Goal planner calculator
Start with what the goal costs and how far off it is, and see what you’d have to invest each month — or in one lump sum today — to reach it at the return you assume.
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 figure is the monthly SIP (or one-time amount) that would work back to your target at the rate and horizon you set — or, with a yearly increase set, the starting SIP — 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 instalment the arithmetic needs, not an amount that will reach the goal for certain. It is an illustration, not a projection or a promise. The whole result hangs on the rate you assume, and real returns arrive unevenly.
What this calculation assumes
The calculator inflates the goal to what it would cost in the year you need it, then solves for the instalment that would reach that amount at the rate you assume. With a yearly increase set, it solves for the starting instalment instead: the amount that, raised by your percentage once every twelve months, adds up to the same cost. In plain words, the starting SIP is the goal’s future cost divided by what a SIP of ₹1 a month, stepped up the same way, would grow to. Four assumptions sit behind that:
- One rate, every month. The calculator applies the same return to every month of every year. Markets do not work that way. Two plans that both average 12% can end up far apart depending on which years were the bad ones.
- The rate is yours, not ours. The return is an assumption you are making, not a rate anyone is offering you. Nobody knows what any investment will return, so run it at more than one rate and look at the spread.
- A step-up you can keep up. If you set a yearly increase, the calculation assumes you raise the instalment by that percentage every year without a gap. A year you cannot fund the higher amount leaves the plan short of the goal.
- No costs, no tax. Exit load, stamp duty and capital gains tax are not deducted. A scheme’s expense ratio is already reflected in its NAV — its per-unit value — so quoted returns are after that, but the tax you pay on redemption is not.
New to the idea behind this? Setting a financial goal walks through it in plain language.
Working towards a specific goal? See the plan-by-goal pages.
About these calculators
How do I work out the SIP for a specific goal?
Enter what the goal costs, how far away it is and an assumed rate, and the tool works back to the monthly SIP it would take. Every figure is an illustration from your inputs, not a forecast of returns.
Can I plan a goal with a SIP that rises every year?
Yes. Enter the yearly increase in the optional field and the tool works back to the starting monthly SIP: a smaller first instalment that, raised by that percentage once a year, adds up to the same goal at the rate you assume. Leave the field at 0 and you get the flat SIP instead.
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.
Other calculators
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.