Compare the real cost of owning a new and a used car over your chosen period — depreciation plus servicing. New loses value faster; used can cost more in repairs.
Compare finance and insurance offers.
Cost of ownership = value lost + servicing × years. Depreciation uses a constant annual rate (it ignores the steeper first-year drop, which in reality favours buying used). Excludes fuel and insurance.
The calculator compares the cost of owning each car over your period: the value it loses plus annual servicing and repairs. Value lost = price × (1 − (1 − rate)^years) — the higher the price, the bigger the loss in money.
A new car loses more value (higher base) but usually costs less in repairs (warranty). A used car is the opposite: less value lost, higher servicing. The calculator shows which works out cheaper overall.
In value, usually yes — it loses the same percentage from a higher price, and the drop is steepest in the first years. But a new car has lower repair costs and a warranty, so overall it isn't always more expensive.
The first owner absorbs the biggest value loss (up to 40–50% in three years). Buying a 2–3 year old car skips that drop, though expect higher servicing costs and a shorter warranty.
Fuel, insurance, finance costs and the risk of a major fault on a used car. It models depreciation with a simplified constant annual rate — in reality a new car loses most in year one.
No — everything is calculated locally in your browser.
A new car tempts with that showroom smell and a warranty, but the biggest cost — depreciation — falls on the new-car buyer in the first years. Buying used shifts that cost to the previous owner.
Enter the new and used prices, the value-loss rate and servicing costs above to see which is really cheaper.