Rent vs Buy Calculator
Calculate rent vs buy from your own entered figures.
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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
Calculate rent vs buy from your own entered figures. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
How to use the Rent vs Buy Calculator
- Enter or select monthly rent.
- Enter or select annual rent increase (%).
- Enter or select monthly renter insurance.
- Enter or select home purchase price.
- Enter or select down payment.
- Enter or select mortgage apr (%).
- Enter or select mortgage term (years).
- Enter or select annual property tax.
- Enter or select annual homeowner insurance.
- Enter or select annual maintenance.
- Enter or select opportunity cost rate on down payment (%).
- Enter or select years you plan to stay.
- Read the calculated result; change any measurement to compare alternatives.
Formula
renting cost per year=rent×12 grown by the annual rent increase + renter insurance×12; buying net cost per year=mortgage interest (principal repaid is equity, not a cost) + property tax + homeowner insurance + maintenance + opportunity cost of the down payment (down×rate, compounding); break-even is the first year cumulative buying net cost falls to or below cumulative renting cost
- rent
- Monthly rent
- rentIncrease
- Annual rent increase (%)
- renterInsurance
- Monthly renter insurance
- price
- Home purchase price
- down
- Down payment
- apr
- Mortgage APR (%)
- term
- Mortgage term (years)
- tax
- Annual property tax
- homeInsurance
- Annual homeowner insurance
- maintenance
- Annual maintenance
- oppRate
- Opportunity cost rate on down payment (%)
- years
- Years you plan to stay
User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
Worked example
For rent vs buy calculator, the following measurements illustrate the exact method: Monthly rent: 2200; Annual rent increase (%): 3; Monthly renter insurance: 20; Home purchase price: 350000; Down payment: 70000; Mortgage APR (%): 6; Mortgage term (years): 30; Annual property tax: 4200; Annual homeowner insurance: 1800; Annual maintenance: 3500; Opportunity cost rate on down payment (%): 5; Years you plan to stay: 10.
Inputs
- Monthly rent2200
- Annual rent increase (%)3
- Monthly renter insurance20
- Home purchase price350000
- Down payment70000
- Mortgage APR (%)6
- Mortgage term (years)30
- Annual property tax4200
- Annual homeowner insurance1800
- Annual maintenance3500
- Opportunity cost rate on down payment (%)5
- Years you plan to stay10
Result
- Monthly mortgage principal & interest$1,678.74
- Total cost of renting$305,046.41
- Total net cost of buying$294,791.63
- Cost difference (rent total − buying net cost)$10,254.78
- Break-even year8
- Total mortgage interest paid$155,769.01
- Equity built (principal repaid)$45,679.97
- Opportunity cost of down payment$44,022.62
- Total buying cash outlay (down payment + payments + running costs)$366,448.98
Results explained
- Monthly mortgage principal & interest
- Monthly mortgage principal & interest from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
- Total cost of renting
- Total cost of renting from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
- Total net cost of buying
- Total net cost of buying from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
- Cost difference (rent total − buying net cost)
- Cost difference (rent total − buying net cost) from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
- Break-even year
- Break-even year from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
- Total mortgage interest paid
- Total mortgage interest paid from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
- Equity built (principal repaid)
- Equity built (principal repaid) from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
- Opportunity cost of down payment
- Opportunity cost of down payment from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
- Total buying cash outlay (down payment + payments + running costs)
- Total buying cash outlay (down payment + payments + running costs) from the formula above. User-entered property figures only. Estimates exclude costs not entered and are not investment advice. Compare over the same stay for both sides.
Frequently asked questions
Renting: monthly rent grown by your annual rent increase, plus renter insurance. Buying: mortgage interest, property tax, homeowner insurance, maintenance, and the opportunity cost of tying up the down payment. Principal repaid is shown separately as equity built, because it is not a cost.
It is the investment return the down payment could have earned instead of sitting in the home. This tool charges the down payment your entered annual rate each year, compounding, and adds it to the cost of buying.
It is the first year in which the cumulative net cost of buying drops to or below the cumulative cost of renting. Staying shorter than the break-even year usually favours renting on these inputs; staying longer usually favours buying.
Principal payments reduce your loan and build equity you recover when you sell, so counting them as a cost would double-count. The true financing cost is the interest. The total cash outlay output still shows every dollar that leaves your account, principal included.
Home-price appreciation, closing costs at purchase, selling costs at exit, mortgage tax deductions, and rent increases beyond your entered rate. Each can move the break-even year, so test higher and lower values before deciding.
Not necessarily. The payment comparison ignores tax, insurance, maintenance, the down payment's opportunity cost, and how long you stay. The full cost stack over your actual stay is the fair comparison.