Free ppf calculator
See what your PPF grows to in two seconds. Enter your annual deposit, the interest rate, and the tenure — the calculator returns your tax-free maturity corpus, the total you invest, the interest you earn, and a year-by-year growth table, using the 7.1% current rate and 15-year defaults — updated live, as you type.
On this page16 sections
| Year | Deposit | Interest | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹10,650 | ₹1,60,650 |
| 2 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹22,056 | ₹3,32,706 |
| 3 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹34,272 | ₹5,16,978 |
| 4 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹47,355 | ₹7,14,334 |
| 5 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹61,368 | ₹9,25,701 |
| 6 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹76,375 | ₹11,52,076 |
| 7 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹92,447 | ₹13,94,524 |
| 8 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹1,09,661 | ₹16,54,185 |
| 9 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹1,28,097 | ₹19,32,282 |
| 10 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹1,47,842 | ₹22,30,124 |
| 11 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹1,68,989 | ₹25,49,113 |
| 12 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹1,91,637 | ₹28,90,750 |
| 13 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹2,15,893 | ₹32,56,643 |
| 14 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹2,41,872 | ₹36,48,515 |
| 15 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹2,69,695 | ₹40,68,209 |
Estimates only, based on the values you enter. Assumes a constant rate; the PPF rate is reset quarterly. Not financial advice.
Results are estimates. Consult a professional.
What is PPF (Public Provident Fund)?
The Public Provident Fund (PPF) is a government-backed, long-term savings scheme in India that pays a fixed, tax-free rate of interest and locks your money in for 15 years. Launched in 1968 and administered by the Ministry of Finance, it is one of the safest investments available: your capital is guaranteed by the Government of India, the interest is set by the government every quarter, and both the interest and the final maturity amount are completely exempt from income tax. This PPF calculator returns your maturity corpus the moment you enter your annual deposit, the rate, and the tenure.
PPF is the cornerstone of the conservative Indian saver's portfolio. You can open an account at any post office or most banks with as little as ₹500, deposit up to ₹1.5 lakh a year, and claim that deposit as a deduction under Section 80C. Because the rate is fixed by the government and the returns are tax-free, PPF is most useful for goals 15 or more years away — a child's education, a retirement cushion, or any corpus you want to grow without market risk.
How is PPF interest calculated? The PPF formula
PPF interest is compounded annually. Because you can deposit the full amount at the start of the financial year, each year's deposit earns a full year of interest — making the maturity an annuity due (deposits at the start of each period). The maturity is the future value of that annuity:
Two timing rules matter in a real account. First, interest is calculated on the lowest balance between the 5th and the last day of each month, so depositing before the 5th earns you that month's interest. Second, interest is credited once a year, at the end of the financial year (31 March). Depositing your full ₹1.5 lakh in April rather than spreading it across the year therefore maximises the interest earned.
How to use the PPF calculator
- Enter your annual deposit. The amount you plan to invest each year, anywhere from ₹500 to the ₹1,50,000 ceiling. Most savers chasing the full 80C benefit enter ₹1,50,000.
- Set the interest rate. The calculator defaults to the current 7.1%. Lower or raise it to see how a future rate change affects your corpus.
- Choose the tenure. Start with the standard 15 years. Increase it in 5-year steps to model an extension (20, 25, or 30 years).
- Read your maturity corpus. The result hero shows the tax-free amount you will receive, with the total you invested and the total interest earned beside it — plus a year-by-year growth table.
A worked example using the PPF calculator
Anita decides to invest the full PPF limit — ₹1,50,000 — at the start of every financial year for the standard 15-year tenure, at the current 7.1% rate. Here is how the calculator builds her corpus.
Step 1 — Add up what she invests
Over 15 years Anita deposits ₹1,50,000 × 15 = ₹22,50,000 of her own money. That is the principal the calculator will grow.
Step 2 — Apply the PPF formula
Step 3 — Read the corpus vs. interest split
Now see the bigger picture. Nearly 45% of Anita's final corpus is interest she never paid tax on — the compounding edge that a comparable taxable fixed deposit cannot match. The next sections show the rules that protect that growth and how PPF stacks up against ELSS and an FD.
PPF year-by-year growth table
The table below traces Anita's account year by year — a ₹1,50,000 deposit each April, 7.1% interest on the running balance, and the closing balance carried into the next year. Watch the interest column: it is small at first and large near the end, because compounding rewards the years the balance has had time to grow.
| Year | Opening balance | Deposit | Interest | Closing balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ₹0 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹10,650 | ₹1,60,650 |
| 2 | ₹1,60,650 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹22,056 | ₹3,32,706 |
| 3 | ₹3,32,706 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹34,272 | ₹5,16,978 |
| 5 | ₹7,14,334 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹61,368 | ₹9,25,701 |
| 10 | ₹19,32,282 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹1,47,842 | ₹22,30,124 |
| 15 | ₹36,48,515 | ₹1,50,000 | ₹2,69,695 | ₹40,68,209 |
Selected years from the 15-year schedule (₹1,50,000/yr at 7.1%). Total deposited ₹22,50,000 + total interest ₹18,18,209 = ₹40,68,209 maturity. The calculator above prints all 15 rows.
PPF rules: deposit limits, tenure, and lock-in
PPF is governed by a fixed set of rules that the calculator's defaults follow. Knowing them keeps your account active and your 80C deduction intact:
- Deposit limits. A minimum of ₹500 and a maximum of ₹1,50,000 per financial year. Miss the ₹500 minimum and the account is treated as discontinued until you revive it with a penalty.
- Tenure. A fixed 15-year maturity, extendable in blocks of 5 years after that.
- One account per person. An individual may hold only one PPF account (plus accounts for minor children, within the combined ₹1.5 lakh limit).
- Deposit frequency. You may deposit in a lump sum or in instalments through the year — there is no longer a 12-instalment cap.
- Who can open one. Resident Indian individuals. NRIs cannot open a new PPF account, though they may run an existing one to maturity.
PPF tax benefits: the EEE advantage
PPF holds a rare EEE (Exempt-Exempt-Exempt) status — the gold standard of tax treatment in India. It is exempt at all three stages, which is what makes the effective return so much higher than the headline 7.1% suggests for a taxpayer.
The EEE status is the quiet superpower of PPF. A 30%-bracket taxpayer earning 7.1% tax-free is getting the equivalent of roughly a 10.1% pre-tax return from a taxable instrument — which is why PPF stays attractive even when its headline rate looks modest next to a fixed deposit. Note the 80C deduction is only available under the old tax regime; the interest and maturity remain tax-free under either regime.
PPF vs ELSS vs fixed deposit (FD)
PPF, ELSS, and a tax-saving FD all qualify for the Section 80C deduction, but they sit at very different points on the risk-return-liquidity scale. The right one depends on your horizon and your appetite for market risk.
| PPF | ELSS | Tax-saving FD | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Returns | 7.1% fixed, govt-set | Market-linked (~10–12% historical) | ~6.5–7.5% fixed |
| Risk | Virtually zero (govt-backed) | Market risk (equity) | Low (bank/DICGC-insured) |
| Lock-in | 15 years | 3 years | 5 years |
| Tax on returns | Fully tax-free (EEE) | LTCG above ₹1.25 lakh taxed at 12.5% | Interest fully taxable |
| 80C deduction | Yes (up to ₹1.5 lakh) | Yes (up to ₹1.5 lakh) | Yes (up to ₹1.5 lakh) |
ELSS has the shortest lock-in and highest upside but carries equity risk; PPF has the longest lock-in but guaranteed, tax-free returns; the FD sits in between on lock-in but loses to both after tax.
A common strategy is to hold both PPF and ELSS: PPF for the safe, tax-free, debt portion of a long-term portfolio, and ELSS for the equity growth and the much shorter 3-year lock-in. A tax-saving FD is usually the weakest of the three for a long horizon, because its interest is fully taxable while PPF's is not.
PPF partial withdrawals and loans
PPF locks your money for 15 years, but it is not entirely inaccessible. Two facilities let you reach the balance early — a loan in the first few years and partial withdrawals later on.
Loan against PPF (years 3–6)
From the start of the 3rd financial year until the end of the 6th, you can take a loan against your balance of up to 25% of the balance at the end of the 2nd year preceding the application. The loan carries a modest interest rate (currently 1% over the PPF rate) and must be repaid within 36 months.
Partial withdrawals (from year 7)
From the 7th financial year onward you may make one partial withdrawal per year, capped at the lower of 50% of the balance at the end of the 4th preceding year or 50% of the balance at the end of the immediately preceding year. The withdrawal is tax-free, like everything else in a PPF account.
Extending PPF after 15 years
Maturity is not the only option at the end of 15 years. You have three choices, and the calculator lets you model the extension paths by raising the tenure in 5-year steps.
- Withdraw the full corpus. Close the account and take the entire tax-free maturity amount.
- Extend without further deposits. Leave the balance untouched and let it keep earning tax-free interest, withdrawing as needed (one withdrawal per year, any amount).
- Extend with deposits. Continue contributing in 5-year blocks. You must submit Form H within a year of maturity, and you can withdraw up to 60% of the opening balance over each 5-year block.
Extending with deposits is how disciplined savers turn PPF into a serious retirement vehicle. A ₹1.5 lakh annual deposit extended to 25 years at 7.1% grows to roughly ₹1.03 crore, and to 30 years to about ₹1.55 crore — entirely tax-free. Raise the tenure input above to see these figures for yourself.
Sources and methodology
The calculator applies the standard PPF maturity formula M = P × [((1 + i)^n − 1) / i] × (1 + i), treating deposits as an annuity due (made at the start of each year) and compounding annually — the convention behind the published worked numbers of the major Indian PPF calculators. A 0% rate falls back to the straight-line M = P × n. The current rate (7.1%, 2025–26) and all account rules follow the Ministry of Finance's PPF Scheme and standard tax references; rates are reset quarterly and may change over a 15-year tenure.
ClearTax — PPF: interest rate, tax benefits, eligibility and withdrawal rules.Groww — PPF Calculator (formula and worked example).Frequently asked questions about the free ppf calculator
About this PPF calculator
This PPF calculator runs entirely in your browser. Every figure you enter stays on your device — nothing is sent to a server, logged, or shared. It applies the standard PPF maturity formula M = P × [((1 + i)^n − 1) / i] × (1 + i), treating deposits as an annuity due and compounding annually, and falls back to a straight-line target when the rate is 0% — updating instantly as you type.
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