Post Office Savings Calculator

Year	Opening	Interest	Closing
1	₹1,00,000	₹7,700	₹1,07,700
2	₹1,07,700	₹8,293	₹1,15,993
3	₹1,15,993	₹8,931	₹1,24,924
4	₹1,24,924	₹9,619	₹1,34,544
5	₹1,34,544	₹10,360	₹1,44,903

What are Post Office savings schemes?

India Post offers a family of small savings schemes backed by the Government of India: National Savings Certificate (NSC), Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP), the Monthly Income Scheme (MIS), the Senior Citizens’ Savings Scheme (SCSS) and time deposits of 1, 2, 3 and 5 years. Interest rates are set by the government every quarter and stay fixed for the life of each deposit once you invest.

This calculator shows the maturity value, the regular income, the interest earned and whether the scheme qualifies for Section 80C, for any of these schemes at the current rates, which you can change.

How this calculator works

India Post’s savings schemes are backed by the Government of India, which makes them among the safest places to keep money in the country. They come in two shapes, and the calculator handles both.

Cumulative schemes — NSC and KVP — reinvest the interest every year and pay everything at maturity. NSC runs for 5 years; KVP simply doubles your money, and its term is however long that takes at the current rate (115 months at 7.5%).

Income schemes — MIS, SCSS and Time Deposits — pay the interest out as it is earned and return your principal at the end. MIS pays monthly, SCSS quarterly, and Time Deposits once a year (interest is calculated quarterly but paid annually).

Formula

NSC / KVP:   Maturity = P × (1 + r)^years       (compounded yearly)
MIS:         Monthly income = P × r ÷ 12
SCSS:        Quarterly income = P × r ÷ 4
TD:          Yearly interest = P × [(1 + r/4)⁴ − 1]

Worked example

NSC: ₹1,00,000 at 7.7% for 5 years grows to about ₹1,44,903.
MIS: ₹9,00,000 at 7.4% pays ₹5,550 every month for 5 years.
SCSS: ₹30,00,000 at 8.2% pays ₹61,500 every quarter — ₹2,46,000 a year.

What ₹1 lakh earns in each scheme

At the rates pre-filled in the calculator
Scheme	Rate	Term	What you get	80C
NSC	7.7%	5 years	₹1,44,903 at maturity	Yes
KVP	7.5%	9 years 7 months	Money doubles to ₹2,00,000	No
Monthly Income Scheme	7.4%	5 years	₹617 a month, principal back at the end	No
Senior Citizens’ Savings Scheme	8.2%	5 years	₹2,050 a quarter, principal back at the end	Yes
5-year Time Deposit	7.5%	5 years	₹7,714 a year, principal back at the end	Yes

Limits and eligibility

MIS: up to ₹9 lakh in a single account and ₹15 lakh in a joint account.
SCSS: for individuals aged 60 and above (earlier for some retirees), up to ₹30 lakh in total.
NSC, KVP and time deposits: no upper limit; minimum ₹1,000.
Interest on all these schemes is taxable at your slab rate, except that NSC interest reinvested in the first four years also counts towards 80C.

Assumptions & important notes

What this calculator assumes

The rate is locked in on the day you invest and applies for the full term, even if later quarters change the notified rate.
The investment is held to maturity. Premature closure is allowed for most schemes after a lock-in, with a penalty.
Tax is not deducted in the figures shown.

Important notes

Interest from every scheme here is taxable at your slab rate. NSC interest is treated as reinvested and itself qualifies for 80C in the first four years.
SCSS, NSC and the 5-year Time Deposit qualify for Section 80C under the old tax regime. KVP and MIS do not.
Small savings rates are reviewed by the government every quarter. The defaults here are recent rates — check indiapost.gov.in before investing.

Frequently asked questions

Which post office scheme gives the highest return?

Among these, SCSS pays the most (8.2%) but is limited to senior citizens. For everyone else, NSC (7.7%) is the highest among fixed-term schemes, followed by KVP and the 5-year Time Deposit at 7.5%.

Is post office interest taxable?

Yes. Interest from NSC, KVP, MIS, SCSS and Time Deposits is added to your income and taxed at your slab rate. PPF and Sukanya Samriddhi are the tax-free exceptions.

How long does KVP take to double money?

At the current 7.5% rate, 115 months (9 years 7 months). The term is set by the government whenever the rate changes.

Are post office schemes safe?

Yes. They are sovereign-backed — the Government of India guarantees both the principal and the interest — which makes them among the safest savings options available.

Can I withdraw early from post office schemes?

Most allow premature closure after a minimum period (for example, one year for MIS and SCSS, two and a half years for KVP) with a deduction or lower interest. NSC can be closed early only in special cases such as the holder’s death.

Principal	₹1.00 L	69.0%
Interest	₹44,903	31.0%

Year-wise growth

About the Post Office Savings Calculator