India RD Calculator

A recurring deposit (RD) takes a fixed amount from you every month. Banks and the Post Office treat each instalment as a small deposit of its own and compound its interest every quarter until the RD matures, so the first instalment earns for the whole term and the last for one month.

The formula

maturity = sum of every instalment × (1 + rate ÷ 4)^(months it stays in ÷ 3)
for a level instalment over whole quarters:
maturity = instalment × ((1 + i)^n − 1) ÷ (1 − (1 + i)^(−1/3))
where i = rate ÷ 4 and n = number of quarters
interest = maturity − total paid in
effective yield = (1 + rate ÷ 4)^4 − 1

Worked example

₹5,000 a month for 5 years (60 months) at 7%, compounded quarterly. The rate each quarter is 7% ÷ 4 = 1.75%, and there are 20 quarters. The first instalment stays in for 60 months, or 20 quarters: ₹5,000 × 1.0175²⁰ = ₹5,000 × 1.414778 = ₹7,074. The last stays in for one month, a third of a quarter: ₹5,000 × 1.0175^1/3 = ₹5,029. Adding all 60 gives ₹5,000 × (1.414778 − 1) ÷ (1 − 1.0175^−1/3) = ₹5,000 × 0.414778 ÷ 0.0057662 = ₹3,59,664. You paid in 60 × ₹5,000 = ₹3,00,000, so the interest is ₹59,664. The effective yield is 1.0175⁴ − 1 = 7.19% a year.

Post Office RD

A Post Office RD always runs for 5 years (60 instalments), starts at ₹100 a month and goes up in multiples of ₹10. Interest is compounded quarterly at a rate set by the government each quarter, so check the current rate before you open one; the rate you get when you open the account stays the same for the whole term. You can close it early only after 3 years, and then you get the Post Office savings account rate (we use 4% as a starting value) instead of the RD rate. Post Office RDs don't have a senior citizen extra rate. The Post Office's own tables can differ from this sum by a few rupees because of rounding.

Senior citizens

Most banks add 0.25% to 0.75% a year on RDs for depositors aged 60 or over, often 0.50%. Senior citizens also get a higher TDS limit. Check your bank's current rate card.

Tax and TDS

RD interest is added to your income and taxed at your slab rate, plus 4% cess, year by year as it builds up, even though you get it only at maturity. A bank deducts TDS of 10% (20% if it doesn't have your PAN) when the interest it pays you in a financial year goes over ₹50,000, or ₹1,00,000 for senior citizens. These are the same limits as on the India FD calculator, and they count your FD and RD interest from the same bank together. TDS is not an extra tax: it counts towards the tax you owe. If your total income is under the taxable limit, give the bank Form 15G (or 15H if you're 60 or over).

Missed or late instalments

If you pay an instalment late, the bank or Post Office charges a fee, usually a set amount for every ₹100 of instalment for each month it is late (the Post Office default fee is ₹1 per ₹100 a month; banks often charge ₹1 to ₹2). The late money also earns a little less interest. Many banks close an RD if several instalments in a row are missed, often six. This calculator adds up the fee; check your bank's exact rules.

Closing an RD early

Banks usually let you close an RD any time and pay the rate for the time it ran, minus a penalty of about 0.5% to 1%. This calculator uses your booked rate less the penalty, which is a good first estimate. A Post Office RD can only be closed after 3 years.

Step-up RD

Some banks offer a flexi or step-up RD where you can pay in more over time. Here the step-up raises your instalment by the same percentage at the start of each new 12 months.

RD, FD or SIP?

At the same rate, putting the whole sum in an FD on day one earns more, because every rupee is invested for the full term. An RD suits you when you are saving from your monthly income. A SIP in a mutual fund can grow more over long periods, but its return isn't fixed or guaranteed. Try the India FD calculator or the SIP calculator for a closer look.

Before tax unless shown. TDS here treats each 12 months of the RD as one financial year and assumes this is your only deposit with the bank. Banks count exact days and may round differently, so check your RD receipt for exact figures. TDS limits checked on 9 October 2026. Check the Post Office figures against the current India Post notice.