Free calculator

Car running cost calculator

The price tag is only the start. This works out what a car really costs to own: depreciation, fuel, tax, insurance and servicing, all added up over the years you keep it, and shown as one honest figure a month. Free, no sign-up.

The car

Price / value today (£) What you'll pay for it, or what it's worth now.

Age now (years) 0 for a new car; it changes the depreciation.

Fuel type

Fuel economy (MPG) Use the figure the car really returns.

Petrol price (pence per litre) Edit to the price you actually pay.

Your ownership

Years you'll own it Between 1 and 10 years.

Miles a year The average UK car covers about 7,000.

How well it holds value Strong brands and desirable specs hold value best.

The yearly bills

Insurance (£/year) Your quote or renewal figure.

Servicing & maintenance (£/year) Servicing, MOT, tyres and repairs.

Road tax (£/year) Not sure? The car tax calculator gives the exact VED.

Where the money actually goes

A typical example: a £22,000 petrol hatchback bought new, kept 4 years and driven 7,000 miles a year, on middling insurance, servicing and the standard road tax.

Worked example: total cost over 4 years
Cost	Over 4 years	Per year	Share
Depreciation	£11,866.94	£2,966.74	57.5%
Fuel	£3,960.16	£990.04	19.2%
Insurance	£2,400	£600	11.6%
Servicing & maintenance	£1,600	£400	7.8%
Road tax	£800	£200	3.9%
Total	£20,627.10	£5,156.78	100%

That works out at about £429.73 a month, or 74p per mile for every mile driven, and notice that depreciation alone is the biggest slice, comfortably more than the fuel. That's the number the price tag never shows you. Change the figures above to match a car you're actually looking at.

The real cost of running a car

Ask most people what their car costs and they'll tell you the price they paid, or the finance payment. Both miss the bigger picture. What a car actually costs you, month in month out, is five separate things stacked together, and the largest of them is usually the one that never shows up on a bank statement.

Depreciation is that hidden giant. A car is worth less every year, and on anything newer that fall is steep: a big drop the moment it leaves the forecourt, then a steady bite out of the remaining value each year after. You don't feel it until you sell or part-exchange, but it's real money, and over three or four years it routinely dwarfs the fuel bill. It's the single strongest argument for buying a car a year or two old rather than brand new: someone else has already taken the worst of the hit.

The other four are more visible. Fuel moves with every mile you drive and depends entirely on how thirsty the car is, a figure worth getting right, because the brochure MPG rarely survives real roads. Insurance and servicing are the yearly bills you can shop around on, and they swing hugely between a small hatchback and a big premium saloon. Road tax is usually the smallest slice, but it's easy to check exactly. Add all five up and divide by the months you'll own the car, and you finally have a number you can compare fairly from one car to the next.

That comparison is where the surprises live. A cheap car that drops value fast, drinks fuel and sits in a high insurance group can genuinely cost more to own than a pricier one that holds its money and sips petrol. The only way to know is to total it up. Two things make the total honest: realistic figures (your own insurance quote and MPG beat any default) and a car that's genuinely what it claims to be. It's worth confirming that last part before you trust any of the numbers: the free MOT check sanity-tests the mileage, and the full report confirms the spec, engine and fuel type, so the running costs you work out are the running costs you'll actually pay. If you're borrowing to buy, add the cost of the finance on top for the complete monthly picture.

Running cost calculator: common questions

What does it really cost to own a car?

Far more than the fuel. The true cost of running a car is five things added together: the value it loses while you own it (depreciation), the fuel or electricity it uses, the road tax, the insurance, and the servicing and maintenance. On most cars depreciation is the single biggest slice (bigger than fuel) even though it's the one people forget, because you only feel it when you come to sell. This calculator adds all five up over the years you'll own the car and shows the total as a monthly figure.

Why is depreciation usually the biggest cost?

Because a car is worth less every year, and on a newer car that drop is large. A typical car loses a big chunk of its value in the first year and a steady share every year after. Over three or four years that can easily add up to more than all the fuel, tax and servicing combined. It doesn't leave your bank account month by month, so it hides, but it's real money, and it's the main reason a nearly-new car costs so much more to own than a slightly older one.

How do I work out the insurance and servicing figures?

Use your own numbers if you have them: your renewal quote for insurance, and what you actually spend on servicing, MOT, tyres and repairs in a year. If you're still shopping, get a quick insurance quote for the exact car and put a few hundred pounds a year aside for servicing and wear, more on an older or premium car. The defaults here are middling starting points; the more honest your figures, the truer the total.

Does this include finance or interest?

No. This is the cost of running the car, not the cost of borrowing to buy it. If you're paying on PCP or HP, the interest is an extra cost on top; our car finance calculator works out exactly how much the credit adds. Adding the two together gives you the full monthly picture: what the finance costs plus what the car costs to keep on the road.

Is a cheaper car always cheaper to run?

Not necessarily. A cheap car that depreciates fast, drinks fuel and sits in a high insurance group can cost more to own than a pricier one that holds its value and sips petrol. That's the whole point of totting up all five costs rather than judging a car on its price tag. And it only works if the car is what the advert says; our £5.00 report confirms the spec, fuel type and real MOT-recorded mileage so your figures are built on facts, not a hopeful description.