Personal finance in India: guides and calculators
Salary, loans, savings and the tax a household pays. Each calculator runs in your browser, and nothing you type is stored.
9 articles · 7 calculators and tools
Work it out
Calculators and tools.
Each runs in your browser. Nothing you type is sent or stored.
- CalculatorCTC breakup calculatorFrom annual CTC to in-hand salary, with the working
- CalculatorIncome tax calculatorOld and new regime side by side, with the slab-wise working
- CalculatorEMI calculatorThe instalment, total interest and the yearly schedule
- CalculatorFlat-rate EMI calculatorA flat rate, and the reducing-balance rate it equals
- CalculatorHRA exemption calculatorThe exempt amount and the three limits, side by side
- CalculatorGratuity calculatorThe amount, who is eligible and what is taxed
- CalculatorInvestment returns calculatorLump sum, SIP or step-up SIP, year by year
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Articles on personal finance.
Newest first. Each one names its sources.
Direct Tax
29 Sept 2026
01
Diwali 2026 Money Guide: Tax on Gifts, Bonus and Gold — the ₹15,000 Gift from Your Employer, Gifts to Spouse and Parents, and What You Pay When You Sell Gold
A festive-season tax guide for tax year 2026-27, the first Diwali under the Income-tax Act, 2025. Gifts from an employer are tax-free below ₹15,000 a year, up from ₹5,000. Gifts from friends are taxed in full once they cross ₹50,000. A gift to a spouse, daughter-in-law or minor child saves no tax on the income it earns. A bonus can be taxed away almost entirely near ₹12 lakh of income. Cash of ₹2 lakh or more cannot be accepted even from a relative. Gold sold after 24 months is taxed at 12.5%, and Sovereign Gold Bonds redeemed early are no longer tax-free. With the rules for employers on GST, TDS and statutory bonus.
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Direct Tax
26 Sept 2026
02
Where Is My Income Tax Refund? ₹2.20 Lakh Crore Has Gone Out — Why Yours May Be Held, and the Four Dates Left for FY 2025-26
Refunds are going out faster than last year — ₹2.20 lakh crore by 17 September, up 29% — yet 'where is my refund' is the personal-tax question India keeps searching. A record 7.8 crore returns were filed for FY 2025-26 by 31 August. What actually holds a refund, how to read the portal's status, what the 'processing held' SMS means, and the dates still open: belated returns by 31 December and, for the first time, revisions until 31 March 2027. With a short note on the deadlines taxpayers abroad face in October.
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Personal Finance
11 Sept 2026
03
iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo: The Full India Price Breakdown, the iPhone 17 Pro Comparison, and Why You Pay More Here
Apple skipped the standard iPhone 18 entirely and launched premium-only hardware. Every India price, the year-on-year jump, and the arithmetic behind the gap.
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Direct Tax
09 Sept 2026
04
New Tax Regime Slabs for FY 2026-27 Under the Income-tax Act, 2025: Rates, Rebate, and the Basic Exemption Limit Explained
The seven slabs, the ₹75,000 standard deduction, the rebate that makes income up to ₹12 lakh tax-free, and why the basic exemption limit is still ₹4 lakh. The rate card for tax year 2026-27, with worked examples.
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Personal Finance
31 Aug 2026
05
Indian Credit Cards, Decoded: Real Lounge Access, Reward Value & Forex Costs (August 2026)
A data-backed comparison built from current issuer terms, not a "we swiped 47 cards at the airport" stunt piece.
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Direct Tax
18 Aug 2026
06
Old Regime or New: How to Actually Decide
The comparison everyone runs is the wrong one. Instead of asking which regime is better, work out your break-even deduction — the single number that settles it in about two minutes.
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Direct Tax
03 Aug 2026
07
Six Filing Mistakes That Generate Notices
The department's systems now cross-check your return against a great deal of data it already holds. Most notices are the result of a mismatch nobody looked for before filing.
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Personal Finance
27 Jul 2026
08
Your Emergency Fund Is Probably the Wrong Size
Three to six months of expenses is the standard answer. It is also a number nobody derived from anything. Here is how to compute yours from actual inputs.
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Personal Finance
29 May 2026
09
Avalanche, Snowball, and What Actually Gets Debt Paid
One method is mathematically optimal. The other has better completion rates. The research on which wins is more interesting than the argument.
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