STP Calculator
Model moving a lumpsum from a liquid fund into equity in instalments — and compare it against investing the whole sum at once.
What the STP calculator does
An STP calculator models a systematic transfer plan: a lumpsum parked in a low-risk fund and moved into a growth fund in monthly instalments. It shows what both halves are worth at your horizon, and — unusually — what the same money would have done invested at once, because at fixed rates that comparison always favours the lumpsum.
Your inputs
Parked in a liquid or short-duration fund to begin with
How long the money takes to move across
What the money earns while it waits — typically a liquid fund
An assumption you choose — not a projection of any scheme's performance
Value after 15 years
₹63,26,444
Moving ₹1,00,000 a month across 12 months, then staying invested.
In the target fund
₹62,39,131
Left in the source
₹87,313
Invested all at once instead, the same money projects to ₹65,68,279 — ₹2,41,835 more. At a fixed rate that is always true, because money waiting in the source fund earns less. An STP is not for higher returns; it is for not investing everything on the day before a fall.
Both funds together, year by year
This is arithmetic, not a forecast — the output is a mathematical projection of the assumptions you entered. Illustration only, computed from the assumptions shown — not a forecast, a projection of any scheme's performance, or a guarantee. Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks; read all scheme related documents carefully.
How the STP calculation works
Source: (balance − transfer) × (1 + i_source). Target: (balance + transfer) × (1 + i_target)
Two balances are stepped month by month. The transfer leaves the source fund and enters the target in the same month, each compounding at its own assumed rate, with i computed as the twelfth root of the annual rate. Transfers stop when the source is exhausted, so the schedule reflects what the AMC would actually be able to execute rather than assuming the source never runs dry.
Frequently asked questions
Does an STP give better returns than investing the lumpsum at once?
At the fixed rates any calculator assumes, no — and this one shows you that directly. If the target fund returns more than the fund you are transferring from, every rupee that waits is a rupee earning the lower rate, so investing at once always wins arithmetically. The reason to use an STP is that real returns are not fixed: spreading entry across months means a market fall shortly after you invest costs you less. That is a reduction in timing risk, not an increase in expected return, and no constant-rate model can show it.
Is an STP taxed?
Yes, and it catches people out. Each transfer is a redemption from the source fund, so every instalment is a capital gains event even though the money never leaves the mutual fund system. If the source is a debt or liquid fund bought on or after 1 April 2023, those gains are added to your income and taxed at your slab rate however briefly you held the units. Only the gain portion of each transfer is taxable, not the whole amount.
What is the difference between an STP and a SIP?
A SIP invests fresh money from your bank account each month. An STP moves money you have already invested from one scheme into another. An STP therefore suits someone who has received a lumpsum — a bonus, a maturity, a property sale — and wants to phase it into equity, while a SIP suits regular income.
How long should an STP run?
There is no correct answer. A longer schedule spreads entry risk across more months but leaves more money in the lower-returning fund for longer, so the two effects pull against each other. Six to twelve months is common for phasing a lumpsum into equity. The right length depends on how much short-term volatility you are willing to sit through.
Which fund should the money sit in during an STP?
Typically a liquid or ultra-short duration fund from the same AMC, because most AMCs only permit transfers between their own schemes. Note that liquid funds carry a graded exit load if units are redeemed within seven days, so a transfer scheduled immediately after investing can attract one.
After the numbers
A transfer out of the source scheme can attract its exit load. This lists schemes whose disclosed load is nil. GrowIQ Capital is an AMFI-registered distributor, not an investment adviser: it can tell you what each scheme’s terms are and transact for you, and it does not rate or recommend schemes.
GrowIQ Capital provides financial data analytics, market information and educational content. We are not a SEBI-registered Investment Adviser or Research Analyst. Nothing on this platform constitutes investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. No returns are assured or guaranteed. Any illustration of returns is a mathematical projection, not a promise. Past performance is not indicative of future returns and does not guarantee future results.