of years you plan to keep the SIP going.
To see the end value in today’s money, set Adjust for inflation? to Yes and type an inflation rate.

The result shows how much you put in, the estimated gains and the total value, then a chart and a table of every year. Change any number and everything updates at once; the page address keeps your numbers, so a result can be bookmarked or shared.

What a SIP is

A SIP (systematic investment plan) puts a fixed amount into a mutual fund scheme at a fixed interval, usually every month, though weekly and quarterly SIPs exist. Each instalment buys units at that day’s NAV (net asset value, the price of one unit). When the NAV is low, the same amount buys more units; when it is high, fewer. Over many months the average cost per unit evens out, which is often called rupee cost averaging. It lowers the risk of putting everything in at one bad moment. It does not remove the risk of the market falling.

A SIP runs on a bank auto-debit mandate that you set up once. You can usually pause it, stop it or change the amount, and many schemes accept SIPs from ₹500 a month. The money is not locked in unless the scheme has a lock-in period, as tax-saving ELSS schemes do: three years for each instalment.

The formula

The usual SIP formula treats each instalment as going in at the start of the month:

Value = P × [((1 + i)^n − 1) ÷ i] × (1 + i)

P is the monthly amount.
i is the monthly rate: the yearly return ÷ 12 ÷ 100. At 12% a year, i = 0.01.
n is the number of months: years × 12.

The calculator does the same thing one month at a time: it adds each instalment and grows the whole balance by one month’s return. Both ways give the same number, and the monthly steps also give the year-by-year table.

Worked example

₹5,000 a month for 10 years, at a return of 12% a year if that held every year:

Months: 10 × 12 = 120. Monthly rate: 12 ÷ 12 ÷ 100 = 0.01.
(1.01)^120 = 3.3004, so ((3.3004 − 1) ÷ 0.01) × 1.01 = 232.34.
Value = ₹5,000 × 232.34 = ₹11,61,695.
Invested: ₹5,000 × 120 = ₹6,00,000. Estimated gains: ₹11,61,695 − ₹6,00,000 = ₹5,61,695.

The gains come late. After the first year the SIP is worth ₹64,047 for ₹60,000 put in; after five years, ₹4,12,432 for ₹3,00,000. In the last five years the gains grow from ₹1,12,432 to ₹5,61,695, because the return is earned on a bigger and bigger balance.

What "expected return" means

The return you type is a what-if. Mutual fund NAVs move every day, and an equity scheme’s return in a single year can be far above or below its long-run average, including years with a loss. No scheme guarantees a return, and past returns do not tell you future ones. A common way to use a SIP calculator is to run the same plan at a few returns, such as 8%, 10% and 12%, and plan around the lower result, so that a few bad years do not break the plan.

Why the inflation switch matters

Prices rise, so a rupee in ten years will buy less than a rupee today. With the switch on, the calculator divides the end value by (1 + inflation)^years. At 6% inflation, the ₹11,61,695 of the example buys what about ₹6,48,685 buys today: ₹11,61,695 ÷ (1.06)^10 = ₹11,61,695 ÷ 1.7908. The switch takes any rate, so you can try a few.

What the calculator leaves out

Expense ratio. Every scheme takes a yearly fee from its assets. A scheme’s published returns are already after this fee.
Exit loads. Many schemes charge a small fee, often 1%, on units sold within a set period, such as a year.
Tax when you sell. Units of equity-oriented schemes sold more than 12 months after they were bought pay 12.5% on long-term gains above ₹1.25 lakh in a year; units sold within 12 months pay 20% on the gain. Units of debt funds bought on or after 1 April 2023 are taxed at your slab rate. Each SIP instalment is a separate purchase with its own 12 months. Ask a chartered accountant about your own case.
Real dates. Instalments go in on real dates, and some fall on holidays. That is why a fund statement shows XIRR, a yearly return that counts each date, which differs a little from a calculator’s round numbers.

SIP or lumpsum?

If you have the whole amount today, the lumpsum calculator shows what it would grow to. A lumpsum has more time in the market but depends more on the day you invest. SIP vs lumpsum compares the two with the same ₹6 lakh. To raise your SIP every year, use the step-up SIP calculator; to find the SIP a target needs, the goal SIP calculator.

Questions people ask

Is the SIP return guaranteed?: No. The return is a number you type. A scheme’s NAV changes every day, and the value of a SIP can fall below the money put in, especially over short periods.
How is the maturity amount calculated?: Value = P × [((1 + i)^n − 1) ÷ i] × (1 + i), where P is the monthly amount, i the monthly rate (the yearly return ÷ 1,200) and n the number of months. ₹5,000 a month for 10 years at 12% gives ₹11,61,695.
What return should I type?: No scheme guarantees a return, and the calculator does not pick one. Many people test the same plan at 8%, 10% and 12% and plan around the lower result.
Does it include tax and charges?: No. The expense ratio is already inside a scheme’s published returns, but exit loads and tax on selling are not included. The text above lists the current tax rates.
Can I increase the SIP amount later?: Most schemes let you start another SIP or set a yearly step-up. The step-up SIP calculator on this site shows what a SIP rising every year grows to.