Cost of delay calculator
The same monthly amount, the same end date and the same assumed rate, worked out twice: once starting now, once starting a few months later. The gap between the two is what this shows.
Illustrative only — this is not a projection or a promise of returns. Every figure below is arithmetic applied to the rate of return you typed in. H2 Investment is not suggesting that rate, forecasting it, or promising it. Returns are market-linked, vary from year to year, and can be negative.
The first two figures are the same SIP to the same end date, started now and started later; the third is the gap between them, at the rate you entered — an illustration, not a projection.
What this is, and what it isn’t
This is arithmetic on the numbers you typed. It compounds them at the rate you chose and shows you the result. That is all it does.
It is an illustration, not a projection. It is not a forecast, not a recommendation, and not an offer. Nobody knows what any investment will return, so the rate you enter is an assumption you are making, not a rate anyone is offering you. Real returns arrive unevenly — good years, flat years and falling years, in an order nobody can predict — and that order matters as much as the average.
Use the output the way you’d use a rough estimate on the back of an envelope: to see whether the shape of a plan is roughly right, not to decide what a specific rupee amount will be worth on a specific date.
This shows the arithmetic of time in the market at one fixed rate. It is not a reason to start or to wait; that depends on your own circumstances.
What this calculation assumes
Both starts use the SIP arithmetic from the SIP calculator: each instalment is compounded for the months it stays invested, at one-twelfth of the annual rate. The assumptions:
- The same rate for both starts, every year. Real returns are uneven, and the months a later start misses could turn out to be good ones or poor ones. A fixed rate cannot show that.
- The same end date. The later start does not run longer to catch up; it simply has fewer instalments.
- Every instalment paid, at the start of each month.
- No costs or tax.
New to the idea behind this? Compounding, shown simply walks through it in plain language.
About these calculators
What does the cost of delay mean for a SIP?
It is the difference between what the same monthly SIP could be worth by a fixed end date if it starts now, and what it could be worth if it starts some months later. Part of the gap is the instalments not paid in; the rest is the growth those months would have had time to earn. Every figure is an illustration from your inputs.
Is this figure a projection of what I will earn?
No. Every figure here is an illustration produced from the numbers you type in, at a rate of return you choose yourself. It is arithmetic, not a forecast: mutual fund returns are market-linked and not assured, and the actual outcome will differ.
What rate of return should I assume?
That assumption is yours to make — the tool leaves it in your hands on purpose. A rate you enter is an illustration, not a rate we are promising or suggesting is likely. If you want to understand what drives returns in different kinds of funds, the explainers do that without putting a number on the future.
Does this account for tax, expense ratio or exit load?
Unless a field asks for it, no — the core calculators show how compounding works on the inputs you give. Real outcomes are reduced by the scheme’s expense ratio, by any exit load, and by tax on your gains.
Why do your figures differ from another site’s calculator?
Almost always because of the assumptions, not the maths — the return rate, whether tax and costs are included, and how compounding frequency is handled. Change those to match and the numbers converge. Every one of these is an illustration of arithmetic, not a claim about a real scheme.
Is an SIP better than investing a lump sum?
Neither is universally better — they suit different situations. An SIP spreads your investment across many dates, which fits money that arrives monthly and takes the timing decision off your plate; a lump sum puts money to work at once, which fits money you already hold. Which applies to you depends on your cash flow and goal, so it is a conversation rather than a rule. SIP or lump sum, compared goes deeper.
Talk to us
If you’d rather go through your own numbers with a person than a form, that’s what we’re for. You’ll speak to Himani, who runs H2 — the same person every time.
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See all calculators. None of these ask for your name, your phone number or your PAN. Nothing you type is stored or sent anywhere. Use them as often as you like without hearing from us.