Car Lease Calculator - Simply the Best Auto Lease Payment Calculator

Calculator FAQs

What is the car lease money factor?

This is the "interest rate" you'll pay during your lease. It's sometimes called a "lease factor" or even a "lease fee." To get the money factor, call or email a dealership that sells that brand and be specific about the model you're considering: Money factors may not be the same for all models. Money factors look different from their annual percentage rate (APR) cousins — usually something like this: 0.00125.

What is the lease residual value?

It's a vehicle leasing company's assumption of what a vehicle will be worth at the end of the lease and it's a factor used to determine the monthly lease payment. The higher the residual value, the lower the monthly payment. Most cars have a residual value of between 45% and 60% for a 36-month lease. Enter a number closer to 60% for cars with good resale value. To obtain an average payment, enter something around 53%.

How much is a lease on a $45,000 car?

When leasing, there are countless factors that can affect the price, so it is difficult to estimate a monthly payment that can apply to all scenarios. With that disclaimer in mind, if we use our calculator and make the following assumptions — a 36-month lease with 12,000 miles per year; $1,000 down payment; $550 in title, sales tax and registration fees; $500 disposition fee; excellent credit; and a medium residual value — your monthly payment on a $45K lease would be about $610. Again, this payment could be better or worse in the real world, depending on the vehicle and other aspects of the deal.

What is the lease payment on a $30,000 car?

It is tough to give a monthly payment that will cover all leasing scenarios since many factors can affect the price. With that disclaimer in mind, if we use our calculator and make the following assumptions — a 36-month lease with 12,000 miles per year; $1,000 down payment; $440 in title and registration fees; $595 disposition fee; excellent credit; and a medium residual value — your monthly payment on a $30K car lease would be about $407. Again, this payment could be better or worse in the real world, depending on the vehicle and other aspects of the deal.

How is the lease payment calculated?

In broad terms, you calculate a lease by determining and adding the depreciation fee, plus a monthly sales tax and a financing fee. If you're looking to calculate your payment manually, here is the formula:

1. Start with the sticker price (MSRP) of the car.
2. Take the MSRP and multiply it by the residual percentage.
3. This equals the residual value.
4. Then take the negotiated selling price of the car.
5. Add in the fees to get the gross capitalized cost.
6. Subtract your down payment and rebates.
7. This is your adjusted capitalized cost.
8. Subtract the residual value from the adjusted capitalized cost. This is your depreciation amount.
9. Divide the depreciation amount by the number of months in your lease. This will be your base payment.
10. Add the adjusted capitalized cost and the residual value. Take the sum and multiply it by money factor. This is your monthly rent charge.
11. Add the rent charge to your base payment to get your pretax lease payment.
12. Multiply your tax rate by the pretax lease payment to get the total lease payment.

How much should you put down on a lease?

When leasing a car, your goal is to put down the lowest amount possible, since you won't get any of it back at the end of the lease term. Ideally, you'd pay only the drive-off fees. This is the opposite of a traditional loan, where your goal is to put as much down as possible.