Rent vs Buy Calculator
Compare total cost, returns and net worth over time to decide whether renting or buying makes more financial sense for you.
Your inputs
₹16.00 L · loan ₹64.00 L
Results update live — calculations run in your browser, no signup.
Renting wins
Better off by ₹56.10 L over 20 years — 1.22× the other path's net worth
No break-even within 20 years — buying never overtakes renting on this horizon, so the upfront costs would not pay back before you leave.
Assumes an EMI of ₹55,541/month at 8.5%, 6.0% home appreciation, 10.0% on investments and maintenance rising 6% a year — none of these rates are guaranteed.
Buying's gains and costs vs renting — these sum exactly to the net advantage.
- Home appreciation+₹1.77 Cr
- Rent you avoid as an owner+₹99.20 L
- Loan interest + maintenance + buying costs−₹83.54 L
- Opportunity cost (what renting would invest & earn)−₹2.48 Cr
Total cost of buying
₹1.64 Cr
Total cost of renting
₹99.20 L
EMI (monthly)
₹55,541
Your wealth as an owner after 20 years
Property value
₹2.57 Cr
Loan outstanding
− ₹0
Home equity
₹2.57 Cr
Of your ₹1.64 Cr total outlay, ₹2.57 Cr comes back as the home you own — the rest (₹69.30 L interest + ₹13.24 L upkeep) is the cost of owning.
The longer you stay, the more buying tends to build wealth.
- TodayYear 0₹17.00 L upfront
- Year 3Renting aheadby ₹1.06 L
- Year 10Renting aheadby ₹7.14 L
- Year 20Renting aheadby ₹56.10 L
Within 20 years, renting stays ahead — the buying costs don't pay off over this horizon.
What happens if you stay for…
| Years you stay | Who wins | Advantage |
|---|---|---|
| 5 years | Renting | +₹1.72 L |
| 10 years | Renting | +₹7.14 L |
| 15 years | Renting | +₹22.25 L |
| 20 years | Renting | +₹56.10 L |
Price-to-rent ratio
A quick market-valuation check.
26.7x
property price ÷ annual rent (₹3.00 L today)
This market: Depends
Where every ₹100 goes
Rent is pure expense; an EMI also buys you equity.
If you rent
₹0 builds equity
If you buy (EMI)
₹81 interest · ₹19 principal
The whole answer hinges on a few assumptions. Nudge them to see how fragile (or solid) the verdict is.
Current verdict
Renting wins by ₹56.10 L — buying gets better the longer you stay and the faster property appreciates.
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Your plan: ₹80.00 L home, 20% down → EMI about ₹55,541/month.
Plan whichever path you pick
Size the EMI if you buy — or grow the down payment with a SIP if you rent.
Every figure here is a projection from the rates you assume — home appreciation, rent growth and investment returns are not guaranteed and vary by market and year. The model ignores home-loan tax benefits and selling costs. Treat it as an estimate to inform your decision, not financial advice.
How the rent-vs-buy verdict is calculated
Advantage = Buy net worth − Rent net worth
- Buy NW
- home value − loan outstanding + the buyer's invested surplus
- Rent NW
- down payment & buying costs invested + the renter's invested surplus
- Surplus
- both paths spend the same monthly budget — whoever pays less that month invests the difference
Worked example
With your inputs — a ₹80.00 L home with 20% down and a 8.5% loan, the EMI is about ₹55,541/month against ₹25,000 rent today. Month by month, whoever pays less invests the gap at 10.0%; rent grows 5.0% a year and maintenance 6% a year. After 20 years, the owner holds ₹2.57 Cr (₹2.57 Cr home equity plus investments) against the renter's ₹3.13 Cr — so renting comes out ahead by ₹56.10 L.
Rent vs buy FAQs
We track your net worth on each path year by year. Buying starts behind because of the down payment, stamp duty and buying costs, plus early EMIs that are mostly interest. Renting starts ahead because that cash stays invested. The break-even is the first year your net worth as an owner overtakes your net worth as a renter — after which buying pulls ahead.
Then renting usually wins. Buying has large one-time costs (stamp duty, registration, brokerage) that only pay off if you stay long enough for appreciation and equity to outweigh them. If your horizon is short, the calculator will typically show renting ahead — set your realistic stay duration to see your break-even year.
No. It depends on price-to-rent, home appreciation, your loan rate and what you'd earn investing the down payment. In expensive markets where the price-to-rent ratio is high, renting and investing the difference can beat buying for a long time. The verdict here flips with those assumptions — that's the honest reality, not a flaw.
Home-loan interest and principal can qualify for deductions under the old tax regime (Sections 24b and 80C), which improve the case for buying. This calculator does not model tax benefits, so it is slightly conservative on the buying side — factor your own tax saving on top if the old regime applies to you.
Price-to-rent is the home price divided by a year's rent. Roughly: below 15 strongly favours buying, 15–25 is neutral and depends on your assumptions, 25–35 leans towards renting-and-investing, and above 35 strongly favours renting. It's a quick sanity check, not the whole answer.
Rent vs buy — the honest framework
It's a net-worth question, not a monthly-cost one
Comparing rent to EMI alone is misleading — part of every EMI buys you equity, while rent buys nothing. The honest comparison tracks your total net worth on each path: as an owner, your home equity plus any invested surplus; as a renter, the down payment and monthly savings invested in the market. The winner is whoever ends richer.
Why the break-even year matters most
Buying starts behind because of the down payment, stamp duty, brokerage and early interest-heavy EMIs. Over time, appreciation and principal repayment pull it ahead — crossing the renter's net worth at the break-even year. If you'll move before then, renting and investing the difference usually wins; if you'll stay well past it, buying does.
The assumptions that flip the verdict
Home appreciation, rent growth, your loan rate and the return on invested savings all compound over years, so a one-percent change in any can change the winner. That isn't a flaw — it's the honest truth that no one knows these rates in advance. Use the sensitivity sliders to see how robust your verdict is, rather than trusting a single point estimate.
What this model leaves out
For clarity, it doesn't model home-loan tax benefits (which favour buying under the old regime), transaction costs on selling, or the non-financial value of owning. Treat the result as a rigorous financial estimate to inform your decision, not the whole story — your stability, flexibility and peace of mind matter too.