See exactly how much income tax you save

How Section 80C tax saving works

Section 80C of the Income Tax Act lets you deduct up to ₹1.5 lakh per year from your taxable income, provided you invest that amount in eligible instruments. The tax you actually save depends on your income tax slab — a 30% slab taxpayer investing the full ₹1.5 lakh saves roughly ₹46,800 including 4% health and education cess.

Comparing the most popular 80C options

• ELSS (Equity Linked Savings Scheme): Market-linked, ~12% historical average return, shortest lock-in at 3 years, but capital is at market risk.
• PPF (Public Provident Fund): Government-backed, fixed rate around 7-8%, 15-year lock-in, completely tax-free on maturity (EEE status).
• NPS (National Pension System): Market-linked retirement product, partial additional deduction under 80CCD(1B) beyond the 80C limit, locked until retirement.
• Life insurance premium: Qualifies under 80C but pure protection plans (term insurance) usually give better coverage per rupee than investment-linked policies.
• Home loan principal: Already qualifies under 80C automatically if you're repaying a home loan — see our EMI calculator.

Old regime vs new regime

80C deductions are available only under the old tax regime. The new tax regime offers lower slab rates but removes most deductions, including 80C, HRA and standard deductions beyond a flat amount. Whether the old or new regime saves you more tax depends on how much you can genuinely invest and claim — this calculator assumes you are filing under the old regime.

Frequently asked questions

₹1.5 lakh per financial year under the old tax regime, combined across all eligible instruments.

All 80C investments give the same deduction; returns differ. ELSS has historically returned ~12% with market risk and a 3-year lock-in, PPF offers a fixed ~7-8% with a 15-year lock-in, and NPS returns vary by allocation with lock-in until retirement.

No. 80C deductions are only available under the old tax regime.