{
  "slug": "equipment-lease-vs-buy",
  "title": "Equipment Lease vs Buy Calculator",
  "heading": "Lease vs Buy Equipment Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/equipment-lease-vs-buy",
  "summary": "Total cost of leasing versus purchasing outright.",
  "description": "Leasing preserves cash but you own nothing at the end. Buying costs more up front but leaves you with residual value.",
  "formula": "Lease cost = payments × term. Buy cost = price − resale + financing.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=equipment-lease-vs-buy",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "price",
      "label": "Purchase price",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 40000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "lease",
      "label": "Monthly lease payment",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 750,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "months",
      "label": "Term",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 48,
      "unit": "months",
      "min": 1,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "resale",
      "label": "Resale value after term",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 12000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "maint",
      "label": "Owner maintenance",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 1200,
      "unit": "$/yr",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "winner",
      "label": "Cheaper option",
      "format": "raw",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "buyCost",
      "label": "Net cost to buy",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "leaseCost",
      "label": "Total lease cost",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "diff",
      "label": "Difference",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "monthlyBuy",
      "label": "Effective monthly cost of buying",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Purchase price: 40000 $",
      "Monthly lease payment: 750 $",
      "Term: 48 months",
      "Resale value after term: 12000 $",
      "Owner maintenance: 1200 $/yr"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Cheaper option: Buying is cheaper",
      "Net cost to buy: $32,800",
      "Total lease cost: $36,000",
      "Difference: $3,200",
      "Effective monthly cost of buying: $683"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter purchase price ($).",
      "Enter monthly lease payment ($).",
      "Enter term (months).",
      "Enter resale value after term ($).",
      "Enter owner maintenance ($/yr).",
      "Read your cheaper option on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "price": 24000,
        "lease": 450,
        "months": 30,
        "resale": 7000,
        "maint": 700
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "price": 40000,
        "lease": 750,
        "months": 48,
        "resale": 12000,
        "maint": 1200
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "price": 64000,
        "lease": 1200,
        "months": 78,
        "resale": 19000,
        "maint": 1900
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "How does the lease vs buy equipment calculator work?",
      "a": "Leasing preserves cash but you own nothing at the end. Buying costs more up front but leaves you with residual value. The underlying maths is: Lease cost = payments × term. Buy cost = price − resale + financing."
    },
    {
      "q": "What do I need to enter?",
      "a": "5 values: purchase price, monthly lease payment, term, resale value after term, and owner maintenance. Each field starts with a sensible default, so you can change one number at a time and watch the result move."
    },
    {
      "q": "What does the cheaper option result mean?",
      "a": "It is returned as a plain value and updates live as you edit the inputs, so you can compare two or three versions of a scenario in a few seconds."
    },
    {
      "q": "Is this calculator free, and do I need an account?",
      "a": "Yes, it's free, and no account is required. Nothing you type is stored on our servers — the maths runs entirely in your browser."
    },
    {
      "q": "How accurate is the result?",
      "a": "It applies the standard formula exactly, so the arithmetic is precise. Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them."
    },
    {
      "q": "Who is this tool for?",
      "a": "It's built for anyone comparing money scenarios before committing — budgeting a payment, sanity-checking a quote, or seeing what a change in rate or term actually costs."
    }
  ],
  "related": [],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Equipment Lease vs Buy Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/equipment-lease-vs-buy)"
}