Car Affordability Calculator

1. Enter the total monthly car budget you want to test.
2. Add your down payment, trade-in value, and any amount owed on the existing trade-in loan. The net trade-in equity is shown below those fields.
3. Enter the estimated sales tax rate. Use the toggle to control whether the trade-in value reduces the taxable amount — common in many US states.
4. Enter fees and any cash rebate or manufacturer incentive.
5. Enter the loan term and APR.
6. Add optional monthly insurance and ownership cost assumptions, then choose whether those costs should reduce the total monthly car budget before the available loan payment is estimated.
7. Review the estimated vehicle price, loan amount, monthly loan payment, total interest, and the budget and deal summary.

How much car can I afford from a monthly budget?

This calculator starts from the total monthly car budget you enter. If you turn on insurance and ownership costs, those costs are reserved first and only the remaining amount is treated as the available monthly loan payment.

APR and loan term convert that available payment into an estimated loan amount. Down payment, net trade-in equity, rebate, sales tax, and fees then affect the estimated vehicle price. The result is an estimate only, not loan approval, a dealer quote, or personalized financial advice.

Use this page when you want to answer questions like "how much car can I afford?" or "what car can I afford for a set monthly budget?" before you shop. For broader car-buying context, start with the Auto Financing topic.

Car budget vs car payment

A car payment is only the financing part of ownership. If the total monthly car budget is $500 and expected insurance plus maintenance and fuel total $250, then only $250 remains for the estimated loan payment when ownership costs are included.

That is why the same budget can support different vehicle prices depending on the toggle. Leaving ownership costs out can be useful when you only want to test loan affordability, but including them can be more realistic for monthly cash flow planning. For a deeper explanation, see car payment vs total ownership cost.

Car budget vs income-based affordability

This calculator uses a monthly car budget, not income alone. Income can help you choose that budget, but affordability also depends on rent or mortgage costs, existing debt, insurance, savings goals, emergency cash flow, and other expenses.

If you want to check the car budget against your full monthly cash flow, use the Budget Calculator. If you want to review debt pressure before borrowing, use the Debt-to-Income Ratio Calculator.

Avoid treating a fixed percentage of income as a guaranteed safe car budget. Rules of thumb can be a starting point, but the useful number is the payment that still leaves room for the rest of your financial life.

Trade-in, rebate, tax and fees

Trade-in value and amount owed are separate inputs. Net trade-in equity equals trade-in value minus payoff; positive equity can raise the estimated vehicle price, while negative equity can reduce it. For more detail, see how trade-in equity affects how much car you can afford.

Sales tax treatment depends on the toggle. In many states, trade-in value may reduce the taxable amount, but local rules vary. Fees and cash rebates also change the amount financed, so they can move the estimated vehicle price even when the monthly budget stays the same.

After estimating a vehicle price, use the Auto Loan Calculator to model a specific purchase price and payment. If a dealer quotes a lease instead of a loan, use the Car Lease Calculator to compare the lease structure.

Example: what car can I afford for $250 a month?

Here is a compact monthly-budget scenario you can model:

• Total monthly car budget: $250
• Include ownership costs: off
• Down payment: $2,000
• Trade-in value: $0
• Trade-in payoff: $0
• APR: 6.9%
• Term: 60 months
• Sales tax: 7%
• Fees: $1,000
• Rebate: $0

With ownership costs left off, the full $250 is available for the estimated loan payment. Under those assumptions, the calculator estimates a vehicle price of about $12,762 before tax and fees. If you turn ownership costs on, the estimated vehicle price will be lower because less of the monthly budget is available for the loan payment.