Auto Loan Calculator
Estimate the financed amount and monthly car payment before you visit a dealer or compare lenders.
Calculator
Auto Loan Calculator
Enter the sticker price or negotiated purchase price.
Use the amount you plan to pay upfront in cash.
Set this to zero if you are not trading in a vehicle.
Use zero if the trade-in is owned free and clear. This lets the calculator reflect negative equity when the payoff exceeds the trade-in value.
Use zero if there is no rebate reducing the purchase amount.
Enter the combined sales tax rate applied to the purchase.
Add dealer or registration fees you expect to roll into the loan instead of paying in cash.
Use the annual loan rate you expect to qualify for.
Most auto loans range from 3 to 7 years.
Example values are loaded.
Result
Your result
Financing about $30,637.50 for 6 years would put the estimated auto payment near $510.65 per month.
Monthly payment
$510.65
Financed amount
$30,637.50
Total interest
$6,129.25
Purchase breakdown
Next steps
Compare before you move on
Most people use one calculator to answer the first question and a related tool to pressure-test the decision.
Borrowing
Loan Calculator
Estimate monthly loan payments, total interest, and total repayment with a standard amortized loan formula.
Borrowing
Refinance Calculator
Compare current mortgage payments with a refinance scenario and estimate monthly savings, total cost, and break-even based on how closing costs are handled.
Borrowing
Debt-to-Income Calculator
Calculate your debt-to-income ratio from household gross income, housing costs, and recurring monthly debt payments.
What this calculator shows
Vehicle financing gets more complicated when you include trade-in value, trade-in payoff, tax, and a cash down payment instead of just the sticker price.
This tool rolls those inputs together so the monthly payment reflects a more realistic purchase scenario.
How to use it
- 1. Enter the vehicle price and any cash you plan to put down.
- 2. Add the trade-in value, any trade-in loan payoff, any rebate, and any fees you expect to finance.
- 3. Use your estimated tax rate, loan rate, and term to compare monthly payment outcomes.
Formula and assumptions
The financed amount starts with the taxable purchase amount after down payment, trade-in, and rebate, then adds any negative equity from the trade-in payoff plus financed fees before using a standard amortized payment formula.
Monthly payment = P x r x (1 + r)^n / ((1 + r)^n - 1), where P is the financed balance, r is the monthly rate, and n is the number of monthly payments.
Notes
Tax rules on trade-ins, negative equity, rebates, and fees vary by state. Use your local assumptions if the purchase will be taxed differently.
Worked example
A $36,000 vehicle with a $5,000 down payment and a $2,500 trade-in creates a realistic mid-range financing example.
This example uses the default sample inputs loaded on reset. It does not update with the live calculator entries above.
Monthly payment
$510.65
Financed amount
$30,637.50
Total interest
$6,129.25
Feedback
Found a problem on this page?
Report confusing fields, broken math, or missing assumptions with the exact inputs you used so the issue can be reproduced.
FAQ
FAQ
Why is the financed amount different from the vehicle price?
Because the financed amount reflects the price after down payment, trade-in equity, rebate, applicable sales tax, any negative equity from the trade-in payoff, and any fees rolled into the loan.
FAQ
Should I use the dealer rate or preapproved rate?
Use the rate you believe you can actually get. If you are comparing offers, run the calculator more than once to see the payment difference.