Auto Loan Calculators
Auto Loan Calculator
Enter a vehicle price, down payment, trade-in, and rate and AutoLoanLab estimates your monthly car payment and the total cost of financing.
Monthly car payment estimate
Estimated payment, per month
$658.88
Financing breakdown
Estimate using fixed-rate amortization. Sales tax is applied to the vehicle price; trade-in tax credits vary by state and are not modeled. Not a financing offer or APR quote.
About this calculator
A free car-loan calculator that builds the amount financed from the vehicle price, your down payment, a trade-in, and sales tax, then amortizes it at a fixed rate to estimate the monthly payment. It also shows the sales tax, the amount financed, the total interest, and the total out-of-pocket cost across the loan. It runs entirely in your browser and is an estimate, not a financing offer or APR quote.
What you actually finance
A car loan is built from more than the sticker price. This calculator starts with the vehicle price, applies sales tax, then subtracts your down payment and trade-in to get the amount financed — the balance that is actually amortized at your rate. A bigger down payment or trade-in cuts that balance, and the interest on it, directly.
The result breaks out the sales tax, the amount financed, the monthly payment, the total interest, and the total out-of-pocket cost, so you can see how much of your money goes to the car itself versus to the financing.
Why the term is the biggest lever
Dealers often quote the lowest monthly payment, which usually means the longest term. A longer term lowers the payment but raises total interest and keeps you underwater — owing more than the car is worth — for longer, because cars depreciate faster than a long loan pays down.
Compare terms here on total interest and out-of-pocket cost, not just the monthly payment. The shortest term whose payment you can comfortably afford is almost always the cheapest way to finance a car.
Down payment, trade-in, and negative equity
Putting more down or applying a trade-in reduces the financed balance and the interest you pay, and it protects you from negative equity in the early years of the loan. If you still owe money on a trade-in, that balance can be rolled into the new loan — something this simple estimate does not model, so confirm the payoff figure before you rely on the result.
By variant
Questions
- How is the amount financed calculated?
- It is the vehicle price plus sales tax, minus your down payment and trade-in value. That balance is amortized at the rate and term you enter.
- How is sales tax handled?
- Sales tax is applied to the vehicle price and added to the amount financed. Trade-in tax credits vary by state and are not modeled, so a state that taxes only the price after trade-in will come out a little lower.
- Is it free and private?
- Yes. There is no account and nothing is uploaded — the figures you enter are calculated in your browser only.
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