Calculator
Retrofit vs replacement: like-for-like total cost
Compares both options over the same horizon: upfront + operating + mid-life replacements − residual value. Retrofit does not automatically win, and an unknown on either side blocks the verdict.
Everything runs in your browser. Nothing is sent anywhere, and no figure is saved or put into a link.
Both options must be judged over the same period, and must cover the same cameras and areas.
Retrofit existing cameras
Analytics on what you already own, plus any on-site processing hardware.
Cameras or recorders you expect to replace before the horizon ends.
Only if you could genuinely sell or redeploy it.
Replace the system
New cameras, cabling, recorder and storage, plus whatever runs on them.
Cameras or recorders you expect to replace before the horizon ends.
Only if you could genuinely sell or redeploy it.
Total over 36 months
One or more figures are not known yet, so no comparison is claimed. Fill both sides, or ask for the missing quotation.
Like-for-like only. If one option covers more cameras or areas than the other, this comparison is not valid. Retrofit does not automatically win: a cheap replacement with low running costs can beat it. Formula version 1.0.0.
How it is calculated
Total = upfront + monthly operating × months + replacement cost − residual value, computed identically for both options.
Worked example
Retrofit at ₹5,00,000 upfront and ₹9,000 a month, against replacement at ₹3,00,000 upfront, ₹2,000 a month, ₹50,000 of replacements and ₹20,000 residual, over 36 months.
Retrofit ₹8,24,000, replacement ₹4,02,000 — replacement is cheaper by ₹4,22,000. Retrofit does not automatically win.
Formula version 1.0.0. Reviewed 23 September 2026.
What this does not tell you
Like-for-like only: if the two options cover different cameras or areas, the comparison is invalid. Residual value counts only if you can actually realise it.
Possible at your site subject to a survey — nothing here is a commitment until it is quoted.
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