Cars & transport

True Cost of Car Ownership Calculator

The finance payment is not the cost of owning a car. This calculator follows the cash flows while you own the vehicle, estimates the finance balance when you sell, and combines that with resale value and running costs.

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Purchase & finance

Capture how the car is bought and when you expect to sell it.

£
£
Do not include part-exchange equity twice.
%
months
£
Include fees you expect to pay during the ownership period.
years
The point at which you expect to sell or part-exchange the car.
£
Use a realistic future value and test a lower one as well.

Running costs

Add the costs that sit outside the purchase price.

£per year
£per year
Check the current rate for the exact vehicle.
£per year
Use an average across the ownership period.
£per month
£per month

Your estimate

Use the result as a planning guide and change inputs to test the assumptions that matter most.

Use the result as a planning guide and change inputs to test the assumptions that matter most.

How this calculator works

The calculator estimates the scheduled finance payment, follows the loan balance to your planned sale date, and compares that balance with the resale value you enter. Total ownership cost is the cash paid during ownership minus the net equity recovered when the car is sold.

It separately shows depreciation, finance interest and running costs so you can see which assumption drives the result.

How to use it

  1. Enter purchase price, deposit and any finance fees.
  2. Add APR and finance term.
  3. Choose how long you expect to own the car and enter a realistic resale value for that date.
  4. Add annual insurance, vehicle tax, maintenance/tyres and monthly fuel/charging and parking.
  5. Run a weaker resale-value scenario as a stress test.

Assumptions and limitations

Resale value is an estimate supplied by you. The calculator does not predict depreciation. It assumes a standard fixed-rate amortising loan for the financed balance and does not model PCP mileage charges, early-settlement fees, rebates, tax changes, inflation or investment opportunity cost.

Understand the decision

Helpful guides for this calculator

Use the calculator for the numbers, then use these guides for the practical choices, trade-offs and next steps behind the result.

All articles
Start here

What Does a Car Really Cost? Depreciation, Finance, Fuel and the Bills People Forget

Read this guide first for the practical decision framework behind the calculator.

4 min read · Read guide → Related guide

Cash, HP or PCP? How to Compare a Car Without Being Fooled by the Monthly Payment

Read this guide for context, assumptions and trade-offs behind the result.

4 min read · Read guide →
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