EachCalculatorCar Lease Calculator
Estimate your monthly car lease payment from the vehicle price, down payment, residual value, term, and money factor (APR).
Monthly Payment (with tax)
$488.71
Monthly Payment (before tax)
$456.74
Depreciation Fee
$361.11
Finance Fee
$95.63
How It Works
Depreciation fee
The largest part of a lease payment covers the vehicle's expected depreciation — the difference between its adjusted price and its residual (expected end-of-lease) value, spread over the lease term.
Finance fee (rent charge)
The finance fee is like interest on a loan, calculated using a "money factor" instead of an APR directly — money factor is roughly the APR divided by 2,400.
Example Calculation
A $35,000 car with a $3,000 down payment, $18,000 residual value, 36-month term, and 4.8% APR has a monthly payment of roughly $455 before tax.
Common Mistakes
- Comparing a lease payment directly to a loan payment without accounting for the fact that you don't own the car at the end of a lease.
- Forgetting sales tax, which many states apply on top of the base lease payment.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is a money factor?
- It's the lease-industry equivalent of an interest rate, usually expressed as a small decimal. To convert an APR to a money factor, divide by 2,400 (and multiply a money factor by 2,400 to get the equivalent APR).
- What is residual value?
- The value the leasing company expects the car to be worth at the end of the lease term — a higher residual value generally means a lower monthly payment, since you're only paying for the depreciation down to that value.