Car Depreciation Calculator
Project a car's value year by year with declining-balance depreciation at a rate you choose.
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Currency: Amounts are calculated in the currency you select; this site does not convert between currencies and does not use live exchange rates.
What this tool does
Project a car's value year by year with declining-balance depreciation at a rate you choose. Projection only, from your entered rate — there is no vehicle-value database. Market value depends on model, mileage, condition and region.
How to use the Car Depreciation Calculator
- Enter or select purchase price.
- Enter or select annual depreciation rate (%).
- Enter or select years of ownership.
- Read the calculated result; change any measurement to compare alternatives.
Formula
value after t years = price × (1 − rate/100)^t, applied year by year (declining balance)
- price
- Purchase price
- rate
- Annual depreciation rate (%)
- years
- Years of ownership
Projection only, from your entered rate — there is no vehicle-value database. Market value depends on model, mileage, condition and region.
Worked example
For car depreciation calculator, the following measurements illustrate the exact method: Purchase price: 40000; Annual depreciation rate (%): 20; Years of ownership: 5.
Inputs
- Purchase price40000
- Annual depreciation rate (%)20
- Years of ownership5
Result
- Estimated value at end of period$13,107.20
- Total depreciation$26,892.80
- Value retained (%)32.77
Results explained
- Estimated value at end of period
- Estimated value at end of period from the formula above. Projection only, from your entered rate — there is no vehicle-value database. Market value depends on model, mileage, condition and region.
- Total depreciation
- Total depreciation from the formula above. Projection only, from your entered rate — there is no vehicle-value database. Market value depends on model, mileage, condition and region.
- Value retained (%)
- Value retained (%) from the formula above. Projection only, from your entered rate — there is no vehicle-value database. Market value depends on model, mileage, condition and region.
Frequently asked questions
Declining balance: each year the car keeps (1 − rate) of the previous year's value, so value after t years = price × (1 − rate)^t. At 20% a year a $40,000 car is worth about $13,107 after 5 years.
You choose it — no rate database is used. As orientation only, US market analyses commonly find roughly 20% in year one and about 15% a year after, but make, model, mileage and condition move individual cars far from any average.
Cars lose value fastest early, so a percentage-of-remaining-value (declining balance) curve matches reality better than equal dollar amounts per year. The year-by-year table shows the curve.
Yes in the market, but not in this model — enter a higher annual rate for a high-mileage car or a lower one for a garage-kept low-miler to reflect it.
No. It is a planning projection from your price and rate. Real value needs comparable listings for your exact model, year, trim, mileage and region.