Rent or buy, worked honestly
Both routes after GST input credit and income tax, in today’s money, with every assumption in the open. When buying costs less, it says so.
Buying costs ₹8,15,770 less over three years. Renting keeps ₹10,82,128 more cash in the bank in month one.
10 × MacBook Air 13" M5, 16GB, 512GB. Rent at 4.5% of MRP a month on 36 months. Both routes are after GST input credit and income tax, discounted at your cost of capital.
Three-year cost
In today’s money, after tax
- Buy
- ₹8,01,691
- Rent
- ₹16,17,462
Cash out in month one
Including GST and the deposit
- Buy
- ₹13,86,575
- Rent
- ₹3,04,447
Cost so far, month by month
- Buy, ₹8,01,691 at the end
- Rent, ₹16,17,462 at the end
Buying starts high and steps down as each year’s tax saving and the resale come in. Renting climbs a little every month.
- Device, after tax and resale₹8,01,69168%
- Comes back as tax saved₹1,92,53216%
- Comes back at resale₹1,80,84015%
- Rent, after tax₹15,52,65573%
- Cost of holding the deposit₹64,8063%
- Comes back as tax saved₹5,15,71524%
See the working
| Item | Buy | Rent |
|---|---|---|
| Cash in month one | ₹13,86,575 | ₹3,04,447 |
| Price or rent paid, ex-GST, today’s money | ₹11,75,064 | ₹20,68,371 |
| Income tax saved | − ₹1,92,532 | − ₹5,15,715 |
| Resale at the end | − ₹1,80,840 | — |
| AppleCare+ | Not counted | Included |
| Cost of holding the ₹2,24,850 deposit | — | ₹64,806 |
| Three-year cost, today’s money | ₹8,01,691 | ₹16,17,462 |
What the numbers leave out
- Renting includes AppleCare+, delivery, enrolment in your Apple Business Manager, and collection when someone leaves. Buying leaves those with your team.
- At the end of a rental you can renew, move to current models, or hand the devices back. A bought device is yours to resell or retire.
- Rent is an operating expense on a monthly GST invoice. A purchase is an asset on the balance sheet, depreciated over its life.
- The deposit is 15% of MRP per device, paid once and refunded at the end; its cost here is what holding that cash costs you.
An estimate for planning, not tax advice. Depreciation is taken at the year-end rate you set, rent is paid monthly in advance and deducted as it is paid, and resale proceeds are treated as received at the end of year three. Check the treatment for your books with your CA.
Rent or buy questions
Is it cheaper to rent or buy a MacBook for business?
Over three years, buying usually costs less in total once the GST credit, depreciation and resale are counted. At 4.5% of MRP a month, rent over 36 months adds up to more than the device. Renting wins on cash in month one, and on what comes with it: AppleCare+, delivery, enrolment and collection.
Why do other calculators show renting saving 70% or more?
They add an “opportunity cost” on the full purchase price to the buying side and then count it again as a saving on the renting side. This calculator discounts both routes at your own cost of capital once, so nothing is counted twice.
Which depreciation rate should I use?
Computers are usually depreciated at 40% a year on the written-down value for income tax. Your CA confirms the rate and method for your books.
Is GST a cost when renting?
For a registered business, no. Rent is invoiced with 18% GST each month and that GST is claimed as input tax credit, just as the GST on a purchase is.
Run it on your fleet with us.
Send the roles, headcount and term. We will price the rental and the purchase side by side, on one quote.