The true cost to own: depreciation, financing, fuel, insurance, maintenance, and fees
| Line | Typical Annual Range | Share of 5-Year Total | What Moves It |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depreciation | $2,000 – $5,000 | 35 – 45% | Brand, condition, miles, holding period |
| Insurance | $1,400 – $2,600 full coverage | 15 – 25% | State, age, record, coverage level |
| Fuel | $1,000 – $2,500 | 10 – 20% | Miles driven, MPG, gas prices |
| Loan interest | $500 – $1,500 | 5 – 15% | Rate, term, down payment, credit |
| Maintenance + repairs | $700 – $1,500 | 10 – 15% | Age, brand, DIY vs shop |
| Registration + fees | $40 – $400 | 1 – 5% | State fee structure (see the 50-state table) |
Planning bands compiled from published ownership studies (AAA Your Driving Costs, Edmunds True Cost to Own, KBB 5-Year Cost to Own) and typical financing terms. AAA's 2024 study put the average new car at $12,297 a year across categories, with small sedans near the bottom (under $10K) and half-ton pickups at the top (over $15K).
"How much does a car cost?" has two answers: the payment and the truth. The payment is what hits your checking account monthly. The truth includes everything the car takes from you, including the value it silently sheds. This calculator totals the truth.
Total cost = (purchase price − resale value) + total loan interest + fuel + insurance + maintenance + repairs + registration. Fuel = miles per year ÷ MPG × price per gallon × years. Loan interest comes from a standard amortization of price minus down payment at your APR over the term; the principal isn't counted as a cost because you exchanged it for an asset — the depreciation line already captures the value the car loses. Per-mile divides by miles × years; per-month by years × 12.
For the resale percentage, mainstream cars hold 50-60% at 5 years when new, luxury and domestic sedans often less, trucks and Toyota/Honda products more. For recurring costs, pull real numbers where you have them: your insurance declaration page, your state's registration fee, your actual odometer. Estimates beat blanks, but receipts beat estimates.
The $35,000 SUV, $5,000 down, financed at 7% for 60 months, kept 5 years, 12,000 miles a year at 28 MPG and $3.50 gas, insured at $1,800 a year, $750 maintenance, $300 repairs, $180 registration. The loan: $30,000 borrowed, $594.04 a month, $35,642.16 total, of which $5,642.16 is interest. Resale at 55% returns $19,250, so depreciation is $15,750. Fuel: 12,000 ÷ 28 × $3.50 × 5 = $7,500. Insurance $9,000, maintenance and repairs $5,250, registration $900.
Stack it: $15,750 + $5,642.16 + $7,500 + $9,000 + $5,250 + $900 = $44,042. That's $734.04 a month and $0.734 a mile — while the payment alone was only $594. The car cost $140 a month more than it looked like it cost.
Run the same 5 years on a $15,000 used car (60% resale, $1,400 insurance, $900 maintenance, $600 repairs, 30 MPG, cash purchase) and the total is $28,100, $468.33 a month, $0.47 a mile. Same miles, $266 a month cheaper — which is the entire used-car argument in one calculation.
All-in, most cars cost $500 to $1,000 a month to own once you count everything. AAA's 2024 study put the average new car at $12,297 a year, about $1,025 a month. A representative financed example: a $35,000 SUV held 5 years costs roughly $44,042 total, or $734 a month and $0.73 a mile, made up of $15,750 depreciation, $5,642 loan interest, $7,500 fuel, $9,000 insurance, $5,250 maintenance and repairs, and $900 registration.
Depreciation, usually 35 to 45 percent of the total. On a $35,000 SUV that loses 45 percent of its value over 5 years, that's $15,750, more than fuel and more than the entire finance charge. It's also the cost nobody sees: no monthly bill arrives for it, which is why the payment feels like the cost of ownership when it's usually only about half.
Typical all-in costs run $0.45 to $0.85 a mile: the $35,000 SUV example works out to $0.734 a mile over 60,000 miles, while a cheaper $15,000 used car driven the same distance lands near $0.47. For reference, the IRS business rate for 2025 is $0.70 a mile, and it's set from the same ingredients: depreciation, fuel, maintenance, insurance, and fees.
Generally yes, mostly through slower depreciation and cheaper insurance. A $15,000 used car kept 5 years with $1,400-a-year insurance and heavier repair spending still totals around $28,100 ($468 a month, $0.47 a mile) versus $734 a month for the financed $35,000 SUV. The trade-off is repair risk: budget $600 a year for a 5-plus-year-old car and accept that a single transmission can erase a year of savings, which is what the repair-versus-replace question really turns on.
Yes, sharply. Depreciation is front-loaded: a new car loses its biggest chunk in years one through four, then the curve flattens, while insurance and maintenance drift up modestly. Holding a car for 8 to 10 years instead of 5 typically cuts the average annual cost by a quarter to a third, because you're amortizing the expensive early years across more cheap ones. The payment disappears too, if you keep it past the loan.
Depreciation (purchase price minus resale value), loan interest only (principal isn't a cost, it's buying the asset), fuel from miles per year and MPG, insurance, maintenance, repairs, and registration. It excludes parking, tolls, tickets, and accessories, since those vary by driver more than by car. Sales tax on the purchase is partially captured: it raises your effective cost basis, so add it to the purchase price field if you want it counted.