Use this calculator to estimate your monthly car payment. Enter the vehicle price, down payment, trade-in value, loan term, and interest rate to see a complete breakdown of your auto loan costs including sales tax.
Most U.S. car buyers finance their purchase with an auto loan, and the monthly payment is almost always the number that drives the decision. That's a problem, because monthly payment is a deceptive lens — extending the loan term can shrink the payment while quietly inflating the total cost of the car by thousands of dollars.
This calculator computes monthly payment, total interest, and total cost using the standard amortization formula, but it also folds in the parts that often get ignored: sales tax on the purchase, trade-in credit, and down payment. It works for new and used vehicles, and the math applies equally to dealer financing, credit union loans, and bank loans.
Auto loans are typically much shorter than mortgages — most are 36 to 72 months — but rates are usually higher because cars depreciate fast and the collateral loses value quickly. Your credit profile drives most of the rate variation. A borrower with excellent credit might qualify for 4–5% APR; a subprime borrower on the same car might see 15%+.
Vehicle: $35,000 Down payment: $5,000 Trade-in: $0 Sales tax: 6% Loan: $31,800 at 5.5% APR for 60 months Monthly payment: ≈ $607 Total interest: ≈ $4,638 Total cost: ≈ $40,638 Roughly $1.16 of total cost for every $1 of vehicle, after tax.
Same $31,800 loan, but at 84 months instead of 60. Monthly payment: ≈ $458 (a tempting $149/month "savings") Total interest: ≈ $6,672 Total cost: ≈ $42,672 The longer term saves $149/month but adds $2,034 to total interest — and you'll likely owe more than the car is worth for the first 3–4 years (negative equity).
Same $31,800 loan, 60-month term, but at 15% APR instead of 5.5%. Monthly payment: ≈ $757 Total interest: ≈ $13,604 Total cost: ≈ $50,604 The same car costs about $10,000 more over the life of the loan because of credit-score-driven rate differences. This is why improving credit before financing a car can save more than negotiating a few hundred off the price.
Use this calculator before you visit the dealer, not after. The single best move in auto financing is to walk in with a pre-approved loan offer from a credit union, bank, or online lender — then let the dealer try to beat it. Dealers make significant profit on financing markups, so even a small rate concession from them confirms you had a strong opening number.
It's also useful for "buy vs lease" thinking. Compare the total cost computed here with the total of monthly lease payments plus any fees and residual buyout. For that comparison directly, use the lease-vs-buy calculator.
This calculator assumes a fixed-rate, simple-interest loan, which describes the vast majority of U.S. auto loans. Some subprime lenders use precomputed interest or "Rule of 78" structures that penalize early payoff; those are uncommon but worth flagging in your loan paperwork.
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Monthly Payment
$613.15
Loan Amount
$32,100.00
Total Interest
$4,688.84
Total Cost
$36,788.84
| Month | Payment | Principal | Interest | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $613.15 | $466.02 | $147.13 | $31,633.98 |
| 2 | $613.15 | $468.16 | $144.99 | $31,165.82 |
| 3 | $613.15 | $470.30 | $142.84 | $30,695.52 |
| 4 | $613.15 | $472.46 | $140.69 | $30,223.06 |
| 5 | $613.15 | $474.62 | $138.52 | $29,748.43 |
| 6 | $613.15 | $476.80 | $136.35 | $29,271.63 |
| 7 | $613.15 | $478.99 | $134.16 | $28,792.64 |
| 8 | $613.15 | $481.18 | $131.97 | $28,311.46 |
| 9 | $613.15 | $483.39 | $129.76 | $27,828.08 |
| 10 | $613.15 | $485.60 | $127.55 | $27,342.48 |
| 11 | $613.15 | $487.83 | $125.32 | $26,854.65 |
| 12 | $613.15 | $490.06 | $123.08 | $26,364.58 |