Calculator

Rent or buy calculator for India

Net cost of each option over the years you choose, reference figures checked on 4 November 2026 against the RBI and the National Statistics Office.

In short

For a ₹50 lakh home with ₹10 lakh down, against a rent of ₹15,000 a month, the net cost over 10 years is ₹12,54,684 to buy and ₹20,04,620 to rent, before stamp duty, with home prices rising 3.6% a year as the RBI index did over the last year and rents 2.37% as the official CPI rent index did; on these figures buying costs less from year 2. The price, rent and down payment are examples: enter yours. Payotte gives no rent for any city because no official rent series by city exists.

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Compare renting and buying

Change any field: both costs are recalculated instantly.

Price of the home in ₹, example

Down payment in ₹, example

Monthly rent of a similar home in ₹, example

Horizon years

Rent increase % a year

Change in the home's price % a year

Loan interest rate % a year

Loan tenure years

Return on money kept % a year

State, for stamp duty optional

Over the horizonBuying costs ₹7,49,936 less

Net cost of buying₹12,54,684

Cost of renting₹20,04,620

EMI₹32,665

Stamp duty and registrationnot computed

Value of the home at the end₹71,21,436

Loan still owed at the end₹27,30,232

Return forgone on the down payment and charges₹7,26,038

Buying costs less fromyear 2

Stamp duty and registration are not included: Payotte computes them only for the states whose official rates it could read.

Net cost of buying = down payment + stamp duty and registration + EMIs paid over the horizon + return forgone on the down payment and charges (compounded yearly) − (value of the home at the end − loan still owed). Cost of renting = the rent of each year, raised once a year. Not counted, for lack of an official figure: maintenance and society charges, property tax, insurance, brokerage, selling costs, the security deposit, tax benefits on the loan or on rent, and any return on the monthly gap between EMI and rent. Returns are before tax.

Which costs less, by rent and horizon

Monthly rent	5 years	10 years	15 years	20 years
₹10,000	rent ₹1.63 lakh less	buy ₹81,729 less	buy ₹8.6 lakh less	buy ₹23.5 lakh less
₹15,000	buy ₹1.52 lakh less	buy ₹7.5 lakh less	buy ₹19.26 lakh less	buy ₹38.62 lakh less
₹20,000	buy ₹4.67 lakh less	buy ₹14.18 lakh less	buy ₹29.91 lakh less	buy ₹53.75 lakh less
₹25,000	buy ₹7.81 lakh less	buy ₹20.86 lakh less	buy ₹40.57 lakh less	buy ₹68.88 lakh less

Home of ₹50 lakh, ₹10 lakh down, loan over 20 years at 7.68% (RBI average rate on fresh housing loans, September 2026, provisional); price +3.6% a year (RBI all-India house price index, Q1:2026-27 (April-June 2026), year on year); rent +2.37% a year (CPI actual rental payments, all India, September 2026, provisional); money kept earns 5.61% (RBI average rate on fresh term deposits, September 2026). Stamp duty and registration not included. Past changes in an all-India index say nothing certain about one home's future price.

Before you decide

General information drawn from the official sources cited and dated on this page. It is not legal, tax or financial advice: for your own situation, ask a licensed professional.

Sources

RBI, Lending and Deposit Rates of Scheduled Commercial Banks – October 2026, Table 9 (Sector-wise WALR, fresh rupee loans sanctioned, Housing) (data file)
RBI, Lending and Deposit Rates of Scheduled Commercial Banks – October 2026: weighted average domestic term deposit rate (WADTDR) on fresh rupee term deposits of scheduled commercial banks, 5.61% in September 2026.
Reserve Bank of India, press release 2026-2027/958, All-India House Price Index for Q1:2026-27 (24 August 2026): 3.6% year on year, Q1:2026-27 (April-June 2026).
MoSPI, National Statistics Office, Press release of Consumer Price Index on base 2024=100 for September 2026 (12 October 2026), Annexure II: year-on-year inflation of the all-India CPI sub-class 04.1 “Actual rental payments made for housing” (combined, base 2024=100), 2.37%.
Stamp duty and registration: the state sources listed on the stamp duty calculator.