Eternexa

Inflation Calculator

See what today’s money will cost — and what it will still buy — years from now, at any assumed inflation rate.

Today's money

Step 1 of 2
₹1.00 Lakh

Which way?

What today’s expenses will cost after inflation does its work.

10 years
What ₹1.00 Lakh of today's expenses will cost in 10 years
₹1,79,085+₹79,085 more for the same things

Prices become 1.79× today's at 6% inflation

56%of today’s buying power survives
Price multiple
1.79×
Same money then buys
₹55,839
Buying power lost
44.2%
  • What it still buys
  • Buying power lost
What it grows toWhat you investYr 0Yr 3Yr 5Yr 8Yr 10
Cost of the same lifestyleToday’s amount

10 years of 6% inflation

The same money, and the same basket, seen from both ends.

Today
₹1,00,000100% buying power
Cost of the same in 10 years
₹1,79,0851.79× today's prices
What the same money then buys
₹55,83944.2% of its power gone

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The quietest tax you pay

Inflation never sends a bill, yet it charges everyone: the ₹60 thali that becomes ₹192 in twenty years, the school fee that doubles between two children. This calculator runs that arithmetic in both directions — what today’s money will cost in the future, and what money left idle will still buy.

The formula (both ways)

One factor drives both answers:

Future cost = Amount × (1 + i)ⁿ  ·  Purchasing power = Amount ÷ (1 + i)ⁿ

Worked example: at 6% inflation, ₹1,00,000 of today’s monthly expenses will cost ₹1,79,085 in 10 years — while ₹1,00,000 left in a drawer will buy only ₹55,839 worth of the same things. Same coin, two faces: prices grew 1.79×, so your idle money shrank to 1⁄1.79 of itself. Compounding works exactly like it does in an interest calculation — just against you.

What rate should you assume?

The RBI targets 4% CPI (±2% band), and headline inflation in recent years has swung from under 2% to over 7% — but planning uses decades, not quarters. Realised CPI has averaged roughly 5–6% over the long run, which is why 6% is the default here and in most Indian planning. Be honest about personal inflation too: education and healthcare have compounded at 8–10%, city rents lurch in jumps, and a lifestyle that upgrades every few years inflates faster than any index. For goals dominated by fees or medical costs, slide the rate up, not down.

Beating it is the whole game

Every investment return you earn is really return minus inflation. The exact relation is real = (1 + return) ÷ (1 + inflation) − 1: a 7% FD against 6% inflation nets barely 0.94% real — before tax on the interest makes it negative for many slabs. That single line explains most Indian portfolio advice: guaranteed instruments (PPF, FDs) preserve money; growth assets via SIPs are what actually outrun the thali index over long horizons.

Use it to size goals, not just to worry

The practical loop: price the goal today → inflate it to the target date with this page → plan for the inflated number with the SIP goal mode. A ₹25 lakh (today) wedding fifteen years out is a ₹60 lakh target at 6% — plan for ₹25 lakh and the shortfall arrives dressed as a surprise. Retirement is the extreme case: forty years of expenses, every one of them inflating, which is why retirement math always starts with this multiplication.

Frequently asked questions

What inflation rate should I use for planning?
Use 6% as the general default — the long-run Indian average, comfortably above the RBI’s 4% target. For education or healthcare goals use 8–10%; those categories have consistently outrun CPI. Using the target instead of the track record makes plans optimistic exactly where they should be cautious.
Does inflation really compound like interest?
Yes — each year’s price rise builds on already-risen prices, which is why 6% quietly triples costs in about 19 years. The same (1+i)ⁿ curve that grows a deposit shrinks a rupee; small-looking rates become enormous over decades.
Why do my expenses seem to rise faster than the official CPI?
CPI tracks a fixed national basket; your basket is personal. School fees, rent, health insurance premiums and eating out — urban salaried staples — have inflated faster than the index, and lifestyle upgrades add their own “inflation”. Track your own yearly spend; it is the rate that matters for your plan.
Is an FD enough to beat inflation?
Barely, and often not after tax. A 7% FD against 6% inflation earns about 0.94% real, and FD interest is taxed at slab — a 30%-bracket saver nets roughly 4.9%, i.e. negative real return. FDs are for safety and near-term money; long-horizon goals need growth assets to outrun prices.
How does inflation change my retirement number?
It is the retirement number. Monthly expenses of ₹50,000 today become about ₹1.6 lakh in 20 years at 6% — and keep rising through retirement itself. Inflate your expenses to the retirement date, then plan a corpus whose withdrawals can keep pace; skipping that first multiplication is the most common retirement-planning error.

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Compound Interest

Compound and simple interest side by side — any rate, yearly to monthly compounding, with a year-by-year growth chart.

Disclaimer: Eternexa is an independent app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or representing the Income Tax Department, the Government of India, or any government entity, and does not provide official government services. This calculator gives an estimate for general information only — it is not financial, investment or tax advice. Tax and finance figures follow FY 2026-27rules and are based on publicly available information from official sources such as incometax.gov.in and epfindia.gov.in. Always verify important numbers with the official source or a qualified professional before acting on them.