How do you use the rent vs buy calculator?
- Enter the price of the home you are looking at and the rent for a similar home nearby.
- Set how many years you expect to live there. This matters more than any other input.
- Check the down payment and the interest rate (8.5% by default). RBI loan limits are applied for you.
- Open “Adjust rates and assumptions” to set the tenure (20 years by default), rent rise, price growth, the return you would earn on savings, yearly owner costs, and the stamp duty, cess, surcharge and registration rates (verified 18 Oct 2026).
- Read who ends up ahead, then the table below the calculator to see why.
How does the calculator compare renting and buying?
Both paths start with the same cash: the down payment plus stamp duty and registration. The buyer spends it on the home. The renter invests it. Every month, whoever spends less (EMI plus owner costs, or rent) invests the difference. At the end of your stay the calculator compares net worth.
Formula used by the calculator
Home value × (1 + growth)^years − loan still owed + any savings investedStarting cash grown at your return + (EMI + owner costs − rent) invested each monthDifference = Net worth if you buy − Net worth if you rentWorked example: ₹ 1.00 Cr flat or ₹ 30,000 rent, for 10 years
The bank can lend 75% (₹ 75,00,000), so the down payment is ₹ 25,00,000. Stamp duty and registration at 7.6% add ₹ 7,60,000, so the starting cash is ₹ 32,60,000. The EMI at 8.5% for 20 years is ₹ 65,087, about ₹ 35,000 more than the first month’s rent.
With 6% yearly price growth, the flat is worth ₹ 1,79,08,477 after 10 years and ₹ 52,49,537 of the loan is still owed, so the buyer’s net worth is ₹ 1,26,58,940. The renter invests the starting cash and the monthly gap at 10%, with rent rising 5% a year, and ends with ₹ 1,42,04,262. On these assumptions renting is ahead by ₹ 15,45,322.
Does staying longer change the answer?
| Stay | Net worth if you buy | Net worth if you rent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 years | ₹ 67.73 L | ₹ 77.19 L | Renting ahead by ₹ 9.46 L |
| 10 years | ₹ 1.27 Cr | ₹ 1.42 Cr | Renting ahead by ₹ 15.45 L |
| 15 years | ₹ 2.08 Cr | ₹ 2.38 Cr | Renting ahead by ₹ 29.70 L |
| 20 years | ₹ 3.24 Cr | ₹ 3.83 Cr | Renting ahead by ₹ 59.54 L |
Which assumptions flip the result?
Price growth and the return on savings decide most of the answer. The table shows the result after 10 years for the same home and rent as above.
| Price growth | 8% return | 10% return | 12% return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4% a year | Renting ahead by ₹ 26.19 L | Renting ahead by ₹ 46.51 L | Renting ahead by ₹ 70.12 L |
| 6% a year | Buying ahead by ₹ 4.87 L | Renting ahead by ₹ 15.45 L | Renting ahead by ₹ 39.06 L |
| 8% a year | Buying ahead by ₹ 41.68 L | Buying ahead by ₹ 21.35 L | Renting ahead by ₹ 2.25 L |
What does the result mean for your decision?
The calculator answers one question: which path leaves you with more money, if you really invest the difference every month. If you would not invest it, the renter’s figure is too high and buying looks better than shown.
Money is only part of the call. Buying fixes your housing cost once the EMI ends and lets you change the home as you like. Renting keeps you free to move for work or schools. If you lean towards buying, check the total cost of buying a home and your down payment next.
What costs apply when buying in Bengaluru?
On a sale deed in Bengaluru, Karnataka charges 5% stamp duty on the market value (Karnataka Stamp Act, Schedule Art. 20(1)), a 10% cess on the duty (s.3B) and, inside the Greater Bengaluru Area, a 2% surcharge on the duty (Greater Bengaluru Governance Act 2024, s.170). The registration fee is 2% (IGR notification of 29 Aug 2025, in force from 31 Aug 2025). Together that is 7.6% of the value. The first sale of a flat pays less duty: 2% up to ₹ 20 L and 3% above ₹ 20 L up to ₹ 45 L, so the total is 4.24% or 5.36%. Resale flats, plots and houses pay 5% at any price. Rates verified 18 Oct 2026 · confirm on Kaveri Online before registering. The calculator uses 7.6% by default; change it if your Sub-Registrar quotes a different amount.
RBI rules cap the home loan at 90% of the value for loans up to ₹ 30 L, 80% for loans above ₹ 30 L and up to ₹ 75 L, and 75% above ₹ 75 L. The calculator applies these caps.
What does this calculator leave out?
- Income-tax benefits on home loans and tax on investment returns. These depend on your tax position; ask your CA.
- Costs of selling the home at the end, and brokerage on either side.
- GST on an under-construction home. Add it to the stamp duty figure if it applies to you.
- Maintenance, property tax and repairs, unless you enter them as owner’s yearly costs.
- Changes in interest rates during the loan.
Frequently asked questions
Related answers and guides
- Rent vs Buy Bangalore: How to Work It Out for Your Flat
- Rental Agreement Karnataka: Stamp Duty, Registration, Police
- Resale vs New Flat in Bengaluru: Price, Tax and Risk in 2026
- Buy a Home Now or Wait in Bengaluru? Signs to Watch, 2026
Sources
- Stamp duty 5% (Schedule Art. 20(1)), first-sale flat slabs (Art. 20(2A)) and 10% cess (s.3B): Karnataka Stamp Act 1957, consolidated copy (DPAL); ₹ 35–45 L slab: Karnataka Stamp (Amendment) Act 2021.
- 2% surcharge on duty in the Greater Bengaluru Area: Greater Bengaluru Governance Act 2024, s.170.
- Registration fee 2%: IGR Karnataka, Table of Registration Fees (Notification RD/46/MNMU/2025) and IGR press note, 29 Aug 2025.
- Rates verified 18 Oct 2026 · confirm on Kaveri Online before registering.
- Loan-to-value limits: Reserve Bank of India housing loan norms.
Results are indicative and depend entirely on the assumptions you enter; they are not a forecast of prices, rents or returns. Indicative only. Please verify with your Chartered Accountant before acting.
Weighing a specific home against renting? Talk to an acre&key advisor.