PaisaTools Index · 2026 edition
The PaisaTools Cost Index 2026
What the milestones of a middle-class Indian life cost — from Kota coaching to a flat's down payment to a retirement corpus — in one place, each with the full breakdown behind it.
Every figure is a range because families differ: city, college, clinic and lifestyle move the number. Read the scope line under each item — it says exactly what the range covers — and open the breakdown before you plan around it.
Education and careers
Kota coaching (JEE / NEET)
Two years, tuition + hostel + running costs
UPSC preparation
Three attempts in cash: online from home at the low end, Delhi room + year-one coaching at the high end; before the salary forgone
An MBA, two years
Tuition plus living; a tier-two private college at the low end, a top IIM at the high end - before the salary forgone
Government route: A government-quota seat at a state university costs a fraction of this
Becoming a CA
Out-of-pocket: fees, coaching, living if relocating
Master's in Germany
Two years at a tuition-free public university, before part-time pay
Master's in the USA
Two years at a mid-range public university, before flights and setup
Master's in the UK
One year of tuition + nine months of maintenance, outside London
Master's in Australia
Two years at the median tuition, with the visa's living figure and fee, before health cover and flights
PG diploma in Canada
Two years at mid-range figures, with flights and setup
MBBS, private or deemed seat
Full course
MBBS abroad
Whole course incl. hostel and living — Russia or Georgia; screening exam not cleared
Commercial pilot
Licence + type rating, before the first airline salary
Family
Living in Dubai, family of four
All-in per month incl. rent, one or two school seats, car and health cover
Health insurance for a parent
Yearly premium, typical senior plan, from age 60-65 to 70 and above
IVF
One cycle at a private clinic, all-in
Government route: Rarely covered; a few government centres run it at a fraction of this
Angioplasty with a stent
Private hospital, all-in; the stent itself is price-capped, the procedure and stay are not
Government route: Covered under PM-JAY if you qualify
Cataract surgery, one eye
Private hospital; the lens decides most of the spread
Government route: Free at government hospitals and at many charitable eye camps
LASIK, both eyes
Conventional to SMILE, before insurance - which usually pays only at 7.5 dioptres or more
Normal delivery
Private hospital, all-in
Government route: Free or near-free at a government hospital
Caesarean delivery
Private hospital; more if there are complications
Government route: Free or near-free at a government hospital
Raising a child
Birth to graduation, government schooling to private school + overseas degree
A family of four, metro
Monthly spending before EMIs and saving
A family of four, smaller city
Monthly spending before EMIs and saving
Knee replacement, one knee
Full package at a private hospital, before insurance; government and trust hospitals cost far less
Government route: Covered under PM-JAY if you qualify; a fraction of this at a government hospital
A family of four, Bangalore
Monthly, published 2026 estimates; rent, two school fees and help included
Live-in attendant for a parent
Untrained, with food and a place to sleep provided
A medium-breed dog
Food, preventive care, a vet visit, grooming — excluding emergencies
Festivals
Diwali for a family of four
Clothes, gifts, cleaning, sweets, lights and bonuses; the upper end includes repainting
Ganpati at home, ten days
Idol, decoration, daily bhog, lighting, guests and visarjan; a day-and-a-half Ganpati lands near ₹5,000
Navratri garba, two people
Four nights: passes, outfit on rent, jewellery, food at the ground and travel
Home and vehicles
Rooftop solar, 3 kW
On-grid system before subsidy: panels, inverter, structure and installation
2BHK interiors
900–1,100 sq ft, basic fit-out to premium materials
Building a house
1,800 sq ft project incl. approvals, site work, wall and interiors — plot excluded
Buying a ₹60 lakh flat
Cash on day one: down payment, stamp duty, registration, brokerage or GST
A ₹10 lakh car
On-road price, before fuel
A flagship phone on EMI
A ₹80,000 phone: what actually leaves your account once the tax on the waived interest, the fee, the forgone discount and accessories are counted
A ₹1.2 lakh bike
On-road price, before fuel
Starting something
Opening a cafe
400–800 sq ft, tier-2 city to metro — deposit, fit-out and 2–3 months of working capital
Starting a cloud kitchen
Single-brand setup, from a small-city kitchen to all-in in a tier-1 city
Retirement
Retiring on ₹6 lakh a year
Corpus needed, in today's money
How the index is built
Each range comes from a PaisaTools cost guide, researched from published fee schedules, regulator rules and current market quotes, and written to the standards on our editorial standards page. The index copies the guide's own figure and its scope; it does not average or re-estimate anything.
Ranges are typical, not quotes. They describe what most families will see in 2026, and a specific city, institution or clinic can sit outside them. This is information, not financial advice.
This is the first edition. From the next one, the index will show how much each milestone has moved in a year — measured, never back-filled.
Published 2026-09-15.
Citing the index
Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 — journalists, bloggers and educators are welcome to quote any figure with a link. Suggested credit:
Source: PaisaTools Cost Index 2026, paisatools.co.in/cost-index
Academic citation: archived on Zenodo, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.23349743.
Working with the data? Download the full index as CSV — 40 rows, each with its scope, basis and the guide it came from.
Planning one of these? Check it against your own income and savings with Can I Afford It?