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Borrow or wait calculator

Take the loan now, or pay the same instalment to yourself and buy later. Both paths use the same cash and are compared at the same month.

The purchase

Future A pays this as a down payment. Future B keeps it as savings.

Future A: the loan

Future B: waiting

An assumption. A savings account or deposit rate, not an investment return.

Negative if it gets cheaper, as gadgets often do.

Both futures

Income, fares or fees avoided while you own it. Leave at zero if it earns nothing.

Computed from the inputs

Borrowing gets the purchase today. Waiting gets it in month 20, for ₹2,00,000.

Future A: borrow today

Loan
₹1,60,000
Instalment
₹7,682.06
Interest
₹24,369
Fee
₹1,600
Cost of borrowing
₹25,969

Future B: wait and save

Starts with
₹41,600
Saves each month
₹7,682.06
Can buy in
month 20
Price then
₹2,00,000
Cost of borrowing
₹0

Both futures part with the same cash: ₹2,25,969 over 2 years. Future B starts with the fee as well, because Future A pays it on day one.

Step through the months

Future A at year 2
Has the purchase. Still owes ₹0.
Savings: ₹0
The purchase would resell for about ₹1,44,500
Future B at year 2
Has the purchase. Owes nothing.
Savings: ₹38,230
The purchase would resell for about ₹1,89,454
What each future holds, month by month

Savings, plus resale value, plus anything the purchase earned, minus debt.

16122024

Future A, solid lineFuture B, dashed lineNumbers along the bottom are months.

Show these figures as a table
WhenA owesA savingsA holdsB savingsB holds
Month 1₹1,54,185₹0₹43,125₹49,490₹49,490
Month 6₹1,24,074₹0₹60,317₹89,536₹89,536
Year 1₹85,559₹0₹84,441₹1,38,928₹1,38,928
Month 20₹29,853₹0₹1,22,691₹7,126₹2,07,126
Year 2₹0₹0₹1,44,500₹38,230₹2,27,683

What the money says, and what it doesn't

After 2 years, Future B holds ₹83,183 more than Future A. That figure does not count the 1 year 8 months in which Future A had the purchase and Future B went without.

The two come out level if having the purchase sooner is worth ₹4,159 a month to you, in income, savings or anything else you would put a price on. Above that, borrowing is ahead. Below it, waiting is.

Only you know that number. The calculation cannot.

Assumptions and limits
  • Both futures start with the same cash and set aside the same amount every month. In Future A it goes to the lender; in Future B, to savings.
  • The loan rate, the savings rate, the price change and the resale loss are all held constant. None of them is in real life.
  • Savings interest is compounded monthly and is not guaranteed. It is not an investment forecast.
  • The loan is assumed to be approved, on these terms. Approval is never certain.
  • Left out: tax, insurance, running costs, late fees, changes in your income, and everything that is not money.
  • This is an illustration from your inputs, not advice about what you should do.
Share these numbers

The link will contain only: price, cash today, loan rate, months and fee, savings rate, price change, resale loss, monthly benefit, comparison period. It is built on your device when you press the button. Nothing is sent to emi.me.

Runs entirely in your browser. For the same tool with worked scenarios from our stories, see Two Futures.

The reverse EMI: pay yourself instead

Start from an amount you could manage each month and see how long it takes to reach a price with no loan at all.

For example, the EMI you were quoted.

Computed from the inputs

Time to reach ₹1,00,000

1 year 8 months

You put in
₹1,00,000
Interest earned on the way
₹4,896
Balance after 2 years
₹1,27,160
Of which you deposited
₹1,20,000

Deposits at the end of each month, interest compounded monthly at a constant rate. A rate is an assumption, not a promise, and tax on interest is not included. This shows what saving produces. It does not say saving is the better choice: you go without for the whole time.

Frequently asked questions

Is it always cheaper to wait and save?
In interest and fees, yes: waiting costs none. But that is not the whole comparison. If the purchase earns money, saves you a recurring cost, or its price is rising, borrowing can end ahead. The calculator reports the monthly value at which the two come out level, so you can judge which side of it you are on.
What makes this a fair comparison?
Both paths start with the same cash and set aside the same amount each month. In one, that money goes to a lender. In the other, it goes into savings until it covers the price. They are compared at the same month.
What savings rate should I use?
A rate you can actually get on money you might need soon, such as a savings account or a recurring deposit. It is an assumption you enter, not a forecast. Using an optimistic investment return here would tilt the result unfairly towards waiting.
What does the break-even figure mean?
It is how much having the purchase sooner would need to be worth to you each month for borrowing and waiting to end level in money terms. For a work tool that might be extra income. For a phone or a sofa it is a judgment only you can make.
What does it leave out?
Tax, insurance, running costs, late fees, changes in your income, the chance that a loan is refused, and everything that is not money. Rates and price changes are held constant, which they never are.