SIP / Recurring Investment Calculator
Calculate returns from monthly investments with step-up and full yearly breakdown.
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๐ What is the SIP / Recurring Investment Calculator?
A Systematic Investment Plan (SIP), or recurring investment, lets you invest a fixed amount every month into mutual funds, index funds or retirement accounts โ turning a habit into a sizeable corpus through rupee-cost averaging and compounding. This calculator projects your SIP's maturity value, total invested amount, and total gains, with optional step-up and an initial lump sum, plus a full yearly breakdown table.
โ๏ธ How SIP / Recurring is calculated
How SIP maturity is calculated
Each monthly instalment compounds from the month it is invested until the end of your tenure. Mathematically, the future value of a SIP is the sum of a series of compounding cash flows: FV = ฮฃ [instalment ร (1 + r)^n], where r is the monthly rate of return and n is the number of months that instalment has been invested.
Rupee-cost averaging explained
Because you invest the same amount every month regardless of market price, you automatically buy more units when prices are low and fewer when prices are high. Over time this averages your purchase cost and reduces the impact of trying (and failing) to time the market โ though it does not guarantee profits.
Step-up SIP mechanics
A step-up SIP increases your monthly contribution by a fixed percentage each year. This calculator applies the step-up at each anniversary of your SIP and recalculates the contribution for the following 12 months, then continues compounding โ matching how most mutual fund platforms implement step-up SIPs.
Reading the yearly breakdown table
The table shows, for each year of your SIP: the contribution made that year, the cumulative amount invested, and the portfolio value at year-end. This makes it easy to see the year-over-year acceleration โ early years show contributions dominating the total, while later years show returns dominating.
SIP future value (monthly compounding)
FV = ฮฃ [instalment ร (1 + r)โฟ] for each month n
r = monthly return rate = annual rate รท 12
๐งฎ Worked examples
Example 1 โ Classic SIP
โน5,000/month for 15 years at an expected 12% annual return, no step-up.
โ Total invested โ โน9,00,000 ยท Maturity value โ โน25โ26 lakh
Example 2 โ With 10% annual step-up
Same as Example 1, but the monthly amount increases by 10% every year.
โ Total invested โ โน17.5 lakh ยท Maturity value โ โน38โ40 lakh โ roughly 50% higher
Example 3 โ SIP + lump sum
โน2,00,000 lump sum invested upfront, plus โน3,000/month for 20 years at 12%.
โ The lump sum alone grows to roughly โน19โ20 lakh; combined with the SIP, total maturity exceeds โน50 lakh
๐ก Original insights & how to use this calculator
Matching SIP amount to a future goal
Use this calculator alongside the Goal-Based Savings Calculator: first find out how much monthly investment a target (like a โน50 lakh house down payment in 10 years) requires, then come back here to see how a step-up could let you start with a smaller, more comfortable amount.
Why "time in market" beats "timing the market"
Run the calculator with the same monthly amount but different start dates 5 years apart. The difference in final value โ driven purely by those extra 5 years of compounding โ is usually far larger than any gain from trying to pick the "perfect" entry point.
Stress-testing your assumptions
Equity mutual funds do not return a steady 12% every year โ returns are volatile. Try the calculator at 8%, 12%, and 15% to build a realistic range of outcomes rather than anchoring on a single optimistic number.
SIP vs lump sum for a windfall
If you receive a large one-time amount, this calculator (with the lump-sum field) shows how it compares to investing the same total amount as a SIP over the same period โ useful context before deciding how to deploy a bonus, gift, or inheritance.
๐ก Expert Tips
A 10% annual step-up dramatically increases final returns.
Stay invested through dips โ time in market beats timing.
How to read your result
The final corpus number is only as reliable as the return rate you assumed โ a 12% assumption over 20 years and a 10% assumption over the same period can differ by lakhs, even though both are "reasonable" historical averages. Treat the output as a plausible range, not a guarantee, and re-check it yearly against your actual portfolio performance rather than trusting the original projection blindly.
โ ๏ธ Common Mistakes
โ Assuming a flat, unrealistically high return rate (15%+) for the entire period.
โ Nifty 50 index funds have historically returned roughly 11-13% CAGR over 10+ year periods โ use a conservative 10-12% for planning, not the best few years you've seen quoted.
โ Stopping the SIP during a market downturn.
โ Downturns are when rupee-cost averaging buys you the most units per rupee. Stopping contributions specifically when prices are low undermines the entire mechanism that makes SIP work.
โ Ignoring step-up and assuming the same monthly amount forever.
โ A flat SIP loses real value to inflation and ignores rising income. Even a 10%/year step-up dramatically changes the final corpus โ model it explicitly rather than assuming a static number for 20 years.
โ๏ธ Health & Wealth โ pair this with
Frequently Asked
What is SIP and how does it work?โพ
A Systematic Investment Plan means investing a fixed amount every month into a mutual fund. Rupee-cost averaging means you automatically buy more units when markets are low and fewer when high.
What return can I expect from SIP?โพ
Nifty 50 index funds have historically returned roughly 11-13% CAGR over 10+ years; debt funds typically return 6-8%. Past returns do not guarantee future performance.
Is SIP better than lump sum?โพ
SIP reduces timing risk through averaging, while a lump sum can outperform in a rising market. For most people SIP wins because it builds the savings habit automatically, regardless of market timing.
What is a step-up SIP?โพ
Increasing your monthly contribution by a fixed % each year โ usually 10-20%, in line with salary growth. Step-up SIP dramatically improves your final corpus versus a flat contribution.
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Compound Interest Calculator
Example 1 โ Lump sum, no contributions
A = 1,00,000 ร (1.10)^10 โ โน2,59,374 โ more than 2.5ร growth