EPF vs PPF vs NPS — Compare & Track Your Retirement Funds

Why Include Retirement Funds in Your Net Worth?

When people think about net worth, they usually start with bank balances, mutual funds, and real estate. But for many salaried Indians, retirement funds like EPF, PPF, and NPS represent some of the largest financial assets they own — often running into tens of lakhs or even crores over a career.

Yet most people have no idea what their current EPF balance is, or how much their PPF has grown over the years. These funds sit in separate portals, accumulate quietly, and rarely get included in any financial picture.

This is a mistake. If you are trying to answer the question "How much am I worth?", you need to count everything — including the money that is locked away for retirement. Here is why:

• They are real assets. EPF, PPF, and NPS balances are money that belongs to you. They earn returns. They grow. They count.
• They reveal your true financial position. Without retirement funds, your net worth is understated — sometimes significantly. A person with 30 lakhs in EPF and 15 lakhs in PPF is 45 lakhs richer than their bank statement suggests.
• They help you plan better. When you see all your assets in one place, you can make better decisions about where to invest next, whether to make voluntary PF contributions, or whether your retirement corpus is on track.
• Month-over-month tracking shows real growth. EPF and PPF earn guaranteed interest. NPS grows with the market. Tracking these alongside your other assets shows the full picture of wealth accumulation.

EPF (Employee Provident Fund)

What Is EPF?

The Employee Provident Fund is a mandatory retirement savings scheme for salaried employees in India. If you work for an organisation with 20 or more employees, your employer must enrol you in EPF. It is managed by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), a government body under the Ministry of Labour and Employment.

Every month, 12% of your basic salary is deducted and deposited into your EPF account. Your employer matches this with another 12% — though 8.33% of the employer's share goes to the Employee Pension Scheme (EPS) and only 3.67% goes into EPF. The combined contribution builds your retirement corpus over time.

Current Interest Rate

For FY 2024-25, the EPF interest rate is 8.25% per annum. This rate is declared annually by the EPFO and has historically ranged between 8% and 8.65% over the past decade. The interest is compounded monthly but credited at the end of the financial year.

Employer Match — Free Money

Your employer's 3.67% contribution to EPF is essentially free money added to your retirement corpus. Over a 25-30 year career, this employer match — along with compound interest — can result in a substantial sum. Many employees do not realise how much their EPF has grown because they never check.

Lock-In and Withdrawal

EPF is designed for retirement and comes with restrictions on withdrawal. The full amount can be withdrawn only after retirement (age 58) or if you remain unemployed for more than 2 months. Partial withdrawals are allowed for specific purposes like home purchase, medical emergencies, and education — but the rules are strict and require documentation.

How to Check Your EPF Balance

• UMANG App: Download the UMANG app, go to EPFO services, and view your passbook with full transaction history.
• EPFO Portal: Visit epfindia.gov.in, log in with your UAN (Universal Account Number), and access your passbook.
• SMS: Send EPFOHO UAN to 7738299899 from your registered mobile.
• Missed Call: Give a missed call to 011-22901406 from your registered number.

How to Include EPF in Your Net Worth

Check your balance using any of the methods above, then add it as a holding in your net worth tracker. Update it quarterly or whenever EPFO credits interest. Since EPF includes both your contributions and employer contributions, the full balance is your asset. If you track invested value (cost basis), use your total personal contributions — the difference shows your gains from employer match plus interest.

PPF (Public Provident Fund)

What Is PPF?

The Public Provident Fund is a voluntary long-term savings scheme backed by the Government of India. Unlike EPF, which is only for salaried employees, anyone can open a PPF account — salaried, self-employed, freelancers, homemakers, or even on behalf of a minor child. You can open a PPF account at any post office or designated bank (SBI, ICICI, HDFC, etc.).

You can invest a minimum of Rs 500 and a maximum of Rs 1.5 lakh per financial year. The investment qualifies for tax deduction under Section 80C.

Current Interest Rate

The PPF interest rate for the current quarter is 7.1% per annum, compounded annually. The rate is set by the government every quarter and has been 7.1% since January 2020. While lower than EPF, PPF still offers one of the best risk-free returns available in India.

15-Year Lock-In and EEE Tax Status

PPF has a 15-year lock-in period from the date of account opening. After 15 years, you can either withdraw the full amount or extend in blocks of 5 years. Partial withdrawals are allowed from the 7th year onwards, and loans against PPF are available from the 3rd to 6th year.

The biggest advantage of PPF is its EEE (Exempt-Exempt-Exempt) tax status:

• Exempt: Contributions qualify for Section 80C deduction (up to Rs 1.5 lakh).
• Exempt: Interest earned is completely tax-free.
• Exempt: Maturity amount is fully tax-free.

This makes PPF one of the most tax-efficient investment instruments in India. Very few investments offer all three exemptions.

How to Check Your PPF Balance

• Internet Banking: If your PPF is linked to your bank account (SBI, ICICI, etc.), check the balance through net banking or the bank's mobile app.
• Post Office: If your PPF is at a post office, visit the branch or use the India Post internet banking portal.
• Passbook: Get your physical passbook updated at the branch for a complete transaction record.

How to Include PPF in Your Net Worth

Add your PPF as a holding under a retirement or savings category. The value should be your current balance including all accrued interest. Since PPF contributions are voluntary and variable, tracking invested value (total amount deposited over the years) alongside current value shows you exactly how much return the account has generated.

NPS (National Pension System)

What Is NPS?

The National Pension System is a market-linked, voluntary retirement savings scheme regulated by PFRDA (Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority). Unlike EPF and PPF which offer fixed returns, NPS invests your money in a mix of equity, corporate bonds, and government securities — and the returns depend on market performance.

NPS is open to all Indian citizens between 18 and 70 years of age. It was initially launched for government employees in 2004 but was opened to all citizens in 2009.

Tier 1 vs Tier 2

• Tier 1 (Pension Account): Mandatory if you join NPS. Has a lock-in until age 60. Contributions qualify for tax deduction under Section 80CCD. At maturity, 60% can be withdrawn as a lump sum (tax-free) and 40% must be used to purchase an annuity.
• Tier 2 (Investment Account): Optional, no lock-in, fully liquid. Works like a mutual fund. No additional tax benefits (except for government employees). Can be opened only if you have a Tier 1 account.

Market-Linked Returns

NPS returns are not guaranteed — they depend on your asset allocation and market conditions. Historically, NPS equity funds have delivered 10-14% annualised returns over long periods, while corporate bond and government securities funds have delivered 8-10%. The blended return for a balanced portfolio typically falls in the 9-12% range over 10+ years.

You can choose between Active Choice (pick your own allocation) and Auto Choice (age-based automatic rebalancing). Under Active Choice, you can allocate up to 75% in equity (reducing to 50% by age 60).

Tax Benefits

• Section 80CCD(1): Up to Rs 1.5 lakh (within the overall 80C limit).
• Section 80CCD(1B): Additional Rs 50,000 deduction — over and above the 80C limit. This is the unique NPS advantage.
• Section 80CCD(2): Employer contribution up to 14% of basic salary (government) or 10% (private sector) — no upper limit, outside 80C.
• Maturity: 60% lump sum withdrawal is tax-free. The annuity purchased with the remaining 40% is taxed as income.

How to Check Your NPS Balance

• CRA Website: Log in to cra-nsdl.com or npscra.nsdl.co.in with your PRAN (Permanent Retirement Account Number).
• NPS App: Download the official NPS by Protean app for balance and transaction details.
• UMANG App: NPS balance is also available on the UMANG app under PFRDA services.

How to Include NPS in Your Net Worth

Since NPS is market-linked, the value changes daily. Check your latest unit balance and NAV, then add the total value as a holding. Update monthly for accurate tracking. Use invested value to track your total contributions — the difference shows your market gains. Remember to include both Tier 1 and Tier 2 if you have both accounts.

EPF vs PPF vs NPS — Comparison Table

SSY (Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana) — For the Girl Child

If you have a daughter under 10 years of age, the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) is another government-backed retirement and savings scheme worth knowing about. While not a retirement fund per se, it functions similarly to PPF and deserves mention alongside these instruments.

SSY currently offers an interest rate of 8.2% per annum — higher than PPF. Like PPF, it enjoys EEE tax status: contributions qualify for 80C, interest is tax-free, and the maturity amount is tax-free. The account matures when the girl turns 21, with partial withdrawal allowed after she turns 18 for education or marriage expenses.

You can invest a minimum of Rs 250 and a maximum of Rs 1.5 lakh per year. Only one account per girl child is allowed, with a maximum of two accounts per family (exceptions for twins/triplets).

If you are tracking family net worth, SSY should absolutely be included. It is an asset held on behalf of your child, and for families it can represent a significant sum after 15-20 years of contributions with compound interest at 8.2%.

How to Track All Retirement Funds Together with Finworthly

The biggest problem with retirement funds is fragmentation. Your EPF balance is on UMANG. PPF is in your bank app. NPS is on the CRA portal. SSY might be at the post office. Mutual funds are on a different platform. Real estate and gold exist only in your head.

This makes it nearly impossible to answer the simple question: "What is my total net worth?"

Finworthly solves this by giving you a single place to record all your assets and liabilities — retirement funds included. Here is how:

• Add each retirement fund as a holding — EPF, PPF, NPS Tier 1, NPS Tier 2, SSY — each tracked separately with its own valuation history.
• Track invested value — record your total contributions as the invested (cost basis) value. Finworthly calculates your gain automatically.
• Update periodically — check your balances quarterly or whenever interest is credited, and update the values. Finworthly shows month-over-month changes.
• See the complete picture — your retirement funds appear alongside mutual funds, bank deposits, real estate, gold, and everything else. One number. One dashboard.
• Track for family members — add your spouse's EPF, your child's SSY, or your parent's PPF. Finworthly supports multiple family members within a single household.

No bank linking required. No OTP. No data sharing with third parties. You simply enter the values manually — intentionally simple and completely private.

Should You Include Employer Contribution in Net Worth?

Yes, absolutely. The employer's contribution to your EPF (3.67% of basic) and the employer's contribution to NPS (if applicable) are your money. They are held in your account, they earn returns on your behalf, and they will be paid to you at retirement or withdrawal.

Some people hesitate because they did not "earn" or "save" this money themselves. But consider this: if you checked your EPF passbook and it shows Rs 18 lakhs, that includes both your contributions and your employer's. The Rs 18 lakhs is what you own. That is the number that matters for net worth.

When tracking invested value (cost basis), you have two options:

• Use your contributions only: This shows the return on your personal investment, including the employer match as part of the "gain". More conservative but arguably more useful for understanding your investment's performance.
• Use total contributions (yours + employer's): This shows the pure interest/market return on the total corpus. More accurate for understanding the fund's investment performance.

Either approach works. The important thing is to use the full balance as the current value. The employer contribution is not hypothetical — it is sitting in your account right now, growing with interest.