RD Calculator

RD Calculator works out the maturity value of a recurring deposit: a fixed amount paid in every month for a fixed term, with interest credited at the bank's compounding frequency. It is simulated month by month rather than squeezed into one formula, because a monthly deposit with quarterly compounding earns nothing between credit dates, and that is how banks actually run the product.

The number that surprises people is the total interest. At seven per cent over five years, a recurring deposit returns far less than seven per cent of what you paid in, and that is not a trick: the first instalment is invested for sixty months, the last for one. On average the money is invested for a bit over half the term, so the interest is a bit over half of what a lump sum would have earned.

The return on the average balance makes that visible. Measured against the average amount actually on deposit rather than against the total paid in, the return comes back close to the headline rate, which is the honest way to compare a recurring deposit with a lump-sum one.

This is arithmetic, not financial advice. It tells you what the numbers do; it cannot tell you whether a decision is right for your circumstances. Fees, taxes and local rules vary, so check anything that matters against the actual offer and speak to someone qualified before committing.

Everything is worked out inside your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded, logged or stored, which matters for the financial calculators in particular: the figures you put into them are nobody else's business.

• Shows maturity amount, you deposit, interest earned, after tax and return on the average balance together, so you are not running it twice
• Full month by month you can open and check
• Updates as you type, with no button to press and no page reload
• Copy the result in one click
• Free, no sign-up, and it runs entirely in your browser

The rd calculator is used by writers, developers, students, marketers and anyone else who needs the job done once without installing software. Common cases include:

• Checking a bank's RD maturity quote
• Comparing a recurring deposit with a monthly SIP
• Working out the monthly amount for a target maturity
• Seeing why the interest looks lower than the headline rate