How long will my corpus last if I withdraw every month?

An SWP pays out a fixed amount from an already-invested lumpsum every month, while the remaining corpus stays invested and keeps growing. It's the mirror image of a SIP — instead of building a corpus, you're drawing one down on a schedule.

Roughly, if your withdrawal rate stays below your expected return, the corpus can sustain itself indefinitely; above it, the corpus shrinks over time and eventually runs out. Use the calculator above with your own numbers — small changes in the withdrawal rate move the depletion date a lot.

An SWP gives you control over the exact amount and date of payout, since it's independent of what the fund actually distributes; dividend payouts depend on the fund declaring them, which isn't guaranteed or fixed. Most investors prefer SWP for the predictability.

Each SWP instalment is treated as a partial redemption of units, so only the gain portion of that withdrawal is taxed — not the full amount — at the applicable capital-gains rate for the fund type and holding period. This makes SWP more tax-efficient than a comparable fixed deposit payout in most cases.

Use a conservative number, especially since a downturn early in the SWP does more damage than one late — you're selling units, not adding them. A number a couple of points below what you'd assume for a pure growth SIP is a reasonable margin of safety.

Yes, most fund houses let you modify or cancel an SWP instruction at any time, similar to how a regular SIP can be adjusted. Check your specific platform for how much notice they need before the next withdrawal date.