Car Lease Calculator
Shopping for a lease without knowing the real numbers? That’s like going to battle without armor. Our car lease calculator gives you the power to estimate your monthly payments before any dealer tries to work their magic on you.
Input your vehicle price, lease term, money factor, down payment, trade-in value, sales tax rate, and residual value to get both pre-tax and after-tax payment estimates.
As experienced auto brokers, we’ve seen dealers take advantage of unprepared buyers too many times. Use our calculator to set realistic expectations, then let our expert auto brokers secure those terms, or better, while you avoid the dealership hassle entirely. When you know what you should be paying, nobody can sell you what you shouldn’t be buying.
Important Disclaimer
This calculator provides estimates only and assumes excellent credit. Actual lease payments can vary significantly based on numerous factors including manufacturer incentives and loyalty discounts, dealer markups, actual money factor and APR offered, mileage allowance, dealer fees, and your individual credit profile. Use these estimates as a starting point for negotiations, not as guaranteed payment amounts.
How Our Lease Calculator
Estimates Your Monthly Payment
Most people have no clue how lease payments are actually calculated and dealers love keeping it that way. Our car lease calculator cuts through the confusion by showing you exactly how the math works, so you can spot a bad deal from a mile away.
Let’s walk through a real example using a $60,000 MSRP vehicle in LA County. Say you negotiate the price down to $55,000 (your capitalized cost), put $5,000 down, and have a trade-in worth $3,000. The lender sets a 56% residual value ($33,600) and offers you a 5% APR on a 36-month lease.
Step 1: Calculate What You’re Actually Financing
Start with your negotiated price and subtract your down payment and trade-in value: $55,000 – $5,000 – $3,000 = $47,000
This is your true capitalized cost which is the amount you’re actually financing.
Step 2: Find Your Depreciation Cost
Subtract the residual value from your capitalized cost: $47,000 – $33,600 = $13,400
Divide by your lease term to get monthly depreciation: $13,400 ÷ 36 months = $372.22
Step 3: Calculate Interest Charges
Convert your APR to a money factor by dividing by 24: 5% ÷ 24 = 0.00208
Add your capitalized cost and residual value, then multiply by the money factor: ($47,000 + $33,600) × 0.00208 = $167.81
Step 4: Add LA County Sales Tax
LA County’s sales tax rate is 10.25%. Apply this to your combined depreciation and interest: ($372.22 + $167.81) × 0.1025 = $55.35
Add all three components together: $372.22 + $167.81 + $55.35 = $595.38
