Car Depreciation & Vehicle Resale Value Calculator

Depreciation is the largest hidden cost of vehicle ownership. New cars lose approximately 20% of their value in the first year and roughly 60% of their value over 5 years.

To use the Car Depreciation & Vehicle Resale Value Calculator, enter your Original Vehicle Purchase Price, Vehicle Age / Ownership Horizon, Annual Miles Driven and other values. The calculator instantly computes Estimated Future Resale Value, Total Depreciation Value Lost and more. Results update in real time as you change any input — no submit button needed.

How to Use This Calculator

Enter your Original Vehicle Purchase Price (e.g. 35000 in ), Vehicle Age / Ownership Horizon (e.g. 5 in years), Annual Miles Driven (e.g. 12000 in miles/yr), and Vehicle Category — choose from Standard Sedan / Hatchback (Moderate Depreciation), Truck / SUV (Lowest Depreciation), Luxury Vehicle (High Depreciation). Results update instantly as you type — adjust any value to compare scenarios.

The Formula

Year 1 Depreciation ≈ 20% to 25% Value Loss

Subsequent Years Depreciation ≈ 12% to 18% per year

Cost per Mile (/mile) = Total Depreciation Lost ÷ Total Miles Driven

Worked Example

35,000 Truck/SUV driven 12,000 miles/year for 5 years:

Year 1 Value = 29,

• Year 5 Estimated Resale Value = 17,631.

57.

Total Value Lost = 17,368.43 (49.6% depreciation lost).

Depreciation Cost per Mile = 0.29/mile.

Understanding Your Result

Compare your result against industry benchmarks for your specific sector — significant variation exists across industries, business stages, and geographic markets. Use this calculation as one data point alongside your unit economics, cash flow, and competitive positioning. For decisions involving significant capital allocation, validate your model assumptions with historical actuals from at least 6–12 months of operating data before projecting forward.