Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Lease premium over buying
$1,119
True cost per month — buying
$477
True cost per month — leasing
$496
Total cost of buying
$28,621
Total cost of leasing
$29,740
Loan payment
$660
Resale value recovered
$15,960
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Got your number — what next?
Pick one, it takes 20 secondsHow to use this
- 1Enter vehicle price ($).
- 2Enter down payment if buying ($).
- 3Enter auto loan apr (%).
- 4Enter loan term (months).
- 5Enter months you'll keep the car (months).
- 6Enter resale value at end of hold (% of price).
- 7Enter lease payment ($/mo).
- 8Enter lease drive-off amount ($).
- 9Enter expected miles over the lease cap (miles).
- 10Enter excess mileage charge ($/mile).
- 11Read your lease premium over buying on the right — it updates as you type.
- 12Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Leasing and buying look comparable on the monthly payment and diverge completely on what you own at the end. This calculator compares total cash out over the same holding period: for the loan it counts the down payment, monthly payments, and subtracts the resale value you keep; for the lease it counts the drive-off amount, payments, and any expected mileage overage. The output is an honest cost per month for each path. Buying almost always wins if you keep the car well past the loan; leasing wins on short holds, heavy depreciation, and when the payment gap funds something with a better return.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Vehicle price: 38000 $
- Down payment if buying: 5000 $
- Auto loan APR: 7.4 %
- Loan term: 60 months
- Months you'll keep the car: 60 months
- Resale value at end of hold: 42 % of price
- Lease payment: 449 $/mo
- Lease drive-off amount: 2800 $
- Expected miles over the lease cap: 0 miles
- Excess mileage charge: 0.25 $/mile
Results
- Lease premium over buying: $1,118.88
- True cost per month — buying: $477.02
- True cost per month — leasing: $495.67
- Total cost of buying: $28,621.12
- Total cost of leasing: $29,740.00
- Loan payment: $659.69
- Resale value recovered: $15,960.00
What each field means
Inputs
- Vehicle price ($)
- The vehicle price used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 38000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Down payment if buying ($)
- The down payment if buying used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 5000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Auto loan APR (%)
- The auto loan apr used in the calculation, measured in %. Starts at 7.4 % so you have a working example on load.
- Loan term (months)
- The loan term used in the calculation, measured in months. Starts at 60 months so you have a working example on load.
- Months you'll keep the car (months)
- The months you'll keep the car used in the calculation, measured in months. Starts at 60 months so you have a working example on load.
- Resale value at end of hold (% of price)
- The resale value at end of hold used in the calculation, measured in % of price. Starts at 42 % of price so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–100 % of price.
- Lease payment ($/mo)
- The lease payment used in the calculation, measured in $/mo. Starts at 449 $/mo so you have a working example on load.
- Lease drive-off amount ($)
- The lease drive-off amount used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 2800 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Expected miles over the lease cap (miles)
- The expected miles over the lease cap used in the calculation, measured in miles. Starts at 0 miles so you have a working example on load.
- Excess mileage charge ($/mile)
- The excess mileage charge used in the calculation, measured in $/mile. Starts at 0.25 $/mile so you have a working example on load.
Results
- Lease premium over buying
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- True cost per month — buying
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- True cost per month — leasing
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Total cost of buying
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Total cost of leasing
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Loan payment
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Resale value recovered
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
Why is the buy cost lower than the lease if the payment is higher?
Because part of every loan payment buys equity you get back at resale, while every lease payment is pure consumption. The comparison only becomes fair when you subtract the car's residual value from the buying side, which is what this calculator does.
What resale percentage should I assume?
Mainstream vehicles commonly retain roughly 40-50% of sticker after five years, with trucks and some hybrids higher and luxury sedans and fast-depreciating EVs lower. Look up your specific model's five-year retention rather than using an average — it is the single biggest driver of the result.
Does this include insurance, fuel, and maintenance?
No, and deliberately: those are similar across both paths for the same vehicle. The exceptions worth noting are that leases often require higher liability limits, and that buying exposes you to out-of-warranty repairs in later years.
When does leasing genuinely win?
Short holds, business use with favourable deductions, models with unusually strong subsidised residuals, and situations where you need a predictable payment with no resale exposure. If you routinely trade cars every three years, leasing removes the transaction friction you were paying for anyway.
Accuracy and 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.
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Sinking Fund Monthly Contribution Calculator
Work out the monthly set-aside for a known future expense so it never hits credit.
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Car Buy vs Lease Cost Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/buy-vs-lease-car
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/buy-vs-lease-car" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Car Buy vs Lease Cost Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Car Buy vs Lease Cost Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/buy-vs-lease-car) (2026).