HRA Exemption Calculator

Find out exactly how much of your House Rent Allowance is tax-free. Section 10(13A), FY2026-27. Private, instant.

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City type

Metro (FY2026-27): Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad. Everywhere else is non-metro. For FY2025-26 & earlier, only Mumbai/Delhi/Chennai/Kolkata are metro.

Enter your basic, HRA and rent

See exactly how much of your HRA is tax-free under Section 10(13A).

How HRA Exemption Is Calculated in India

House Rent Allowance (HRA) is a salary component that is partly tax-free if you pay rent. Under Section 10(13A) of the Income Tax Act, your HRA exemption is the lowest of these three amounts:

  1. Actual HRA received from your employer
  2. 50% of basic salary if you live in a metro city, or 40% of basic salary if non-metro
  3. Rent paid minus 10% of basic salary

Whichever of these three is smallest becomes your tax-free HRA. Anything above it is added to your taxable salary and taxed at your slab rate. "Basic salary" here means basic pay plus dearness allowance (DA), if your employer pays DA.

From FY2026-27 (under the Income-tax Rules, 2026), the metro list expanded from four cities to eight: Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Ahmedabad all now use the 50% rate. For FY2025-26 and earlier years, only Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata counted as metro — Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Ahmedabad used the 40% non-metro rate for those years. Every other city in India is non-metro (40%) in every year.

Worked example: basic ₹40,000/month, HRA received ₹20,000/month, rent ₹25,000/month in Mumbai (metro). The three conditions are: (1) ₹20,000, (2) 50% × ₹40,000 = ₹20,000, (3) ₹25,000 − 10% × ₹40,000 = ₹21,000. The lowest is ₹20,000, so the full ₹20,000/month HRA is tax-free — ₹2,40,000 for the year.

Important: HRA exemption is only available under the old tax regime. The new regime does not allow HRA exemption but gives a higher ₹75,000 standard deduction. This calculator uses the Section 10(13A) formula and the FY2026-27 eight-city metro list.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about HRA exemption in India.

How is HRA exemption calculated in India?
HRA exemption is the lowest of three amounts under Section 10(13A): (1) the actual HRA received from your employer, (2) 50% of basic salary if you live in a metro city or 40% if non-metro, and (3) rent paid minus 10% of basic salary. Whichever of these three is smallest is your tax-free HRA; the rest is added to taxable salary.
Which cities count as metro for HRA in India?
From FY2026-27 onward, eight cities qualify as metro for HRA (50% of basic): Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune and Ahmedabad, under the Income-tax Rules, 2026. For FY2025-26 and earlier, only the original four (Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata) were metro; the other four used the 40% non-metro rate. All other cities are non-metro (40%) in every year.
Can I claim HRA exemption under the new tax regime?
No. HRA exemption under Section 10(13A) is available only under the old tax regime. Under the new tax regime you cannot claim HRA exemption, but you receive a higher standard deduction of ₹75,000 instead. If your HRA exemption plus other deductions is large, the old regime may still work out better — compare both.
Can I claim HRA if I pay rent to my parents?
You can pay rent to your parents and claim HRA if they genuinely own the property and declare the rent as income in their tax return. The arrangement must be real — actual bank transfers and rent receipts, not a paper-only setup. If annual rent exceeds ₹1,00,000 you must also provide your landlord's (parent's) PAN.
What if I pay rent but don't receive HRA?
If your salary has no HRA component, you cannot claim the Section 10(13A) HRA exemption. Instead, under the old regime you may claim a deduction for rent paid under Section 80GG — the least of ₹5,000 per month, 25% of total income, or rent minus 10% of income. This is separate from HRA exemption.
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