Lease vs Buy Calculator
The short answer: most lease-vs-buy comparisons cheat by ignoring that the buyer owns something at the end. This one doesn't: it totals the lease (signing + payments + disposition fee) against the buyer's net cost over the same months — payments made, plus the balance still owed, minus what the car is worth. Every assumption is on the table where you can change it.
Buying? Lock the rate first
The buy side of this comparison lives or dies on its APR. A pre-approval gives you the real number to enter here — LendingTree's auto marketplace (application via CJ) is the planned partner for this slot.
How this is calculated
Lease cost is simple: due at signing + monthly payment × term + disposition fee. The buy side is computed over the same horizon (the lease term): down payment + the loan payments made in that window + the loan balance still owed at the horizon − the car's estimated value at the horizon (price compounded down at your depreciation rate). That net figure is what buying actually cost you for those months, because the remaining balance and the car itself are both still yours. The payment and balance use the standard amortization formulas from our loan calculator; the value curve mirrors the depreciation calculator.
Excluded, and named rather than buried: lease mileage overages and wear charges (real money for high-mile drivers), lease acquisition fees not in your due-at-signing, and post-warranty repairs on the buy side. Adjust the disposition fee and due-at-signing to match your actual lease quote.
Frequently asked questions
Why compare over the lease term?
Because that's the honest common ground. A lease ends at its term; comparing against a loan over the same months — counting what you paid, what you still owe, and what the car is worth — answers "which left me better off after the same three years" instead of pitting a 36-month lease against a 60-month loan's total.
What costs does this comparison leave out?
Lease mileage overages (often $0.15–$0.30 per mile), excess wear charges, and any lease acquisition fee not rolled into your due-at-signing. On the buy side it leaves out maintenance differences — a bought car kept past warranty accrues repair costs a perpetual leaser avoids. Every one of these favors one side; the calculator names them instead of burying them.
What depreciation rate should I use?
15% per year is a reasonable middle for mainstream cars. Slow-depreciating trucks and in-demand models may run closer to 10%; luxury sedans and EVs have at times run 20% or more. The result is sensitive to this number — try two rates and see whether the verdict survives.
Is leasing ever the right answer?
Yes — for drivers who value a new car every few years, drive predictable miles, and can use the lower payment well. The calculator's job is to price that preference honestly, not to talk you out of it.