SIP Calculator
A systematic investment plan puts a fixed amount into a mutual fund every month. This works out what that becomes, and separates the money you put in from the growth on top.
How a SIP actually grows
Each instalment you pay is invested for a different length of time. The one you paid in month one has the whole period to grow. The one you pay in the final month grows for a single month. The total is the sum of all of them, each compounded for its own remaining time.
P is your monthly amount, i is the monthly rate, which is the annual return divided by 12 and by 100, and n is the number of instalments. This calculator runs the month by month version, which handles the annual step up correctly.
A worked example
₹10,000 a month for 15 years at an assumed 12 percent. You put in ₹18,00,000 across 180 instalments. The projected value at the end is roughly ₹50,45,000. So about ₹32,45,000, which is 64 percent of the final figure, is growth rather than your own money.
Now look at where that growth sits in time. After 5 years the fund is worth about ₹8,25,000 against ₹6,00,000 invested. The gain is modest. Between year 10 and year 15 the value roughly doubles. Compounding does almost nothing in the early years and then does nearly everything, which is why stopping a SIP at year six because it felt slow is the most expensive common mistake.
The step up
Most people's income rises. Most people's SIP does not. Raising your instalment by 10 percent each year changes the outcome substantially. In the example above, adding a 10 percent annual step up takes the final value from about ₹50,45,000 to roughly ₹86,84,000, because you invest about ₹38,13,000 instead of ₹18,00,000 and the extra goes in early enough to compound.
Set the step up field to match your realistic annual raise and see what it does.
What the return figure really means
The 12 percent in the default is an assumption, not a promise. Indian equity funds have historically delivered somewhere in that region over long periods, but the path is nothing like a straight line. A fund averaging 12 percent over 15 years might fall 30 percent in one of those years. If a 30 percent fall would make you sell, the average return is irrelevant, because you will not be there to receive it.
Try running the calculator at 8 percent as well as 12. The gap between those two numbers over 20 years is the honest range of what might happen, and planning around the lower end is rarely regretted.
Tax on the gains
This calculator shows the value before tax. Equity mutual fund gains in India are taxed differently depending on how long you hold and the amounts involved, and the rules have changed more than once in recent years. Check the current position before you plan around a specific post tax figure.
Common questions
Is the return guaranteed?
No. A SIP is a way of investing, not a product with a fixed rate. The return you enter is your assumption. Market linked investments can and do fall, sometimes sharply. Treat the output as one scenario, not a forecast.
SIP or lump sum?
Mathematically, if markets rise over your period, a lump sum invested at the start wins because more money is invested for longer. In practice most people do not have a lump sum, and a SIP removes the need to guess when to enter. It also means a falling market buys you more units, which helps when the market recovers.
What happens if I miss a month?
Nothing serious. The instalment is not collected and your fund is worth slightly less at the end. There is no penalty from the fund house, though your bank may charge for a failed mandate. Repeated misses simply mean a smaller corpus.
Can I stop a SIP whenever I want?
Yes. You can pause or cancel with the fund house or your platform, usually with a few working days of notice. Money already invested stays invested until you redeem it separately. Some funds carry an exit load if you redeem within a short window, commonly a year.
What is a step up SIP?
An instruction to increase your monthly amount by a set percentage each year, so your investing keeps pace with your income. Set the step up field above to see the difference. Over long periods it matters more than picking a slightly better fund.