Car Lease vs Buy Calculator

Compare leasing vs buying a car: enter price, lease terms and loan terms to see monthly payment and total cost over years.

Car Lease vs Buy Calculator

Compare leasing vs buying a car: enter price, lease terms and loan terms to see monthly payment and total cost over years.

Car price($)

Lease payment/month($)

Lease down payment($)

Loan APR (if buying)(%)

Loan term (years)

Compare years

Enter values above and click Calculate — results will appear here with the formula explained.

Lease total = leaseDown + leaseMo*12*years; Buy total = down not here + loan payments for years + residual: simplified buy total = loan payment*12*years

How does this work?

Leasing total is down plus monthly lease times months. Buying total is loan payments over same horizon (simplified, ignores down and residual). Buying builds equity—after loan, car is yours.

This is simplified, ignoring lease mileage fees, buy down payment, and resale value. Add resale to buying advantage if comparing ownership.

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Disclaimer: Results are estimates for informational purposes only and do not constitute professional financial advice.

Quick Answer

Car Lease vs Buy Calculator computes compare leasing vs buying a car: enter price, lease terms and loan terms to see monthly payment and total cost over years. Formula: Lease total = leaseDown + leaseMo*12*years. Example: With $35k car, lease $399/mo + $3k down for 3y = $17,364.

How to Use This Calculator

1Enter car price, lease monthly and down, loan APR/term and years to compare (often 3).
2Calculate to see lease total vs buy payments total and monthly.
3If keeping car long (6+ years), buying usually wins despite higher short-term lease allure.

Formula Used

Lease total = leaseDown + leaseMo*12*years; Buy total = down not here + loan payments for years + residual: simplified buy total = loan payment*12*years

Leasing total is down plus monthly lease times months. Buying total is loan payments over same horizon (simplified, ignores down and residual). Buying builds equity—after loan, car is yours.

This is simplified, ignoring lease mileage fees, buy down payment, and resale value. Add resale to buying advantage if comparing ownership.

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Worked Example

With $35k car, lease $399/mo + $3k down for 3y = $17,364. Buying $35k at 6.9% for 5y: payment $691/mo, 3y payments $24,876, so lease cheaper for 3y but buying leaves car asset.

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Frequently Asked Questions

QDoes buying include down?

This compares payments only. Add your planned down to buy total if you will put cash down.

QWhat about resale?

Estimate resale (e.g. 60% after 3y = $21k) and subtract from buy total for net cost — then buying often wins long term.

QMileage?

Leases charge 15-25¢ per mile over limit. Add overage to lease total if you drive a lot.

Formula Used

Lease total = leaseDown + leaseMo*12*years; Buy total = down not here + loan payments for years + residual: simplified buy total = loan payment*12*years

Leasing total is down plus monthly lease times months. Buying total is loan payments over same horizon (simplified, ignores down and residual). Buying builds equity—after loan, car is yours.

This is simplified, ignoring lease mileage fees, buy down payment, and resale value. Add resale to buying advantage if comparing ownership.

Frequently Asked Questions

QDoes buying include down?

This compares payments only. Add your planned down to buy total if you will put cash down.

QWhat about resale?

Estimate resale (e.g. 60% after 3y = $21k) and subtract from buy total for net cost — then buying often wins long term.

QMileage?

Leases charge 15-25¢ per mile over limit. Add overage to lease total if you drive a lot.