Education Cost Calculator

Education costs rise faster than general inflation. While India's headline inflation averages 5–6%, education inflation runs at 8–10% per year. This means the cost of the same course doubles roughly every 8 years — and a ₹5 lakh degree today will cost ₹11 lakh in 10 years and ₹23 lakh in 20 years.

Unlike retirement (which you can stretch or start early), education has a hard deadline: your child reaches college age at a fixed future date, and you cannot postpone it. Missing the corpus by 30% means either taking an education loan at 10–12% interest or downgrading the plan to a less expensive option.

The good news: education planning is straightforward once you know the target. Determine today's cost of the education you want, inflate it forward at 8–10%, and start a SIP sized to reach that goal. Even small monthly investments made 15 years in advance compound to substantial sums.

The two biggest decisions in education planning are: (1) the type of institution (government, private, or overseas), and (2) the years until your child attends. These determine the target corpus and the required monthly savings.

Rough current costs in India: Government colleges and central universities: ₹2–5 lakh total for a 3-4 year degree. Private engineering or management: ₹8–20 lakh total. Premier institutions (IIT, NIT, AIIMS): ₹10–25 lakh total. Overseas (US private, UK, Australia): ₹40 lakh–1.5 crore total for a bachelor's degree including living expenses.

For a 5-year-old child in 2026 planning to attend a private Indian college at age 18 (13 years away), the current ₹15 lakh cost inflates to about ₹42 lakh at 8% education inflation. That's the target you plan toward — and the monthly SIP needed to reach it.

SIPs are the recommended vehicle for education planning because they match the way most parents earn and save — monthly. They also average out market volatility, which reduces the risk of investing just before a market crash. Starting a SIP when the child is young gives 15+ years of compounding, which is enough time to ride out any market cycle.

If you receive a windfall (bonus, inheritance, property sale) while the child is young, invest it in a lump sum or via a Systematic Transfer Plan (STP) spread over 6–12 months. Earlier deployment lets the money compound for longer.

The optimal portfolio for education 10+ years away is equity-heavy (60–80% equity index funds + 20–40% debt). As the goal approaches — within 3 years — shift progressively to debt to protect against a market crash right before you need the funds. Many planners use a 'glide path' approach where equity allocation automatically reduces as the child approaches college age.