Compare investments honestly

The same contribution, over the same period, across SIP, PPF, Sukanya Samriddhi, FD, RD and a lumpsum. Maturity value and returns sit next to risk, lock-in and tax treatment — because a bigger number attached to more risk is not automatically the better answer, and we will not pretend otherwise by declaring a winner.

1. What are you putting in?

Monthly amount$500 – $200K

Ten Thousand Rupees

Period1y – 30y

years

Assumed market return1% – 25%

% p.a.

Applied to market-linked options only

Deposit rate1% – 12%

% p.a.

Applied to FD and RD

2. What do you want to compare?

These numbers are not equivalent

A guaranteed return and a projected one are different kinds of number. PPF and FD pay what they promise; a market-linked projection is arithmetic on an assumption you chose, and the actual outcome can be materially lower — including a loss. The table is sorted by value only because you asked it to be, and the highest figure is usually the one carrying the most risk. Read the risk and lock-in columns before the money column.

3. Side by side

Scheme	Rate used	You invest	Maturity value	Absolute	Annualised	Risk	Lock-in	Tax
🏦 FD	7%	$1.8M	$5,097,269	183%	7.19%	No market risk	Until maturity — premature withdrawal usually carries a rate penalty	Interest taxed at your income-tax slab rate. TDS applies above the annual threshold.
📈 SIP	12%	$1.8M	$5,045,760	180%	12.67%	High	None, except ELSS funds (3 years)	Equity: 12.5% LTCG above ₹1.25 lakh a year after 12 months. Debt: taxed at your slab rate.
🛡️ PPF	7.1%government-set	$1.8M	$3,254,567	81%	7.98%	No market risk	15 years, extendable in blocks of 5 years	EEE: deposits qualify under Section 80C, and both the interest and the maturity amount are tax-free.
🗓️ RD	7%	$1.8M	$3,176,893	76%	7.18%	No market risk	Until maturity — premature closure carries a penalty	Interest taxed at your income-tax slab rate. TDS applies above the annual threshold.

We do not name a winner, because there is not one. The right choice depends on when you need the money, whether you can tolerate a fall in value, and your tax position — none of which a calculator knows. Where a statutory ceiling applies, the contribution has been capped at it, which is itself part of the comparison.

How each one grows

Market-linked lines are drawn as smooth curves because that is what a fixed assumed return produces. Real market returns are not smooth — this shape is a projection, not a forecast.

In today’s money

At 6% inflation, here is what each maturity value would actually buy.

🏦 FD$2.13M
📈 SIP$2.11M
🛡️ PPF$1.36M
🗓️ RD$1.33M

Comparing investments

How to read this comparison

The questions worth asking before you act on any of these numbers.

On almost any long horizon, a market-linked projection at a 12% assumption will show the largest number — but that is a consequence of the assumption you entered, not evidence of a better product. PPF and FD pay what they promise; equity may deliver more, less, or a loss, and it can do so precisely when you need the money. The tool deliberately does not name a winner, because the comparison depends on when you need the funds, whether you can tolerate a fall in value, and your tax position — none of which a calculator knows.

PPF and Sukanya Samriddhi both carry a statutory ceiling of ₹1.5 lakh a year. If your chosen monthly amount would exceed that, the calculator caps it — and that constraint is part of the honest comparison. A scheme you cannot put enough money into is not directly comparable with one that has no ceiling, however attractive its rate.

Absolute return is the total gain as a percentage of what you put in — simple, but it ignores time entirely, so 100% over three years and 100% over thirty look identical. XIRR is the annualised, money-weighted rate that accounts for each contribution being invested for a different length of time. For staggered contributions like a SIP or RD, XIRR is the meaningful figure. For a single lump sum held throughout, CAGR and XIRR are the same thing.

No. The maturity values are pre-tax and before costs. That matters a great deal to the comparison: PPF and Sukanya Samriddhi are EEE, so the maturity amount is tax-free, whereas FD and RD interest is taxed at your slab rate — a 7% FD returns roughly 4.9% after tax in the 30% bracket. Mutual funds also carry expense ratios and capital gains tax. The tax column in the table states each position; the arithmetic does not apply it.

Not in the main figures, but there is an 'in today's money' section that discounts each maturity value at 6% a year. It is worth looking at: a balance that grows fivefold over twenty years has not increased your purchasing power fivefold, and a return below inflation loses you money in real terms even as the balance rises.

Work through one in detail

📈SIP 💰Lumpsum 🏦FD 🗓️RD

Switching country…

Scheme

Rate used

You invest

Maturity value

Absolute

Annualised

Risk

Lock-in

Tax

🏦 FD

$1.8M

$5,097,269

183%

7.19%

No market risk

Until maturity — premature withdrawal usually carries a rate penalty

Interest taxed at your income-tax slab rate. TDS applies above the annual threshold.

📈 SIP

12%

$1.8M

$5,045,760

180%

12.67%

High

None, except ELSS funds (3 years)

Equity: 12.5% LTCG above ₹1.25 lakh a year after 12 months. Debt: taxed at your slab rate.

🛡️ PPF

7.1%government-set

$1.8M

$3,254,567

81%

7.98%

No market risk

15 years, extendable in blocks of 5 years

EEE: deposits qualify under Section 80C, and both the interest and the maturity amount are tax-free.

🗓️ RD

$1.8M

$3,176,893

76%

7.18%

No market risk

Until maturity — premature closure carries a penalty

Interest taxed at your income-tax slab rate. TDS applies above the annual threshold.

Compare investments honestly

1. What are you putting in?

2. What do you want to compare?

These numbers are not equivalent

3. Side by side

How each one grows

In today’s money

How to read this comparison

Which of these gives the best return?

Why is my PPF contribution capped in the comparison?

What is the difference between absolute return and XIRR?

Do these projections account for tax and charges?

Is inflation taken into account?

Work through one in detail

Compare investments honestly

1. What are you putting in?

2. What do you want to compare?

These numbers are not equivalent

3. Side by side

How each one grows

In today’s money

How to read this comparison

Which of these gives the best return?

Why is my PPF contribution capped in the comparison?

What is the difference between absolute return and XIRR?

Do these projections account for tax and charges?

Is inflation taken into account?

Work through one in detail