Rent vs buy calculator
Settle the debate with numbers. This compares buying a home against renting and investing the difference — same cash out each month — and tells you which leaves you wealthier after your time horizon.
Rent vs buy
Tweak the numbers — results update live
Net worth after 10 years
Both paths spend the same cash each month: the buyer pays EMI + maintenance, the renter pays rent and invests the rest (plus the down payment) at 10%. After 10 years we compare the buyer’s home equity with the renter’s portfolio.
₹69.43K
Monthly EMI
20% down
₹1.63Cr
Home value
at year 10
₹37.73L
Rent paid
over horizon
Renting wins
₹48,19,342
Numbers, not feelings
Equity vs portfolio
Buying isn’t automatically “better than throwing money away on rent.” The fair comparison is what your net worth looks like either way — home equity if you buy, or an investment portfolio if you rent and invest the difference.
- 1
Equal cash each month
Buyer pays EMI + maintenance; renter pays rent and invests the rest.
- 2
Invest the down payment
In the rent case, the down payment goes into the market instead.
- 3
Grow both sides
The home appreciates; the portfolio compounds at your return.
- 4
Compare net worth
After your horizon, the larger of equity vs portfolio wins.
Questions
Frequently asked
It depends on the numbers, not emotion. Buying builds equity but ties up a large down payment and locks you into EMIs, maintenance and stamp duty. Renting frees that capital to invest. The honest test is net worth: after your time horizon, does the buyer’s home equity beat the renter’s investment portfolio? This calculator answers exactly that for your inputs.
It keeps both scenarios on equal footing: each spends the same cash every month. The buyer pays the EMI plus maintenance; the renter pays rent and invests the difference — plus the down payment up front — at your expected investment return. After your horizon it compares the buyer’s home equity (value minus outstanding loan) with the renter’s portfolio.
The single biggest factor is home appreciation versus investment return. If property grows faster than your investments, buying tends to win; if your investments (e.g. equity at 10–12%) outpace appreciation (often 4–6% in many cities), renting and investing usually wins — especially over shorter horizons. Down payment size, rent level and how long you stay also matter a lot.
Buying carries large one-time costs — stamp duty, registration, brokerage — that you only recover over time, and early EMIs are mostly interest. The longer you stay, the more buying favours you. As a rule of thumb, buying rarely pays off if you’ll move within 3–5 years. Adjust the “years you’ll stay” slider to see the break-even.
It includes annual maintenance and property tax (as a percentage of home value) in the buyer’s costs. One-time costs like stamp duty and registration aren’t separately added here — estimate those with our stamp duty calculator and treat them as extra upfront cost that pushes the decision further toward renting for short stays.