SBI vs HDFC home loan
At typical rates SBI (7.75%) is 0.75 points cheaper than HDFC (8.5%): about ₹ 2,344 less a month on ₹ 50 Lakhs over 20 years, and ₹ 5.62 Lakhs less interest. Rate bands checked against both lenders' public cards on 10 Oct 2026 and 11 Oct 2026.
What you'll learn:
- SBI and HDFC home loan rates side by side
- What the gap costs on your loan
- Complaints and borrower reports
Compare Offers
Enter both offers to compare.
SBI or HDFC home loan: which is better?
For most salaried borrowers with a decent credit score, SBI comes out cheaper, and the reason is the shape of its card more than the floor. SBI prices its regular home loan between 7.25% and 8.55% by CIBIL score. HDFC starts at 8% but runs all the way to 13.45%, because its spread over the repo rate can be anywhere from 2.50% to 7.95%. If your score is middling, that top end is where you may land.
The October repo hike muddies the picture for a few weeks. HDFC's card already carries it; SBI's external benchmark rate had not moved when we checked. Once SBI resets, the gap between the two narrows by about a quarter of a point, but SBI still starts lower.
HDFC's real argument is product choice. Its TruFixed loans hold a fixed rate for an opening period before turning floating, which suits anyone who wants a predictable EMI for the first few years. SBI's alternative to a plain term loan is MaxGain, an overdraft-style home loan where spare cash parked in the linked account cuts the interest, priced a little above its regular loan.
Pick SBI if
- your CIBIL score is good but not top-tier, so the top of the band matters more than the floor
- you want MaxGain's overdraft feature to park surplus cash against the loan
- the lowest processing fee matters: SBI caps it at ₹15,000 for salaried borrowers
Pick HDFC if
- you want a fixed rate for the first years (TruFixed) and will model the floating rate after it
- SBI's processing timeline does not fit your possession or registration date
- you already bank with HDFC and it offers a spread close to its 2.50% floor
SBI vs HDFC home loan comparison
The compare loan offers calculator above opens with each lender's typical home loan rate on ₹ 50 Lakhs over 20 years. Add the processing fee from each quote to compare total cost, not just EMI, then model your own loan on the home loan EMI calculator.
| Measure | SBI | HDFC |
|---|---|---|
| Rate band | 7.25% to 8.55% | 8% to 13.45% |
| Starting rate | 7.25% | 8% |
| Typical rate we model | 7.75% | 8.5% |
| EMI at starting rate (₹ 50 Lakhs, 20 yrs) | ₹ 39,519 | ₹ 41,822 |
| EMI at typical rate | ₹ 41,047 | ₹ 43,391 |
| EMI at top of band | ₹ 43,550 | ₹ 60,189 |
| Total interest at typical rate | ₹ 48.5 Lakhs | ₹ 54.1 Lakhs |
| Processing fee on ₹ 50 Lakhs | ₹ 15,000 | Up to ₹ 25,000 |
| Interest + fee, full term | ₹ 48.7 Lakhs | ₹ 54.4 Lakhs |
| Longest tenure | 30 years | 30 years |
| Prepayment charge | No prepayment penalty | Nil on floating; 2% on fixed unless paid from own funds |
| October 2026 repo hike in the card | Not yet | Yes |
| Card checked | 11 Oct 2026 | 10 Oct 2026 |
SBI: Regular term loan by CIBIL score (EBLR 7.90%); Maxgain and top-up price higher. HDFC: Policy repo 5.50% + 2.50% to 7.95%, salaried and self-employed. Fees are before 18% GST and come from each lender's fee page, checked 11 Oct 2026; SBI charges 0.35%, min ₹5,000, max ₹15,000 (salaried); HDFC charges up to 0.5% or ₹4,000, whichever is higher (salaried). Where a lender publishes only a ceiling ("up to"), the calculator opens with no fee on either side; enter the ones on your quotes.
After the October 2026 repo hike
RBI raised the repo rate from 5.25% to 5.50% on 7 October 2026. HDFC's card already carries the 0.25% rise; SBI's still did not on 11 Oct 2026, so today's gap flatters SBI. If it passes on the full hike, its typical rate becomes about 8.00% and SBI is cheaper by 0.5 points. Floating loans already running at either lender reset on the lender's own schedule, so existing borrowers feel it a few weeks apart.
What the gap costs at different loan amounts
Typical rates (SBI 7.75%, HDFC 8.5%). 20 years, reducing balance.
| Loan | SBI EMI | HDFC EMI | Monthly gap | Interest gap, full term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ₹ 30 Lakhs | ₹ 24,628 | ₹ 26,035 | ₹ 1,406 | ₹ 3.37 Lakhs |
| ₹ 50 Lakhs | ₹ 41,047 | ₹ 43,391 | ₹ 2,344 | ₹ 5.62 Lakhs |
| ₹ 75 Lakhs | ₹ 61,571 | ₹ 65,087 | ₹ 3,516 | ₹ 8.44 Lakhs |
| ₹ 1 Cr | ₹ 82,095 | ₹ 86,782 | ₹ 4,687 | ₹ 11.2 Lakhs |
Complaints record
SBI's complaints fell 26% in 2025-26 to 21,09,520, but those about loans rose 68% to 26,102. HDFC's complaints rose 37% in 2025-26 to 6,27,805, and those about loans rose 35% to 87,341.
| FY 2025-26 | SBI | HDFC |
|---|---|---|
| Complaints received | 21,09,520 (-26%) | 6,27,805 (+37%) |
| Escalated to the RBI Ombudsman | 24,356 (-11%) | 18,381 (+35%) |
| About loans and advances | 26,102 (+68%) | 87,341 (+35%) |
Bigger lenders log more because they have more customers, so read the trend, not the raw count. HDFC leaves out complaints redressed within one working day, and duplicates. Read the trend and the ombudsman share rather than ranking banks on the raw count. Sources: SBI Annual Report 2025-26, pp. 264–265 (Schedule 18, note 18.11); HDFC Bank Integrated Annual Report 2025-26, pp. 312–313 (Annexure 6).
What borrowers report
| Lender | App | Google Play rating |
|---|---|---|
| SBI | YONO SBI | 4.2★ from 30.7 lakh ratings |
| HDFC | HDFC Bank Home Loans (loan app) | 2.6★ from 32.7K ratings |
| HDFC | HDFC Bank App | 4.6★ from 14 lakh ratings |
Ratings read on 11 Oct 2026.
SBI: recurring themes
- Complaint: Slow home-loan processing: borrowers describe gaps between sanction and disbursal, and being passed between the branch and SBI's loan processing centre (RACPC). (Moneylife, ConsumerComplaints.in)
Themes are listed only when two independent sources (court rulings, news or complaint forums) agree; treat them as things to check, not a verdict. For HDFC we found no loan theme that met that bar.
What to ask before you sign
- SBI: which CIBIL band you fall in, and whether the offer is the regular loan or MaxGain
- SBI: how long sanction and disbursal take at your processing centre (RACPC)
- HDFC: the exact spread over repo you are being offered, not just the rate
- HDFC: for TruFixed, what the loan converts to when the fixed period ends
Then put both written quotes, with their fees, into the calculator at the top of this page, and try a prepayment on the home loan EMI calculator to see how the gap changes if you pay early.
More on each lender: the SBI EMI calculator and the HDFC EMI calculator, each with its full rate card by loan type. Every lender's home loan rate and fee is on the home loan interest rates page.
Other comparisons
- SBI vs LIC Housing Finance home loan
- SBI vs ICICI home loan
- SBI vs Bank of Baroda home loan
- SBI vs PNB home loan
Sources
The lender pages behind the rate bands, and RBI's disclosure rules. This site does not update rates in real time; check the effective date on each card.
- SBI Home Loans Interest Rates (Current)Official home-loan card, starting band, and effective-date notes.
- SBI Personal Loan scheme interest ratesMCLR-linked personal-loan spreads and effective rate bands.
- SBI auto loan interest ratesCar loan rates by CIBIL score and tenure.
- SBI education loan interest ratesStudent Loan Scheme, Scholar, and Global Ed-Vantage rates.
- SBI home loan fees and chargesProcessing fee, tenure and prepayment terms used in the table above.
- HDFC Bank home loan interest ratesOfficial starting band, repo benchmark print, and adjustable vs TruFixed explanation.
- HDFC home loan fees and chargesProcessing fee, tenure and prepayment terms used in the table above.
- RBI notifications indexKey Facts Statement and retail-lending disclosure rules for rate, fees, and EMI.
- RBI (Pre-payment Charges on Loans) Directions, 2025When regulated lenders may not levy pre-payment charges on floating-rate individual loans for non-business purposes.
Last updated on 11 Oct 2026.