Project a Public Provident Fund account to maturity and beyond, with the monthly interest accrual and annual credit that PPF actually uses, the ₹1.5 lakh cap enforced, and the value of the 80C deduction priced in.
Step 1
Choose how you will deposit
One April payment earns a full year of interest. Twelve monthly payments earn less, but are easier on cash flow.
Step 2
Set the amount and the rate
The cap is ₹1.5 lakh per financial year across all your PPF accounts. The rate is notified quarterly.
Step 3
Decide how long to run it
Fifteen years is the mandatory term, after which the account extends in 5-year blocks. Extensions are where the compounding really shows.
Maturity value
₹40,68,209
Tax-free, after 15 years of contributions at 7.1%.
Interest earned
₹18,18,209
Compounded annually and credited on 31 March each year.
Tax saved under 80C
₹6,75,000
Across the full term at a 30% slab, if you have 80C headroom left.
PPF does not simply compound annually. Interest accrues each month on the lowest balance between the 5th and the last day of that month, and the total is credited once a year on 31 March. That timing rule is why the date you deposit matters.
Monthly accrual = Lowest balance × (r ÷ 12)
Balance on 31 March = Balance + Σ monthly accrualsMinimum balance in the month
Between the 5th and month end. A deposit on the 4th counts; one on the 6th does not.
Annual notified rate
Currently 7.1%, revised each quarter by the government.
Year's accrued interest
Held aside until 31 March, so accrued interest does not itself compound until it is credited.
Because accrued interest only starts compounding once credited, depositing early in the financial year is worth real money. A ₹1.5 lakh deposit made in April rather than March earns roughly ₹10,000 more over a 15-year term.
Answers about the ppf calculator.
Continue exploring adjacent tools in this topic.
Background reading on the ideas behind these numbers.
The three schemes look interchangeable and behave very differently. One is chosen for you, one is entirely voluntary and one hands most of your corpus to an annuity provider. Understanding which is which decides how much you end up with, and how much of it you can spend.
Being "in the 20% bracket" does not mean 20% of your income goes in tax. Confusing the rate on your next rupee with the rate on all of them leads people to fear raises, overvalue deductions and misjudge what they actually earn.
This tool is provided for educational purposes only. Results are estimates based on the values you enter and do not constitute financial advice.