Auto Loan Payment Calculator

Intro

Estimate a car loan payment from vehicle price, upfront credits, sales tax, rate and term. Check how tax treatment affects principal; this tool taxes the full vehicle price before subtracting credits.

An auto loan calculator is a planning tool for the financing part of a vehicle purchase, not a quotation from a lender. A vehicle’s advertised sticker price is not necessarily the amount financed. Sales taxes, title and registration charges, dealer fees, optional add-ons, a down payment and any trade-in credit change the cash needed and the principal borrowed. Compare offers on the same out-the-door price rather than choosing a car solely because one advertisement features a small monthly payment.

About this result

How to use

Enter the inputs, calculate, then compare the two results with the assumptions below.

Formula

Amount financed = vehicle price × (1 + sales tax / 100) − down payment − trade-in value. Monthly rate r = annual rate / 1200. Payment = principal × r / (1 − (1 + r)^(-months)); at 0% interest, payment = principal / months. Total interest = payment before rounding × months − principal. Enter the inputs, calculate, then compare the two results with the assumptions below.

For an ordinary fully amortizing fixed-rate installment loan, let P be the amount financed, r the annual nominal interest rate divided by twelve and n the number of monthly installments. The estimated payment is M=P×r/[1−(1+r)^(−n)] when r is positive. If r is zero, M=P/n. Multiplying M by n gives total scheduled installment payments; subtracting P gives estimated interest, excluding separately paid taxes, fees and optional coverage.

The formula assumes equal payments, a stable nominal rate and regular monthly periods. Daily simple-interest accrual, unusual first-payment dates, deferred payments, balloon payments and late charges can produce different lender amounts. APR is not interchangeable with the nominal interest input; verify the contract’s calculation method. Extra principal payments may reduce future interest, but check how the servicer applies them and whether prepayment penalties exist.

Worked example

Worked examples. First case: Vehicle price: 30000; Down payment: 5000; Trade-in value: 1000; Sales tax (%): 0; Nominal annual rate (%): 6.5; Term (months): 60. Estimated monthly payment: 469.59; Estimated total interest: 4175.25. Second case: Vehicle price: 30000; Down payment: 5000; Trade-in value: 1000; Sales tax (%): 10; Nominal annual rate (%): 6.5; Term (months): 60. Estimated monthly payment: 528.29; Estimated total interest: 4697.16.

Consider an out-the-door vehicle cost of 29,000 currency units, a 4,000 down payment and 1,000 of net trade-in credit. The resulting principal is 24,000, assuming no other financed charges. At a 7.2% fixed nominal annual rate for 60 months, the monthly rate is 0.072/12=0.006 and the amortization formula gives approximately 477.50 per month. Scheduled installments total about 28,649.80 and the interest component is about 4,649.80, subject to rounding.

Keeping the same principal and interest rate but taking 72 months lowers the estimated payment to about 411.48; total installments become roughly 29,626.92 and interest roughly 5,626.92. This saves about 66.02 each month but costs roughly 977.12 more interest over the schedule. These are illustrative figures, not a dealer quotation. Neither scenario includes insurance, maintenance, optional add-ons or a change in vehicle resale value.

Understand the calculation

The first result is the estimated monthly payment. The second is total interest across all scheduled payments, based on the financed amount and the stated nominal annual rate.

Enter vehicle price, cash down payment and trade-in value in the same currency. Sales tax is a percentage applied to the full vehicle price before subtracting upfront credits. Annual interest rate is a nominal percentage; term is whole months.

Check how tax treatment affects principal; this tool taxes the full vehicle price before subtracting credits.

This estimate omits fees, rebates, insurance, registration and lender-specific charges. Some jurisdictions tax after trade-in or use different rules, so the tax assumption may not match your quote. The engine does not compute APR from fees. Payments and interest are rounded separately to two decimals; real payment schedules can differ by cents.

Do not subtract a trade-in twice if the down payment figure already includes its value.

Compare shorter and longer maturities on total interest and negative-equity risk, not only on the lowest displayed monthly figure.

Begin with the negotiated vehicle price, then itemize taxes, registration, title and dealer charges. Subtract the genuine cash down payment and net trade-in credit after clearing any outstanding loan on the trade-in. Add only products that you intentionally agree to finance. The resulting amount financed is the principal to enter; typing the sticker price alone can substantially understate the payment.

Questions

What changes when I compare these scenarios?

Check how tax treatment affects principal; this tool taxes the full vehicle price before subtracting credits. This estimate omits fees, rebates, insurance, registration and lender-specific charges. Some jurisdictions tax after trade-in or use different rules, so the tax assumption may not match your quote. The engine does not compute APR from fees. Payments and interest are rounded separately to two decimals; real payment schedules can differ by cents.

Is this payment the full cost of owning a car?

No. Insurance, maintenance, registration, fuel, lender fees and other costs are outside this loan estimate.

Does 0% interest mean no loan costs?

The formula gives zero interest at a zero rate, but lender fees or other charges may still apply.

Why might a dealer quote differ?

Tax treatment, fees, rebates, trade-in details, APR and payment timing may differ from these assumptions.

Is the vehicle sticker price the amount I should enter?

Usually not. Start with the negotiated out-the-door cost including applicable taxes and dealer charges, then subtract cash and net trade-in equity and add only deliberately financed products.

Why compare APR with the interest rate?

The nominal rate drives a basic amortization estimate; APR can account for specified finance charges. Compare written offers using the disclosed APR and total finance cost, not rate alone.