Free car-buying tool
Car lease calculator
Type in the numbers from a lease quote and see how the monthly payment is built: what you pay for the car losing value, plus the finance charge, plus tax.
Monthly payment
Type the price and term, the residual, and a money factor to start.
- Amount leased (cap cost)
- Residual
- Depreciation, per month
- Finance charge (rent charge), per month
- Tax, per month
- Due at signing
- Total you pay over the term
- Rough APR (money factor x 2,400)
Dex: The money factor is the loan rate wearing a disguise. Ask for it by name, and ask what it is as an APR.
How the payment is built
- Depreciation. The amount you lease, minus the residual, spread over the term. This is what you pay for the car losing value.
- Finance charge. The money factor times the amount you lease plus the residual. It works like interest.
- Tax. Your tax rate times the base payment. This page taxes each monthly payment. If your quote taxes a lease differently, use the numbers on your quote.
These steps follow the Federal Reserve's lease guide. See where the numbers come from.
The words on a lease quote
- Cap cost
- The amount being leased: the price, plus anything rolled in, minus what you put down or trade in.
- Residual
- What the lease says the car will be worth at the end. A higher residual means a lower payment.
- Money factor
- The rate used for the finance charge, written as a small decimal. Multiply by 2,400 for a rough APR. That is a rule of thumb, not a number lenders have to show you.
- Due at signing
- The first payment plus cash down and any fees you pay in cash.
Check it with a worked example
The Federal Reserve's own example: a money factor of 0.00354, an amount leased of $18,800 and a residual of $12,350 give a finance charge of 0.00354 × ($18,800 + $12,350) = $110.27 a month. Type those three numbers in with a 36-month term and the finance charge line shows $110.27.
The Federal Reserve also says the money factor typically is not disclosed to you, so ask for it. If a quote shows only a payment, you cannot tell whether the finance charge is fair.
