Cost-of-Ownership Calculators
The sticker price is the smallest decision you make about a car. These tools add up the costs that actually drain your bank account over the years you own it — so you compare the real number, not the monthly payment.
See what a car really costs over 5 years: depreciation, fuel, insurance, maintenance, interest and fees — per year, per month and per mile.
Open calculatorCalculate your true cost per mile to drive from fuel, insurance, maintenance, depreciation and fees — the honest unit for comparing any two cars.
Open calculatorEstimate how fast a car loses value. See the depreciation curve and resale value for each year you own it, and the total value lost.
Open calculatorFind the real monthly cost of a car — loan payment plus fuel, insurance, maintenance and fees — so you budget for the whole car, not just the payment.
Open calculatorThe payment is not the cost
A car has two prices: the one on the window and the one you pay over the years you own it. The second is usually two to three times the first once you add depreciation, fuel, insurance, maintenance, interest and fees. The average new vehicle costs over $12,000 a year to own and operate — more than most people budget for anything except housing.
Depreciation is almost always the largest single cost, and it is invisible because no one hands you a bill for it. It is simply the gap between what you paid and what the car is worth when you sell it. A tool that shows that gap, year by year, changes which car looks cheap.
Cost per mile is the honest unit
Two cars with the same payment can cost wildly different amounts to run. The way to compare them is cost per mile: every dollar of ownership divided by every mile you drive. It folds a thirsty engine, a pricey insurance class and a steep depreciation curve into one number you can line up side by side.
Drive less than average and fixed costs — insurance, registration, depreciation — dominate, so a cheaper, older car wins. Drive a lot and fuel and maintenance matter more, which can tip the math toward something efficient and reliable. The calculators here let you run your own mileage instead of a national guess.
Cost to own a car by state
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia · soon
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
State pages pre-fill the calculator with that state’s sales tax, registration fees and average insurance — each figure shown with a dated source. More states go live as their figures are verified.