Maintenance & Fuel · Free tool
Free Car Ownership Cost Calculator
Enter the price, the loan and your running costs. The calculator adds up everything the car costs over the years you keep it, and breaks it down per year, month and mile.
- Free to use
- No signup
- Runs in your browser
The car
Experian: about 40% is left after five years.
The loan
Running costs
Insurance, maintenance and fee defaults are AAA’s 2026 averages for a new vehicle. Replace them with your own figures.
Total cost of ownership, 5 years
$55,527
What the car costs you beyond the money you get back when you sell it.
- Per year
- $11,105
- Per month
- $925
- Per mile
- $0.74
- AAA average new car, 2026
- $12,863 / yr
- Depreciation$18,000
- Fuel$9,375
- Insurance$10,490
- Maintenance, repairs, tires$8,798
- Loan interest$4,855
- License, registration, taxes$4,010
Sales tax on the purchase, parking and tolls are not included.
An estimate from the figures you enter, not a quote. Read the disclaimer. Updated .
02Your result
What your cost of ownership result means
The price is what you pay to get a car. The cost of ownership is what you pay to have one.
- 01
Total cost of ownership
Everything the car costs you over the period, after the resale value is taken back out. It is the fair way to compare two cars.
- 02
Cost per mile
The total divided by the miles you drive. It shows what a trip costs once fuel is only part of the picture.
- 03
Where the money goes
The bar shows each cost’s share. On a new car depreciation is usually the largest, and it is the one nobody sends you a bill for.
What to do next
Model the depreciation
Estimate the car’s value year by year instead of using one resale percentage.
Depreciation calculatorCheck it against your income
See whether the running costs fit inside the 20/4/10 rule.
Affordability calculatorSee typical service prices
What routine maintenance costs, job by job.
Maintenance costs
03How it works
The cost of ownership formula
Six costs, added together. Five of them you pay as you go. The sixth, depreciation, you pay when you sell.
Total = depreciation + fuel + insurance + maintenance + loan interest + taxes and fees
Cost per mile = total ÷ miles driven.
Depreciation = price × (1 − resale share). Fuel = miles ÷ MPG × price per gallon
Loan interest is the interest paid during the years you own the car, not over the whole loan.
What each term means
- D
- Depreciation: the price you pay less what the car is worth when you sell.
- F
- Fuel: miles driven, divided by MPG, times the price of a gallon.
- I
- Insurance premiums over the period.
- M
- Maintenance, repairs and tires, entered in cents per mile.
- L
- Interest on the loan while you own the car.
- T
- License, registration and yearly taxes.
What the tool assumes
- Costs stay at today’s prices for the whole period.
- The default insurance, maintenance and fee figures are AAA’s 2026 averages for a new vehicle.
- Sales tax on the purchase, parking and tolls are left out.
- You sell the car at the end for the resale share you enter.
04Worked example
Cost of ownership example: a $30,000 car over five years
A $30,000 car kept for five years and 75,000 miles, with $6,000 down and a 60-month loan at 7.5% APR, returning 28 MPG on $3.50 gas.
- 01
Depreciation
$30,000 × (1 − 40% resale value)
$18,000
- 02
Fuel
75,000 miles ÷ 28 MPG × $3.50
$9,375
- 03
Insurance
$2,098 a year × 5
$10,490
- 04
Maintenance, repairs and tires
11.73¢ a mile × 75,000 miles
$8,798
- 05
Loan interest
$24,000 over 60 months at 7.5% APR
$4,855
- 06
License, registration and taxes
$802 a year × 5
$4,010
Five-year cost of ownership
$55,527
That is $11,105 a year, $925 a month and $0.74 a mile.
Try your own numbers05Background
What it really costs to own a car
AAA works this sum out every year for the average new vehicle. Its 2026 figure is $12,863 a year, or 85.8 cents a mile, for a car driven 15,000 miles a year.
| Cost | Per year | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Depreciation | $4,422 | 34% |
| Fuel | $2,598 | 20% |
| Full-coverage insurance | $2,098 | 16% |
| Maintenance, repairs and tires | $1,760 | 14% |
| Finance charges | $1,184 | 9% |
| License, registration and taxes | $802 | 6% |
Depreciation is the largest line and the easiest to overlook, because it is not a bill. It is the gap between what you paid and what a buyer will give you later. A car bought at two or three years old costs far less in depreciation, which is the main financial case for buying used.
See what maintenance costs for typical prices, service by service.
06When to use it
When to use a car ownership cost calculator
When the decision is between two cars, or between a car and keeping the one you have.
Comparing two cars
A cheaper car with poor fuel economy or resale value can cost more to own.
New against used
Change the price and the resale share to see what the first owner pays for.
Deciding how long to keep it
Run three, five and seven years and compare the cost per year.
Setting a monthly budget
Use the per-month figure, not the loan payment, as the car’s true monthly cost.
Mistakes to avoid.
- Comparing cars on price or monthly payment alone.
- Leaving depreciation out because it is not paid monthly.
- Using the average insurance figure when a quote for your own car and record is easy to get.
- Forgetting that an older car trades lower depreciation for higher repair costs.
07Related guides and tools
Keep going from here.
Guides that go with this tool
08Questions
Car Ownership Cost Calculator: your questions.
How much does it cost to own a car per year?
AAA puts the average cost of owning and operating a new vehicle at $12,863 a year in 2026, or about $1,072 a month, for a car driven 15,000 miles a year. Your own cost depends on the car, your mileage and your insurance.
What is the total cost of ownership of a car?
It is the sum of depreciation, fuel, insurance, maintenance and repairs, loan interest, and taxes and fees over the time you own the car.
What is the biggest cost of owning a car?
For a new car it is usually depreciation. In AAA's 2026 figures depreciation is $4,422 a year, more than fuel or insurance.
How much does a car cost per mile?
AAA's 2026 average for a new vehicle is 85.8 cents a mile at 15,000 miles a year. Driving fewer miles raises the cost per mile, because the fixed costs are spread more thinly.
Is it cheaper to own a used car?
Usually, because the first owner has absorbed the steepest depreciation. Maintenance and repair costs tend to be higher on an older car, so compare the totals, not one line.
09Estimates and sources
Read this before you rely on it.
Built and checked by CarTipsMentor Team. Last updated . How we check our work.
Sources
- [1]AAA, Your Driving Costs 2026 (brochure)
- [2]Experian, What Is Car Depreciation?
- [3]Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Auto loan answers: key terms