Your CTC, unpacked.

CTC (Cost to Company) is everything your employer spends on you — including components that never reach your bank account. Employee PF (12% of basic), employer PF (another 12%), gratuity accrual, and health insurance premiums are all "part of your CTC" but none of it is spendable income. Add income tax on top and the gap between the headline number and monthly in-hand is typically 25–40% at salaries above ₹15 LPA.

The three things that reliably cut take-home: Employee PF — 12% of basic, capped at ₹1,800/month if your employer caps basic at ₹15,000. Income tax (TDS) — deducted monthly at your projected annual rate. Professional tax — a state levy, ₹200/month in most states, zero in Delhi. Gross salary minus these three is your in-hand.

The new regime is the default. It gives lower slab rates and a ₹75,000 standard deduction — but removes HRA exemption, 80C (PPF, ELSS, LIC), 80D (health insurance), and home loan interest. The old regime keeps all those deductions but uses steeper slabs — the 30% bracket starts at ₹10 lakh, not ₹24 lakh.

Below ₹15 LPA: new regime wins for almost everyone. Between ₹15L and ₹25L: it depends on whether your total old-regime deductions (HRA + 80C + 80D + home loan) exceed roughly ₹3.5–5.5 lakh. Above ₹25L: run both — the break-even shifts as income rises. The calculator shows both side-by-side. The difference at ₹18 LPA can exceed ₹35,000/year depending on city and deductions.

The most common reasons: your employer uses a different basic percentage than the default 40%, your PF is not capped at ₹15,000 basic, your city has a different professional tax slab, or your variable pay changes the monthly TDS projection. Adjust the basic %, PT city, and PF settings to match your actual payslip.

It depends on your offer letter. "CTC includes employer PF" means your stated CTC covers both employee and employer contributions. "CTC plus employer PF" means the employer's 12% is on top of your CTC figure. Always ask HR: "Is employer PF included in or on top of the stated CTC?" The answer changes your actual gross salary by up to ₹1.8 lakh/year at a ₹15,000 PF cap.

Under the new regime: if your taxable income (after the ₹75,000 standard deduction) is ₹12 lakh or less, you get a full rebate and pay zero tax. Between ₹12L and ₹12.75L, marginal relief caps your tax at the income above ₹12L — so at ₹12.5L taxable you pay ₹50,000, not ₹1,12,500. This makes the effective zero-tax threshold ₹12.75L gross for salaried employees. Under the old regime, 87A gives only ₹12,500 rebate at ₹5L taxable.

Salaried employees with no business income can switch regimes every financial year at the time of filing the ITR — no lock-in. Your employer defaults to the new regime for TDS unless you submit Form 12BAA. If you want old-regime TDS deduction during the year, submit the form early. You can still switch at filing regardless of what your employer deducted.

Everything runs in your browser. No salary data is sent to a server — when you close the tab, the calculation is gone. The engine is open-source TypeScript verified against incometax.gov.in and ClearTax for FY 2025-26. It applies actual slab rates, computes Section 87A rebate and marginal relief correctly, handles HRA exemption with the metro/non-metro 50%/40% rule, and applies city-specific professional tax rates.

To personalise: set your basic salary percentage (most companies use 40–50%), enter your monthly rent for HRA under the old regime, and toggle PF opt-out if your employer allows it. The restructuring tips show NPS routing, car lease, and food vouchers with actual rupee savings at your bracket.