SIP Happens - Designing a better SIP planning experience
Rethinking the SIP calculator as an honest planning tool - one that helps people think, not just simulate.
I started looking at SIPs when I began earning during my internship. Like most first-time investors, I opened a calculator to understand what small monthly amounts could actually become. The experience felt mechanical in a way that made it hard to think.
The calculators wanted exact return percentages. They skipped inflation. They didn't account for increasing contributions. Most nudged you toward investing rather than helping you figure out whether to. I wanted a planning tool, not a simulation.
Duration: 1 month · Self-initiated · MVP phase
↗ Try the live productA young professional in their first few earning years who wants to start a SIP but isn't sure what's actually achievable on their income right now.
A self-directed investor who already understands SIP basics and wants projections that account for inflation and step-up contributions, not just the headline number.
I asked a few friends to use the Groww SIP calculator and watched what happened. Three distinct intents came up: experimenting without a clear goal, aiming for a specific target, and working out how long a goal would take to reach.
Beginners froze when all the parameters appeared at once. A step-by-step input flow solves this, one decision at a time, so users can think before they see the full report.
The dashboard splits inputs from outputs. Both columns scroll independently: adjust a parameter on the left and the projection on the right updates in place, without losing your position in either.
Inputs (left): All investment parameters, advanced options, and modes.
Outputs (right): Projected amounts, tenure, data visualisations, and a dynamic text window that turns the numbers into a plain sentence.
Most users don't know their expected return precisely, and many overestimate. 15–18% is a common guess for long-term equity. The current flow makes this worse: browse funds, get a rough sense of returns, open a calculator, get asked for an exact percentage, then guess or go back to look it up.
Instead of asking for a number, returns are grouped into three behaviours: Conservative, Moderate, Aggressive. Beginners can simulate without researching fund returns first. There's still a manual entry option for users who know what they want.
A user sees a large nominal future value, enables inflation adjustment, and the number drops considerably. Most calculators show nominal growth only, so users overestimate what they'll actually be able to buy with that money. The same issue applies to contributions: most people increase what they invest each year, but calculators assume a flat amount throughout.
Two toggles: Inflation Adjustment shows the real purchasing power of the projected amount. Step-Up SIP models yearly contribution increases. Together they bring the projection closer to what will actually happen.
Line Graph (default): Shows three things over time: what was invested, what it becomes, and what it's worth after inflation. The compounding curve is the point, not just the final number.
Waffle Chart: Shows the split between actual gain and the user's own contributions. The two charts are switchable.
Still a work in progress. Two areas I'm focusing on:
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