Old vs New Tax Regime Calculator (FY 2025-26)
Compare your income tax under the old and new regimes for FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) and see which one saves you more.
FY 2025-26 slabs incl. 4% cess, ₹75k (new) / ₹50k (old) standard deduction and Section 87A rebate (nil tax up to ₹12L new, ₹5L old). Estimate only — surcharge/marginal relief are simplified; confirm with a tax advisor.
What Is the Old vs New Tax Regime Calculator?
Since the new tax regime became the default option, every taxpayer in India faces the same question each year: old regime or new regime? The answer depends on how much you earn and how many deductions you can claim. This calculator computes your tax under both regimes for FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) side by side and tells you which one leaves more money in your pocket.
The old regime has higher tax rates but lets you reduce taxable income with deductions such as Section 80C, 80D, HRA and home-loan interest. The new regime has lower, wider slabs and a much larger rebate, but it removes almost all of those deductions. The right choice is simply whichever produces the lower tax for your numbers.
FY 2025-26 Tax Slabs (Both Regimes)
The new regime slabs after Budget 2025 are:
- Up to ₹4,00,000 — Nil
- ₹4,00,001 to ₹8,00,000 — 5%
- ₹8,00,001 to ₹12,00,000 — 10%
- ₹12,00,001 to ₹16,00,000 — 15%
- ₹16,00,001 to ₹20,00,000 — 20%
- ₹20,00,001 to ₹24,00,000 — 25%
- Above ₹24,00,000 — 30%
The old regime slabs are: Nil up to ₹2,50,000; 5% from ₹2,50,001 to ₹5,00,000; 20% from ₹5,00,001 to ₹10,00,000; and 30% above ₹10,00,000. A 4% health and education cess applies to the tax in both regimes. Salaried taxpayers get a standard deduction of ₹75,000 in the new regime and ₹50,000 in the old regime.
The Section 87A Rebate Changes Everything
The biggest reason the new regime now wins for most people is the Section 87A rebate. In the new regime, if your taxable income is up to ₹12,00,000, your tax becomes nil (about ₹12.75 lakh of gross salary once the ₹75,000 standard deduction is added). In the old regime, the rebate only covers taxable income up to ₹5,00,000.
This means a salaried person earning up to roughly ₹12.75 lakh typically pays zero tax under the new regime, which is very hard to beat in the old regime even with full deductions. Above that level, the comparison depends heavily on how much you can actually deduct.
Worked Example and How to Decide
Consider a salaried person earning ₹15,00,000 a year with ₹2,00,000 of old-regime deductions.
- New regime: taxable income is ₹15,00,000 − ₹75,000 = ₹14,25,000. After slabs and 4% cess, the tax is about ₹97,500.
- Old regime: taxable income is ₹15,00,000 − ₹50,000 − ₹2,00,000 = ₹12,50,000. After slabs and cess, the tax is about ₹1,95,000.
Here the new regime saves about ₹97,500. As a rule of thumb, the old regime only wins when your deductions are large — typically when you fully use 80C, 80D, HRA and a home-loan interest claim together. Enter your own figures above to get an exact comparison instead of relying on rules of thumb.
Frequently Asked Questions
For most salaried people, especially those earning up to about ₹12.75 lakh or with limited deductions, the new regime is better because of its lower slabs and the expanded Section 87A rebate. The old regime tends to win only when you claim large deductions such as full 80C, 80D, HRA and home-loan interest together. This calculator compares both for your exact numbers.
Yes. Under the new regime for FY 2025-26, a Section 87A rebate makes the tax nil for taxable income up to ₹12,00,000. For a salaried person, adding the ₹75,000 standard deduction means gross salary up to about ₹12,75,000 can attract zero tax, provided there is no other taxable income.
The new regime removes most deductions and exemptions, including 80C, 80D, HRA and home-loan interest on a self-occupied house. It does, however, allow the standard deduction of ₹75,000 for salaried taxpayers and the employer contribution to NPS under Section 80CCD(2). The old regime is the one that allows the full range of deductions.
Salaried individuals without business income can choose the regime afresh each year while filing their return. Taxpayers with business or professional income have more restrictions and can generally switch back to the new regime only once after opting for the old one. Check the latest rules for your situation.
Yes. It adds the 4% health and education cess in both regimes and applies a simplified surcharge for incomes above ₹50 lakh. Surcharge marginal relief and a few less common adjustments are simplified, so treat the result as a close estimate rather than a final tax figure.
Enter the total of the deductions you would claim under the old regime — typically Section 80C investments (up to ₹1.5 lakh), 80D health insurance, HRA exemption and home-loan interest. These only reduce tax in the old regime, so the calculator uses them to make a fair comparison against the new regime.