Savings circle calculator.
Work out the pot, the full payout schedule and what each turn is actually worth — for a kameti, committee, tanda, stokvel, susu, arisan or any other rotating savings group.
You collect PKR 60,000 having paid in only PKR 5,000. The difference is an interest-free loan from the members who have not been paid yet, and you repay it over the remaining 11 rounds. Until then you are the reason their turns depend on you continuing to pay.
| Round | Payout date | Collects | Paid in by then | Funded by others |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1You | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 5,000 | PKR 55,000 |
| 2 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 10,000 | PKR 50,000 |
| 3 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 15,000 | PKR 45,000 |
| 4 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 20,000 | PKR 40,000 |
| 5 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 25,000 | PKR 35,000 |
| 6 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 30,000 | PKR 30,000 |
| 7 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 35,000 | PKR 25,000 |
| 8 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 40,000 | PKR 20,000 |
| 9 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 45,000 | PKR 15,000 |
| 10 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 50,000 | PKR 10,000 |
| 11 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 55,000 | PKR 5,000 |
| 12 | — | PKR 60,000 | PKR 60,000 | PKR 0 |
What the position column means
Over a complete cycle nobody gains and nobody loses — everyone pays in exactly what they take out. That is true and it is also the least interesting thing about a savings circle, because it hides what is happening in between.
Whoever takes the first turn collects the entire pot having contributed once. For the rest of the cycle they are, in substance, repaying an interest-free loan made to them by the other members. Whoever takes the last turn has done the opposite: funded everyone else's lump sum first, and waited. That is why the ballot matters so much in practice, and why groups that let members swap turns for a wedding or a medical bill are functioning as mutual aid rather than merely as a savings scheme.
It is also where the risk sits. The members still waiting are the ones exposed if somebody who has already collected stops paying. Seeing that in a column rather than arguing about it in the abstract tends to produce fairer decisions about who goes when.
Before the first payment
Three things prevent almost every dispute we hear about, and all of them happen before any money moves. Agree the order and write it down. Agree what happens if somebody misses a payment. And keep a record every member can see, rather than one held by the organiser alone.
None of that stops a default. What it stops is the second argument — the one about who actually paid in month four — which is usually the one that ends the friendship. There is more detail on each variant in our guide to savings circles around the world.
Running a real one?
A schedule on a web page is a plan. EconoGlance keeps the live record — who has contributed, whose turn is next, and what has actually been paid out — in one place every member can check. Free to start, no ads.
Common questions
How do you calculate a kameti or committee amount?
Multiply the contribution by the number of members to get the pot. Twelve members paying Rs 5,000 a month means a pot of Rs 60,000, paid to one member each month for twelve months. Over a full cycle everyone pays in Rs 60,000 and receives Rs 60,000.
Does the turn order actually matter?
Financially, over a whole cycle, no — everyone ends level. Within the cycle it matters a great deal. Taking the first turn means collecting the full pot having made one contribution, which is an interest-free loan from the group. Taking the last means funding everyone else first, and carrying the risk that somebody stops paying before your turn comes.
How is the turn order usually decided?
Three ways. A ballot draws turns at random, which feels fairest because nobody chose it. A fixed order is agreed in advance, often by seniority or by who organised the group. A needs-based order lets members swap when something urgent comes up, which is what most family groups do in practice. Indian chit funds are the exception — they auction each turn.
Do you earn interest in a savings circle?
No, in almost every version. You receive back exactly what you contributed, so the benefit is timing rather than return. The exception is the Indian chit fund, where members bid for each pot and the discount the winner accepts is shared among the others, meaning patient members do earn a genuine return.
What happens if a member stops paying?
The shortfall falls on the members who have not yet been paid, since anyone who leaves has usually already collected. There is normally no legal recourse in an informal group, which is why membership tends to be limited to people with a real relationship at stake, and why writing the rules and the order down before the first payment matters.
Keep your circle's record straight.
Scan a receipt, split any bill, and always know who owes who. Available on iOS and Android, with no ads.
