Income Tax Calculator FY 2025-26
Both regimes computed side by side with the current slabs, rebate, surcharge and cess, so the winner for your income is obvious in one glance.
FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27) rules: new regime slabs of 0/5/10/15/20/25/30% with ₹75,000 standard deduction and full rebate up to ₹12 lakh taxable income; old regime slabs of 5/20/30% with ₹50,000 standard deduction and rebate up to ₹5 lakh. Surcharge and 4% cess included.
FY 2025-26: what changed and what it means
The new regime became dramatically more attractive from FY 2025-26. The basic exemption rose to ₹4 lakh, slabs widened to 5% bands up to ₹24 lakh, and the Section 87A rebate now wipes out tax entirely up to ₹12 lakh of taxable income. With the ₹75,000 standard deduction, a salaried person earning up to ₹12.75 lakh pays zero tax under the new regime. Marginal relief protects incomes just above the threshold from a cliff.
When the old regime still wins
The old regime keeps its deductions: 80C up to ₹1.5 lakh, 80D for health premiums, HRA, home loan interest, NPS. As a rough rule, the old regime only competes when your total deductions are very large relative to income, typically above ₹4 to 5 lakh of combined deductions for incomes in the ₹15 to 25 lakh range, most commonly people with big HRA claims plus a home loan. The side-by-side panels above settle it for your exact numbers rather than rules of thumb.
Surcharge and cess
Above ₹50 lakh of taxable income a surcharge applies: 10% of the tax up to ₹1 crore, 15% to ₹2 crore, 25% beyond, with the new regime capping surcharge at 25% (the old regime’s 37% top surcharge does not apply in the new regime). Health and education cess of 4% applies on tax plus surcharge in both regimes. The calculator includes both automatically.
This calculator covers regular salary and similar income. Capital gains, special-rate incomes, and business presumptive schemes have separate rules. Verify final figures with a tax professional before filing.
Worked example: ₹15 lakh salaried, both regimes
Gross ₹15 lakh, salaried. New regime: standard deduction ₹75,000 leaves ₹14.25 lakh taxable; slab tax ₹93,750 plus 4% cess gives ₹97,500. Old regime with ₹1.5 lakh in 80C, ₹25,000 in 80D and the ₹50,000 standard deduction: taxable ₹12.75 lakh, tax ₹2,00,000 plus cess, about ₹2,08,000. The new regime wins by roughly ₹1.1 lakh, and the old regime would need over ₹5 lakh of total deductions to close that gap, which usually requires substantial HRA plus home-loan interest. Your own numbers may differ; that is what the side-by-side panels are for.
TDS vs final liability
Your employer deducts tax monthly based on declared regime and investments, but the final liability is settled at filing. If you switched jobs mid-year, both employers may have applied the basic exemption, causing under-deduction and a surprise demand with interest. Run your full-year income through this calculator in December or January; if the total tax here exceeds TDS deducted so far, paying advance tax before 15 March avoids interest under sections 234B and 234C.
Frequently asked questions
Is income up to 12 lakh really tax-free in FY 2025-26?
Under the new regime, yes for taxable income up to ₹12 lakh: slab tax applies but the Section 87A rebate cancels it fully. Salaried taxpayers effectively reach ₹12.75 lakh gross because of the ₹75,000 standard deduction. Above the limit, marginal relief prevents a sudden jump.
Which regime is better for me?
Enter your income and deductions above; the tool computes both and names the winner with the exact saving. Broadly, the new regime wins for most people from FY 2025-26 unless you have unusually large deductions such as high HRA plus home loan interest.
Does the new regime allow any deductions?
Very few: the ₹75,000 standard deduction for salaried and pensioners, employer NPS contribution under 80CCD(2), and a small set of others. Popular deductions like 80C, 80D and HRA apply only in the old regime.
What is marginal relief?
A protection for incomes just above ₹12 lakh in the new regime: your tax cannot exceed the amount by which taxable income crosses ₹12 lakh. Someone at ₹12.1 lakh pays at most ₹10,000, not the full slab tax of about ₹61,500.