A car's estimated value is its new price reduced by the first-year depreciation rate, then by a smaller rate for each later year. With the common 20% first-year drop and 15% a year after, a $30,000 car is worth about $12,528 at five years old, keeping roughly 42% of what was paid.
Sellers setting an asking price, buyers sanity-checking a listing, and owners deciding when to trade in all start from the same question: how much value has this car shed? Enter the price paid new and its age, then set how much it lost in the first year and in each year after. The estimate shows today's value, the total lost, the share of the price kept and the average yearly loss, with a year-by-year table and a chart of the value curve. Defaults use the widely quoted 20% first-year and roughly 15% later-year figures. This is a depreciation model, not a market appraisal: mileage, condition, accident history, trim and local demand can move a real offer well above or below the figure here.
Type what the car cost new, including options but not registration fees.
Use the − and + buttons to pick how many full years old the car is.
Slide the first-year and later-year loss rates; trucks and some brands hold value better, luxury sedans often worse.
See the value at the end of each year and how much was lost in that year.
Result Estimated value today: $24,000.00
Value lost so far: $6,000.00
Share of price kept: 80%
Average loss per year: $6,000.00
The usual first-year drop of 20% takes $6,000 off a $30,000 car.
Result Estimated value today: $12,528.15
Value lost so far: $17,471.85
Share of price kept: 41.8%
Average loss per year: $3,494.37
20% off in year one, then 15% a year for four years, leaves about 42% of the price.
Result Estimated value today: $23,120.00
Value lost so far: $16,880.00
Share of price kept: 57.8%
Average loss per year: $5,626.67
$40,000 × 0.80 × 0.85² gives $23,120, a loss of $16,880.
V = P × (1 − r₁) × (1 − r₂)^(n − 1), for n ≥ 1
VPr₁r₂nDepreciation is applied as a declining balance: each year's loss is a percentage of what the car was worth at the start of that year, so the dollar loss shrinks as the car ages. The first year carries a heavier rate because a car stops being new the moment it is registered. At age zero the value equals the price.
Industry sources such as Carfax put the typical first-year loss at about 20%. Some models lose less, especially popular pickups and compact SUVs, and some luxury and electric models lose noticeably more.
Each year's rate is applied to the value at the start of that year, not to the original price. A 15% loss on $24,000 is $3,600, while 15% of a later $14,739 is only about $2,211, so the curve flattens over time.
Around 15% is a common middle figure for years two to five. Vehicles with strong resale reputations may sit near 10%, while models with weak demand can lose 20% or more. Compare a few local listings of the same model and age to calibrate.
Yes, but enter its original new price and its total age, not what you paid secondhand. Otherwise the first-year drop is applied to a car that already took it.
Not directly. The model assumes typical use. If the car has covered far more miles than usual for its age, raise the later-year rate a little; if far fewer, lower it.
It gives a reasonable ballpark for a typical car in average condition. Dealers deduct reconditioning costs and their margin, so trade-in offers usually come in below a private-sale value estimated this way.
Using this tool in an assignment, article or report? Copy a citation, or a link for your website.
Tools Directory Editorial Team. (2026, October 25). Car Value Calculator. Tools Directory. Retrieved October 25, 2026, from https://tools.milunir.com/automotive/vehicle-ownership-costs/car-value-calculator/
Tools Directory Editorial Team. “Car Value Calculator.” Tools Directory, 25 Oct. 2026, https://tools.milunir.com/automotive/vehicle-ownership-costs/car-value-calculator/. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.
Tools Directory Editorial Team. “Car Value Calculator.” Tools Directory. Last modified October 25, 2026. Accessed October 25, 2026. https://tools.milunir.com/automotive/vehicle-ownership-costs/car-value-calculator/.
<a href="https://tools.milunir.com/automotive/vehicle-ownership-costs/car-value-calculator/">Car Value Calculator – Tools Directory</a>