Key Difference: IFSC stands for Indian Financial System Code. IFSC code consists of eleven characters and it uniquely identifies any bank branch in India. NEFT code is the other name for IFSC code, as it is also used in NEFT payment applications.

IFSC is a unique code and the code is of immense importance in carrying out the transactions in the banking sector. It is printed in the check books or can be easily found online by searching the code of the bank branch. One may get confuse with the term NEFT code, but the IFSC code is just as same as NEFT code. IFSC code can also be referred as NEFT code as it is used in the NEFT transactions to uniquely identify the branch of the bank.

IFSC stands for Indian Financial System Code. It consists of eleven characters and this code has been assigned by Reserve Bank of India for the identification of the bank branches. It uniquely identifies any bank branch in India. This code is of immense importance for carrying out the electronic payments in the country.

The components of this alpha numeric code are:-

1. First four characters denote the code of Bank.

2. The fifth character is a ‘0’ and this used as a control character

3. Remaining six characters define the specific branch of the bank.

This code is used in NEFT payment method. ‘NEFT’ stands for National Electronic Fund Transfer. NEFT enables the individuals or institutions to electronically transfer the funds from any bank branch to any individual or institutions that may have an account in any other bank branch in the country participating in the scheme. Thus, it is also referred as NEFT Code. As in the image you can easily see that the IFSC code is also referred as RTGS and NEFT code.

The payment methods like RTGS, CFMS and NEFT in India uses this code. All the banks have been advised by Reserve Bank of India to print the IFSC code on the checks issued by the banks to their customers.

IFSC code is used for the electronic payment applications like NEFT and RTGS, thus it is also known as the NEFT or RTGS code. Therefore, both are same and can be referred interchangeably.

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