Investment Basics for FIRE India

How to invest for financial independence—index funds, SIP, asset allocation, and mutual fund basics. India-focused, no fluff.

Core Concepts

• Index Fund — Low-cost funds that track the market.
• Index Fund vs Active Fund — Compare costs, returns, and suitability for FIRE.
• SIP (Systematic Investment Plan) — Invest regularly for rupee-cost averaging.
• Lump Sum vs SIP — When to invest a lump sum vs instalments.
• Asset Allocation — How to split your portfolio between equity and debt.
• Rebalancing — Keeping your portfolio aligned with your target allocation.
• Equity Fund — Mutual funds that invest in stocks.
• Debt Fund — Mutual funds that invest in fixed income.
• Expense Ratio — Annual fee charged by mutual funds.
• Direct vs Regular Plan — Lower costs with direct plans.
• Fund Overlap — When multiple funds hold the same stocks.
• Exit Load — Fee for early redemption.
• ELSS — Tax-saving equity fund with 3-year lock-in.
• ELSS vs PPF vs Tax-saving FD — Compare 80C investment options.

Calculators

Use our FIRE Calculator to see how your investments compound over time. Explore the full calculator suite.

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