Car budget calculator
Car Affordability Calculator
Estimate a realistic car price from your income, debts, ownership costs, down payment, and loan terms.
Estimate your car budget
Balance payment, ownership costs, and existing debt before shopping.
Estimated max price
$29,924
Comfortable range
This range leaves room for ownership costs under the selected budget rules.
- Max monthly payment
- $535
- Ownership costs
- $440
- Transport budget
- $975
- Max amount financed
- $27,019
Monthly budget breakdown
Car payment$535
Insurance$180
Fuel$160
Maintenance$100
Compare insurance and loan rates before shopping. The affordable price is only useful if the monthly ownership costs are realistic.
How this calculator works
The calculator starts with a target transportation budget based on monthly income, then subtracts insurance, fuel, and maintenance. It also checks a debt-to-income limit so existing debt does not get ignored.
Why ownership costs matter
A car can look affordable if you only compare the loan payment. Insurance, fuel, maintenance, taxes, and existing debts all affect how much room you really have in the monthly budget.