What is a step-up SIP?

The instalment rises once a year

A regular SIP stays at the same rupee amount for the whole term. A step-up SIP, sometimes called a top-up SIP, increases that amount by a percentage you choose, usually once a year. The instalment stays flat for twelve months, then steps up. A 10% step-up on ₹10,000 a month becomes ₹11,000 in year two and ₹12,100 in year three.

Most mutual-fund platforms let you set this when you start the SIP. The percentage should be one you can still pay after rent, school fees and a year when the raise is small.

Why the corpus moves more than the percentage

The extra money is invested early enough to compound, and each year's increase sits on top of the last one. At a constant 12% return for 20 years, ₹10,000 a month with no step-up grows to about ₹1 crore. The same start with a 10% yearly step-up grows to about ₹2 crore. You also invest more in total, so the jump is not free. The calculator separates the amount you put in from the growth.

Pick a step-up you will still pay in year ten

Five to ten percent tracks a typical salary raise. Fifteen or twenty percent looks powerful in a projection and is easy to abandon. A smaller increase you keep beats a large one you stop. Set the step-up to 0% in the calculator, note the result, then put your real percentage back. That difference is the decision.