- How your CTC breaks down into basic salary, HRA, PF, and take-home pay
- How much of your HRA is actually tax-free based on your rent and city tier
- How much you can claim under Section 80C once your PF contribution is factored in
- Your final tax liability and take-home pay under both the old and new regimes
What you'll figure out
Step preview
1
What does your CTC break down to?
Start with your salary structure before looking at deductions
2
How much of your HRA is tax-free?
Use your basic salary and HRA from the previous step
3
How much can you claim under 80C?
Add up your PF, PPF, ELSS, and other eligible investments
4
So what's your final tax bill?
Combine everything into your actual tax liability, old vs new regime
Start Journey →
Takes about 10 min · Save anytime
Most people either accept whatever tax regime their employer defaults to, or they run a single income tax calculator without ever working out their actual HRA exemption or 80C eligibility first. This journey builds those numbers up in order — salary, HRA, 80C — so the final tax calculation uses real figures instead of guesses.
Who this is for
- Salaried employees in India deciding between the old and new tax regime
- Anyone who's never worked out their HRA exemption from first principles
- People trying to figure out how much more 80C room they have left for the year
Related journeys
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does this journey take?
About 10 minutes. You can pause and resume anytime within the same browser session, and every step you've completed stays saved.
Should I use the old or new tax regime?
There's no single right answer — it depends on how much you can actually claim under HRA and 80C. This journey is built to help you find that out by walking through the real numbers instead of guessing.
Why does the HRA step use my basic salary from the salary step?
HRA exemption is calculated as a percentage of basic salary, not your full CTC, so pulling the basic figure straight from your salary breakdown keeps the two steps consistent instead of asking you to re-enter or recalculate it.
I'm salaried but don't pay rent. What should I do at the HRA step?
You can skip ahead to the 80C step — HRA exemption only applies if you're renting and receiving a house rent allowance. Entering zero rent paid will correctly show zero exemption.
Why does my 80C step already show an EPF amount?
It's pre-filled from your PF deduction in the salary step, annualised to a yearly figure, since your employer PF contribution counts toward the same ₹1.5 lakh 80C limit as PPF, ELSS, and other investments.
Is my data stored anywhere?
No. Everything stays in your browser's session storage and clears when you close the tab. Nothing is sent to thecalcu.com's servers.
Can I change my inputs after completing a later step?
Yes. Go back to any step, change a value, and any step that pulled data from it gets flagged as needing a recalculation, both on that step and on the summary page.
What if my 80C investments are already above ₹1.5 lakh?
The 80C step caps your eligible deduction at ₹1.5 lakh regardless of how much you've actually invested, and shows you the remaining room (which will read zero) so you know not to bother claiming more there.
Does this journey account for the standard deduction?
Yes — the final income tax step includes a field for other deductions where you can add the ₹50,000 standard deduction available to salaried employees, along with anything else like 80CCD(1B) or 80TTA.
Why run the final step twice?
The new regime ignores HRA and 80C entirely but offers lower slab rates, while the old regime taxes you at higher rates but lets you claim both. Running the same income once under each regime, using the real HRA and 80C figures you just built, is the only reliable way to see which one actually saves you more.
What should I do after completing the journey?
Check the summary page for all four results side by side, then compare your total tax payable under both regimes using the same HRA and 80C numbers — that comparison is the whole point of this journey.
Free calculators used in this journey